We found this nice little moose paddle with a combination of teamwork and thinking like a moose.

We were checking one of our local spots that had been recently logged. The walking was tough for us and the dogs. Tons of hardwood was cut and left all over the place, making it hard to maneuver and nearly impossible for shorter Finley to keep up with Trip (this was an advantage, as you will see later in the story).

With some persistence, we located where the moose had been feeding during the winter so we slowed down and started looking. Over the years, Finley’s learned that I will try to find the path of least resistance through thick areas so he always stays close. Much like Finley and I, moose will try and take the easiest path as well. Trip however hasn’t learned this yet and prefers to blaze his own trail. As we made our way through the cut, Finley’s nose went up in the direction of the wind and it was obvious he smelled an antler. Unfortunately, there was no easy way to get to it so we called in reinforcements. I called Trip up from where he had been working and let him get a sniff of the air. Sure enough, Trip indicated an antler in the same direction as Finley but he had no qualms about busting through the brush. He took off out of site jumping in, around, and through several brush piles, while Finley followed cautiously behind. Within seconds of disappearing, I heard the unmistakable sound of an antler being dragged through brush. I waited for a few seconds and out came Trip and Fin with antler in tow, proud as they could be.

In this case, it was Finley’s patience and willingness to stick by me that ultimately got us the antler. But I would be remiss not to mention Tripper’s willingness to finish the job and retrieve the antler. Each antler is a learning experience for us and it’s so fun watching both dogs grow into the best shed dogs they can be!