Need help with science experiment

[sheimer]

My 11 year old son is working on his science project. He chose to work with my hounds. He was testing the difference that different ground conditions made in their track speed. We intended to make some tracks with the Grawes scent on dirt, hay meadows, and snow. We just got back in from trying to run the first two on dirt(farmed field) and on the hay meadow. The dogs wouldn't run the scent. They'd half ass it and go a ways and then just come back. Kinda like they knew what was up.

In years gone by, I've run them on the Grawes scent and they took it and ran it. But it was at least two years ago and 30 or 40 lions ago.

This leaves us in a bind...Do any of you have any ideas on how to get them to run it or any other scent to use? Another option is, Do any of you have recorded tracks of your dogs moving lion tracks in both snow and dirt? The tracks would have to be similar age and in similar weather(temp, wind, humidity). Can anyone out there give me a hand as right about now I'm failing science class....

Thanks,
Scott

[FullCryHounds]

Scott, how are you laying the scent down? I don't use scent but I would think if your walking along as you put it down, then your dogs are getting just as much of your own scent. When they smell that, they already know you're back at the truck, so that's where they head to. Put that same scent on a coon or some other critter and see what happens, I'll bet you'll probably get a different outcome.

[sheimer]

Dean, I laid the track as I always have, using a little device I built when the dogs were pups..



I put the scent under the rag pieces and then roll it along behind the 4-wheeler. Like you said, I didn't want a lot of my scent along the track. I only put scent on every other "leg" so the scent is spaced similar to a cat's footprints.

I wish I had a house cat I could put the scent on and let the dogs play with it for a while to get thim into the idea of chasing the grawes..... I don't suppose the judges at the science fair would approve of that though....

Scott

[FullCryHounds]

OMG! That is a crackup Scott!

[sheimer]

On to plan B....Live trap a coon and let him make tracks! Called the science teacher and she said "you don't have to tell the judges everything". This makes life much easier...

Thanks,
Scott

[catdogs]

If you lay a drag from A to B are you starting the dogs at B, so the scent gets stronger as they go instead of weaker like a real track?

[sheimer]

Lay the track A to B and run the track B to A..

Scott