J&M Whitetail Recovery

J&M Whitetail Recovery Located in Staunton Illinois, my dog Scarlett and I offer tracking and recovery aid of whitetail deer. Tips/donations are accepted.

There is no fee for us to come out nor a fee if we recover your deer.

Meet Chris or “The Chris” if you’re talking to our youngest kiddo. Chris has been a close friend well before I got into...
11/02/2024

Meet Chris or “The Chris” if you’re talking to our youngest kiddo.

Chris has been a close friend well before I got into tracking. Yesterday evening he called and being we are friends, I didn’t know what he needed or wanted. I proceeded to answer and he asked me what the availability of the dogs were. I told him that we had one track to do and then after that I had nothing. He replied “perfect, a little extra time isn’t going to hurt him”

He had told me that the original shot the deer was a relatively short shot and he did not like it. The arrow entered in high and to the rear. He knew as soon as it hit, it was in the gut. The deer ran about 10 yards or so and stopped in some brush. He said being he didn’t like the first shot and he had a small window in which he could see only some of the front shoulder region he decided to knock another arrow and fire it. Sometime after the second shot he climbed down and gathered his two arrows. The second one looked good but being he was not 100% sure about it, he backed out and head home to give the deer some time and treat it more of a gut wound.

We arrive to the hit sight roughly 7 hours post shot (because I felt confident in the second shot) and I started Delta. Had this been a gut wound only, this deer would have far more time. She worked well. There were moments that I had to take a deep breath and remind myself that she’s a pup. The second wound ended up being double lung. The total track was roughly 70 yards.

Tracking wise there is not too much to brag on but at the end of the day Delta recovered this deer and there were a few take aways. One being that it was a huge confidence boost for Delta. The second one is that this is a good reminder to me that I’m working with a puppy and patience is everything right now. The third is beyond tracking. As life has gotten busy for both Chris and I as our kids get older, we don’t get to talk or do as much anymore. Chris doesn’t have “prime ground” to hunt and has passed countless bucks over the years. This was the first set of horns he drew back on in over 10 years. It was nice to get to hang out and be apart of this even if the drag out of the timber sucked!

An arrow that looks like this doesn’t usually make a handler jump for joy. Then when you see a few pictures of the deer ...
10/29/2024

An arrow that looks like this doesn’t usually make a handler jump for joy. Then when you see a few pictures of the deer on the hoof you get excited..

Today at work I got a text from a hunt with a picture of his arrow and thought “oh boy, here we go…” he also included several trail cam photos of the deer which may have swayed my thoughts a little.

I spoke with him on the phone and during the interview process I asked him if he reached out to any other handlers and he said he did. I then reached out to the handler he spoke to and compared notes. He said that he had other things he needed to do. I told him if he wasn’t able to make it that I would go, just let me know either way.

I heard from him later on and he let me know he was going to back out.

I got stuck at work about 4 hours longer than I hoped. Finally at 8 tonight I was headed over an hour south. Given the short time frame I had to work with I decided to run Scarlett. Not that I didn’t have confidence in Delta but she requires far more time and patience due to the lack of experience. This evening I did not have time nor patience.

I met the hunter and we started. Right off the bat we were hit with a hurdle or what I thought out be a hurdle. The deer made a 600 yard dash across a stubble field. Wide open areas aren’t the best for scent. Then you add on warm, dry and strong winds.. I had my doubts but Scarlett changed my mind on this whole situation in this stubble field. Even in 15mph wind she locked on held the line tight making it across the field flawlessly in a very short time. I then felt confident that we may just find this deer.

She then took us through a hedge row into thick crp for several hundred yards. As we went through the crp when I saw blood it wasn’t too high and it wasn’t too low and the best part it was sprayed out.

We came to thick brush with a couple ditches. I start to feel more confident yet. Here Scarlett needed a break. After sitting her for a few minutes and having her drink water I restarted her. At this point we were in this track at roughly 1,300 yards and it was a straight line. At the last blood we were resting at she made a hard left and it was a straight line that way for 50 yards or so. She then slowly started looping to the right. Once we made 180, I thought “J hook, he’s dead and we are about to find him”. Right at that thought, I walked up to his first wound bed. I leaned down to look at it briefly and when I looked back up at Scarlett a few yards in front of me I saw a kicker just over her head.

I screamed “good girl, Scarlett” I turned around to see the hunter jumping for joy. Tonight, another hunter was made a believer in dogs.

Thank you Derek for reaching out and trusting us with your trophy! This one is another “you never know until you go”

10/26/2024

It’s hard to believe how slow season has been in our area. Hopefully as we close in on the end of October things start to pick up here are a few things to remember.

1) Wait times are critical. Especially as the rut takes off. A mature buck can potentially live longer from the shot due to high testosterone levels. Make sure to give him plenty of time to expire. A dead deer goes no where, a live deer goes somewhere. Even if you have an issue with coyotes, unless they find him, they will not make him die any faster. A coyote will track a wounded deer just the same as our dogs. If you bump your deer you only have that much more of a scent line for a coyote to run across.

2) Pay attention to every detail after the shot. The reaction reaction of the deer to the hit is a big clue for us handlers to try and make an educated guess as to what happened and come up with a game plan to help you.

3) Rain in the forecast? No issue for a dog. Contrary to belief, moisture actually refreshens and holds scent.

As things start to heat up in the woods.. Good luck and stay safe! I can’t wait to hear everyone’s stories to go with their pictures!

We had a busy day yesterday tracking 3 deer and recovered 2 of them. I loaded both Scarlett and Delta in the box. I had ...
10/20/2024

We had a busy day yesterday tracking 3 deer and recovered 2 of them.

I loaded both Scarlett and Delta in the box. I had one track lined up and Marissa had one lined for Delta and I to run after the first. I was on the fence on whether or not to run Delta on the first track. I felt that since the opportunity presented itself, I felt it was fitting for Marissa to be there in hopes of seeing her dog make her first recovery.

The first deer we tracked was a gut shot and the hunter handled the situation perfectly. The only thing I would have changed is that it would have not been in a residential area. I started Delta at the hit sight and she worked flawlessly for the first 75 yards. Once the brush opened up into a back yard and she saw a swimming pool and toys…. She went from working dog to puppy real quick. After several down sits and restarts with no change, I made the decision to get Scarlett out of the box. I started where we left off and after locking on, Scarlett took us right through backyards within spitting distance of swimming pools, garages and houses. Once we crossed the yards she confidently took us back into a small patch of timber where the deer laid. Unfortunately, coyotes had already did their thing but we educated a hunter and made them a believer in dogs.

The second track we had went on we had high hopes for but morale quickly dropped as we had no clue where the hit sight was nor could we find where the deer entered the timber. Delta struggled on the start as any dog would have being it began in a dry open field. After many restarts she took a line into the timber and seemed more enthusiastic about it than she did before. We let her go even without seeing any sign the deer actually took that path. As Marissa and I were both trying to muster the never to tell one another we give up…. Delta showed us blood about 200 yards in. The blood was sporadic for another 75 to 100 yards and then dried up along with Delta. We didn’t see anything along this track that lead us to believe it was a mortally wound deer.

The last and final track. The HONEST Hunter..

While following Joel and Marissa to the previous track, she texted me and said I may have another one after this. Turns out she did. The only information we had on this deer was a picture of the bolt which was covered in nothing but fat. That in itself was alarming to me. When we got to Katie’s we walked into her garage and she could not have been more honest. “There’s the bolt. I did the opposite of most of everything you guys preach. She ran that way. That’s about all the information I have” We got to the hit sight and we started Delta. Quickly she put us on a spec of blood and then a chunk of muscle. I thought it was pretty close to over at that point. However, Delta proceed to show interest in continuing into the stubble field. It was not long and Delta Dawn was standing over her first recovery. Upon further investigation, the bolt never touched the chest cavity, stomach or neck. The bolt grazed the front leg and just a tiny bit of the brisket. This deer was killed by severing the femoral artery. When leg wound is mentioned, I am the furthest thing from excited. However, this deer was not as fortunate and most leg it’s. This track only backs “you never know until you go.” Congratulations Katie on your freezer queen!

I felt bad that I may be the one to see someone else dog make either first recovery but I’m glad that it worked out that Marissa, her husband Joel and her best friend Katie were there to witness it.

So, we have all heard of Door Dash but have you heard of Delta’s Deer Dash?Lastnight at 9, I was laying in bed when my p...
10/03/2024

So, we have all heard of Door Dash but have you heard of Delta’s Deer Dash?

Lastnight at 9, I was laying in bed when my phone rang. It was an unknown number and I usually don’t get spam calls at that time so I quickly answered. It wasn’t someone calling me about solar, debt relief or even my cars extended warranty. It was a hunter that needed help! From the details I got, it sounded like a muscle/shoulder hit but you never know. Once I got there and ran the track, I’m confident in saying that.

Sadly, this did not end with recovery pictures and high fives. However, Delta blew my mind for being her first real track. She worked out a couple creek crossings, 3 back tracks and one circle before jumping the deer right at the one mile mark. That’s right, if had been dead, Delta would have recovered her first deer on her first run. Not only that, it would have been a challenge for dogs with some experience. With that being said, in this case, this screen shot of her work means as much as a recovery picture to me.

As some may know things are going to be switched up a little this year. Every year Scarlett has some bad luck. This yea...
09/27/2024

As some may know things are going to be switched up a little this year. Every year Scarlett has some bad luck. This year we have had a couple health issues with her that hit the pocket book hard. It has been decided that because she is also a family dog we are going to let her live her best life walking around slinging slobber around the house. I will let her stretch her legs a time or two this year but sadly her tour of duty is done.

What does that mean for me and tracking? I don’t talk to as many handlers as I should. But, thankfully, I talk to the right ones. I have been working with a dog named Delta Dawn. Delta belongs to Marissa with Rosentreter Recoveries. Delta is a young bloodhound who is UBT certified. Delta is the product of two of Illinois deer tracking machines. I will be handling Delta for her first season this year. I feel truly blessed and honored to get the opportunity to behind this dog and see what she can do.

As far as the far future in tracking, it has grown into more of a family thing over the last year. With that being said, we do have plans to get another hound but we are being stingy and waiting for a pup from a specific litter.

09/14/2024

As the crops begin to turn and the mornings start to feel like fall, hunting season is right around the corner. With that being said, I would like to pass on a little helpful information in the case you may be interested in having a tracking team come out and try to recover your freezer queen or that wall hanger.

1) Everything that happens after the shot is just as important if not more important than everything leading up to the shot. I get it, in the heat of the moment you may not know exactly where you hit the deer. However, even just knowing the reaction can be key evidence to where the wound is.

2) Grid searching…. We have all done it, it’s hard not to. This can possibly make or break it for a dog. At the very minimum it will make for a headache for both the handler and dog.

3) Mark your last blood clearly. I like to drop or hang if possible every time I see blood.

4) Be honest with the tracker you call. We don’t judge, we are here to help you the best we can. Some wrong details could mean we decided to track too early and end up jumping your deer.

5) Wait times are critical. I tend to wait on the longer side of the recommended wait times. A dead deer goes no where. I have heard “well I have a bad coyote problem.” Many of us do, but if you jump that deer, you just gave the coyotes that much more a scent line to cross. They track your deer just like our dogs do.

6) Get to know you’re local handlers before you may actually need it. Sadly, not all are honest. Not all have trained dogs and don’t care to. Sadly, some just want your money and have no interest in finding your deer.

7) Advice is free. Almost every handler I know will try to help you over the phone before loading their dog. I have tracked for people in the past and still get calls from them just asking for my opinion. Shortly after discussing the details, I have gotten a picture with them and their deer.

Now that we are in the final days before October. I hope everyone has a great season in which many memories are made and I hope everyone stays safe.

Due to some circumstances Scarlett was not able to make it to training day in which I planned on running her UTB II. But...
07/20/2024

Due to some circumstances Scarlett was not able to make it to training day in which I planned on running her UTB II. But, I did get to handle little Miss Delta some. I must say she is easy to fall in love with.

Tracking for me has been full of highs and lows as it would for any other handler. However, it’s days like this that are the biggest highs for me. A few of our members of the Illinois Deer Tracker’s Network got together for a little training. Everyone and their dogs did outstanding and I look forward to seeing the recovery stories this fall from them. Ironically enough, all of the dogs that were there were the ones with the flappy faces and long ears.

It was a blast to be around people with so much passion and dedication for tracking. The amount of knowledge that was there cannot be described. I got to see a few new teams that will be absolute hammers if they keep up the work they have put in.

I would like to thank my A1 since day one Marissa and Raymond Holohan for taking the time to set lines and make it all possible for us. Without that, we would not have learned what we did or shared the laughs today.

Lastly, I had someone reach out to me last week from Missouri. They wanted to talk to someone who ran bloodhounds being every breed does and has their own way of doing things. Through conversation I learned that Scarlett and I were their inspiration to get into tracking as he was along on a track I did for his friend a couple years ago. That being said, it was a special moment getting to see Billy Crocker Jr. and his hound Radar do a little flexing today!

Last year I tracked and had our hands down best year without posting publicly. I decided to run for the fun of it and k...
06/03/2024

Last year I tracked and had our hands down best year without posting publicly. I decided to run for the fun of it and keep to myself.

However, this is post worthy. This weekend the first symposium was held for the Illinois Deer Tracker’s Network. I had a great time and it was a pleasure meeting many of the people I have followed and talked to over the years. The amount of knowledge and experience in one place was unreal.

Not only was the event great but fellow handler Jonathan Beachy and his dog Pixie passed their UBT III which is an outstanding accomplishment!

I would like to thank all of the board members, judges and team leaders that made this event possible. We are already impatiently waiting for next symposium and look forward to seeing everyone again.

Nothing pi**es me off more than this! We did not recover this deer nor have anything to do with it! It’s not much but I ...
11/16/2022

Nothing pi**es me off more than this!

We did not recover this deer nor have anything to do with it!

It’s not much but I hope the little following I do have can help in some way. I’m sharing in hopes someone can get their deer back! This is just as bad as tracking to a gut pile or a deer with the head cut off if not worse.

Please share and help get Gage his deer back.

Last Sunday I tracked this deer and ended up not recovering it. This morning it was taken on the Missouri firearm opene...
11/12/2022

Last Sunday I tracked this deer and ended up not recovering it. This morning it was taken on the Missouri firearm opener.

When I get a call that says ”I have good blood” I immediately think of this and other muscle wounds. I always ask well what makes it good? The answer is usually “well, there’s a ton of it”. Unfortunately, for the hunters on these calls, you don’t have good blood, you just have a lot of blood. The mortality rate is extremely low and the recovery rate is even lower.

It amazes me everyday the strength and will to live the whitetail deer has to live. 

The story of our night in a nut shell. The Therapist Buck Tracking is a game of extreme highs a...
11/09/2022

The story of our night in a nut shell.

The Therapist Buck

Tracking is a game of extreme highs and extreme lows. In my opinion there’s no in between. If you can not pick yourself up off the floor and keep grinding, you’re not going to make it behind a dog tracking deer. 

Today, I had a track lined up and it fell through. We have had a dry streak of 0-5 and come to find out the track that fell through would have made that 0-6. Once got done biting my tongue about the situation that had happened I grew more enthused about going home and sitting on the couch and relaxing after spending the past couple days walking countless miles to come up empty handed. Once I really started thinking about the all the stuff at home that needs to be done that I knew wasn’t going to do I got a message from a long time friend, Jason. He needed Scarlett and I!

When I got home I bypassed the shower and got my headlamp and garmin off the charger and loaded my bestfriend. We were off!

When Scarlett and I got there she worked well for quite sometime but began to slow her roll once we came to last blood as she normally does. We slowly pushed on. We had to restart a handful of times and required a lot more patience than it did a month ago. The effect rut has on deer effects the ability to track them.

Scarlett lead through the timber for quite some time before taking us to a small finger of standing corn. As we worked through the corn I did not notice any evidence that the deer had actually been in there. On the other side she took me into the timber for 30 to 40 yards to the edge of a creek. She turned off there and started acting weird. The creek had a slight bend and we were on the outside of the bend so it was about a 10’ drop. I pulled her off and took her back to last blood and restarted her. It took a few times and slowly we finally made our way through the corn and noticed blood now that I got her to slow down. I looked at my garmin and we were on the same line as the first time. Straight to the edge of the creek.. Once she got to the edge she started waking back and fourth to try and find a place to get down in the creek bed. She entered the creek and made her way back up to were she was acting funny. She looked to her left and her tail started wagging. I look over and Jason’s deer was laying on the other side under some brush.

This deer was the boost we needed!!!

The public Land Pile

Shortly after I got of the phone with Jason I received a call from hunter in which said that he was stood up by a “tracker.” Which infuriated me. I knew I was going to do whatever I could to get a reputable tracker to him. I made a couple calls to the closet trackers in our area and soon found out I was going to be the one taking it. The deer was a stud of a buck. It was an intestinal hit. Scarlett’s nose hit the ground at 40 hours post shot. The deer had bedded but was bumped out of his bed. Not that it is a shock to me being on public land. It took couple restarts but soon Scarlett confidently took the line and went. We tracked this deer after it’s wound bed roughly 2,000 yards straight to a gut pile…

Again, extreme highs and extreme lows. 

Today I got a call from a hunter that I have previously tracked for in the past. I really hate when a hunter has to cal...
11/05/2022

Today I got a call from a hunter that I have previously tracked for in the past. I really hate when a hunter has to call me twice but on the same hand I’m also thankful.

1) we have build a bind and trust with the hunter for them to trust us again.

2) hunters generally don’t take the advice we preach about after the shot. Most think in their mind they’ll never need a dog until they need a dog. When a hunter experiences tracking with a dog they learn a lot from that experience and remember how to handle situation in the future.

Today Dan called about his sons buck. He remembered what I had explained to him when I tracked for him last year. When they started to get doubts they called and wanted/needed some advise. I told them to continue tracking the deer and if they run out of blood do not go more that 15 yards past it. Call me if that does happen. I got a message shortly after saying that was the case and they were backing out. They also learned a fun fact today as well and that was the rain actually helps a dog as it freshens the scent.

On this track I did not notice much blood as I expected given the rain but Scarlett her thing and took to the line and ran it like a champ. I could not be happier with her for making it happen so I could witness this special father/son moment! This dog may make me want to pull my hair out from time to time but she makes those moments worth it.

This deer was the young man’s first archery buck that just also happens to be his first buck.

** it was also noted that he was not shaking, it was just the wind blowing him around!

If you ask me why I got into tracking my answer is and will always be to help a hunter to the best of my ability. No, S...
11/03/2022

If you ask me why I got into tracking my answer is and will always be to help a hunter to the best of my ability.

No, Scarlett and I did not recover this deer. However, last night the hunter did reach out to me asking if I was available to track last night. I wasn’t but proceeded to ask him a few questions. After getting some information from the hunter I told him how to handle the situation. If he didn’t have luck back out call me and I would come out after work. I had a hard time giving an estimate on when to actually track this deer and suggested around noon today. This morning around 10:30 I texted him because I forgot to tell him to try and stay off the visible path traveled to avoid dragging the scent of the deer with him. He replied “found it!” with this picture. Had he or I tracked it last night chances are he would not ever have a picture with it.

Now, I would have loved to have had my dog and I in this picture with this deer and hunter just as any other handler would but I strongly felt a dog was not needed to recover this deer. This year I have gotten 3 different calls on what could have easily been our biggest recoveries but I was honest with the hunter and helped him over the phone before simply just loading the dog.

Mary really hit the nail on the head with this. No matter the handler you may choose do us a favor and don’t do it afte...
11/02/2022

Mary really hit the nail on the head with this. No matter the handler you may choose do us a favor and don’t do it after you loose blood.

But, if you do grid search be upfront and honest. You’re not hiding it from us! Scarlett tells me exactly where grid searching has been done!

For what ever reason I could not post pictures and videos in the same post…. So, here’s a couple pictures of Jackson a...
10/28/2022

For what ever reason I could not post pictures and videos in the same post…. So, here’s a couple pictures of Jackson and Scarlett on tonight track.

10/28/2022

This evenings recovery was one for the books!

After speaking with the hunter I felt confident that this would be a easier recovery. Jackson has begged me to take him along. I have waited for the right time and I felt this was a good opportunity for him to give it ago. I got the hunters approval and we loaded up.

Once we got the the hunting location I got Scarlett ready and as soon as she jumped of the tailgate I hand over the lead to Jackson.

It’s started off a little slower as we the hit sight was in an open field. Scarlett work her way to the wood line slowly but confidently. Jackson was very patient while handling her durning this time and listened to what I had told. “If she stops, you stop.” “Give her all the lead.” “If she makes a circle she has either lost the line and is looking for it or she is questioning what’s going on. So, just stop and wait until she takes off with confidence again. As we closed in I warned both the hunter and Jackson that it was going to change as soon as we got in the timber. As soon as she went 5’ in it was on with no hesitation.

Jackson and Scarlett tracked this gut shot deer at 25 hours post shot. There was not a drop of blood along 600 yard line to this deers first and final wound bed on this track.

Tonight, I got to watch my 6 year old recover a deer like he’s done it a million times.

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Staunton, IL
62088

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Tuesday 9am - 8pm
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Thursday 9am - 8pm
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This evenings recovery was one for the books! After speaking with the hunter I felt confident that this would be a easier recovery. Jackson has begged me to take him along. I have waited for the right time and I felt this was a good opportunity for him to give it ago. I got the hunters approval and we loaded up. Once we got the the hunting location I got Scarlett ready and as soon as she jumped of the tailgate I hand over the lead to Jackson. It’s started off a little slower as we the hit sight was in an open field. Scarlett work her way to the wood line slowly but confidently. Jackson was very patient while handling her durning this time and listened to what I had told. “If she stops, you stop.” “Give her all the lead.” “If she makes a circle she has either lost the line and is looking for it or she is questioning what’s going on. So, just stop and wait until she takes off with confidence again. As we closed in I warned both the hunter and Jackson that it was going to change as soon as we got in the timber. As soon as she went 5’ in it was on with no hesitation. Jackson and Scarlett tracked this gut shot deer at 25 hours post shot. There was not a drop of blood along 600 yard line to this deers first and final wound bed on this track. Tonight, I got to watch my 6 year old recover a deer like he’s done it a million times.

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