What animal made this track?

[Q_Sertorius]

I found a set of these tracks on one of the muddy trails on my farm. Any idea what animal made this track? That’s an ADI 69-grain .223 round for reference.

I have my theory, but I would like to hear some other ideas. I should have taken more pictures.

 

[TxxAgg]

Dog

I turned my phone sideways and it seems clear based on the pad shape and toe spacing

 

[Axlrod]

8o lb lab (blak maybe choc.), heading north caught the sent of a quail. Need more pics of the track to determine what kind of quail.

 

[Q_Sertorius]

8o lb lab (blak maybe choc.), heading north caught the sent of a quail. Need more pics of the track to determine what kind of quail.

Hmm… there are no labradors around, black, chocolate, or otherwise. These tracks were headed west. There aren’t any quail around either (although my dad claims he heard one on the farm for the first time in forty years).

 

[Q_Sertorius]

Dog

I turned my phone sideways and it seems clear based on the pad shape and toe spacing

There were no visible claws on any of the tracks. My larger dog walked through the same gap in the fence and her nearby tracks had distinct claw/toenail marks. She may be quite a bit heavier though.

Edit - I agree that it’s probably a canid though.

 

[RME]

Chupacabra

 

[Q_Sertorius]

Chupacabra

 

[Axlrod]

Hmm… there are no labradors around, black, chocolate, or otherwise. These tracks were headed west. There aren’t any quail around either (although my dad claims he heard one on the farm for the first time in forty years).

Dang! My wife is part native, I thought I could get some dry land tracking skills through osmosis. I'm full German, turns out we don't know shit about tracking.

 

[mtnbound]

I found a set of these tracks on one of the muddy trails on my farm. Any idea what animal made this track? That’s an ADI 69-grain .223 round for reference.

I have my theory, but I would like to hear some other ideas. I should have taken more pictures.

Some type of dog.

 

[omicron1792]

Dog.

 

[Caseknife]

Bobcat, too round for a canid

 

[BLJ]

I have my theory

I think I know what you’re meaning. Not saying I completely agree, but I definitely don’t disagree and think it’s possible.

Awfully round for a dog. IMO.

 

[BAKPAKR]

You are in or close to Appalachia so it has to be a panther, black, to be specific.

 

[Jason Snyder]

Bobcat, too round for a canid

That’s not a cat track. It’s symmetrical and doesn’t have two lobes on the front of the heel pad.

 

[BLJ]

You are in or close to Appalachia so it has to be a panther, black, to be specific.

You’re good.

 

[Caseknife]

Pretty much every canid will have claw marks.

 

[Caseknife]

Cats retract claws, dogs don't, first indicator if you saw no claw marks on any of the tracks.

 

[Q_Sertorius]

Cats retract claws, dogs don't, first indicator if you saw no claw marks on any of the tracks.

I know.

 

[R boar]

Looks to me like a dog track but it rained and mud filled in the claw marks

 

[TxxAgg]

for those saying it looks round, turn the pic 90 degrees to the left.

Additionally his brass mimics the blue line in this pic. Also pay attention to the point of the palm and the bottom lobes.