Hey dirtybird,
Yep, I trained him for just this purpose and he has found all deer I have shot when hunting with him. He stays at heel till after the shot when I command him "seek". He then leaves me and finds the downed animal where he sits beside it. If he and the deer are out of my sight then I begin walking in the direction I last saw him he will come back to me if i haven't found them both whereupon I command him seek again repeating the process until I find them both. This has worked on all the deer we have harvested together. As for live deer he stays at heel at all times and I keep an eye on his body language. He scents high with his nose and becomes quite animated when fresh scent is on the wind. I never let him chase live deer it is not lawful and it is an anathema to me anyway. When he finds on a wounded deer he comes straight back to me and will not return to the animal without me i.e. he leads me to it but not the same as if it were dead. I never taught this it is something he learned himself. I would really like it if he learned how to butcher, pack and carry them out too! I would post a pic of him but don't now how?
Whizz