First time

First time for me!!
Hunter calls and says I straight up gut shot the buck!!
He waits all day before tracking and last blood is at the edge of the woods heading into CRP.
Can't find anything in the CRP so they drive two pickup trucks criss crossing the CRP and still can't locate the deer. I arrived 26 hours later and start Sypris at the shot site and she is tracking slowly and progressing towards last blood. She then exits the woods into the CRP field and gets on to the main 2-track that is along the woods and starts walking down it. Vehicles have been up and down this road several times since the buck was shot.
I pull her back to last blood and she returns to the road and starts down it again so I have no choice I must trust her. Front of the property is a decent size retaining pond that is surrounded by tall weeds and cattails. Makes perfect sense that he would be heading to this area. As Sypris starts checking the runs that lead to the water I'm thinking the buck is in the water!! I think it was the 5th run Sypris jumps in the water and starts to swim across so I make sure the leash isn't tangled and I start to walk around to the other side. It's a long walk. I get to the other side and I can't find Sypris. Then I spot her back on the shore that she originally entered that waters edge. I'm calling her to swim over to me and she starts and makes it half way and starts circling now I'm concerned that she is going to drown because in Michigan the dog has to be on leash and I'm worried the leash is going to tangle up and drown her. I rush back to the other side and she is back on shore. I pick her up and walk her back to the side I feel the buck  would have exited the pond and she doesn't hit on any scent. I can see the entire pond and I don't see a deer. After several hours we decide to start body hunting because obviously Sypris can't figure it out also. Half the day goes by and I'm really bummed out because this is a deer we should be able to locate!!
About a month goes by the temperature dropped freezing the pond and then it warms up thawing out the pond for the most part and my client was hunting near it when he could see something floating. He gets down and it's his buck!! I've never seen a deer sink before and didn't think it was possible!! Where Sypris was swimming in circles is where the buck was on the bottom of the pond. Once the water warmed up the gases built up in the deer causing him to surface.
You can't find them all for many reasons!!!
I never included this deer into Sypris total of recoveries.
Currently she is at 238!! No deer dog in Michigan has more recoveries. I'm not bragging about numbers im simply saying she is extra special.