Ted the Border Collie's Excellent Tracking Adventure in the Snow
This afternoon I laid a track on the snow of a field out in the country. It had a nice crust and was not deep, although it was icy in spots and there are some skidoo trails criss-crossing the field. I laid a big square track on the little centre field for Ted. I used 12 gloves and put a piece of sausage between each one. In the photo above, Ted is seen lying in the snow at home. We have had a LOT of snow this winter!
My training goals for Ted today were:
1. Teach him that tracking is a job, not just all play;
2. Get a more consistent article indication;
3. Reward him in a low-key manner at all articles and have a big party at the last glove, and
4. Get his nose down more, and prevent too much quartering on the track...Ted gets very excited when he tracks and runs it with his head up more than I would like.
Ted is a son of Scott Glen's Pleat. He is two years old, but only learned to track last Fall. This winter, I’ve been working on his article indications with toys in the house. I ask him to lie down though he often picks the toy up and flips it in the air as well. He should not lunge at the toy when I try to pick it up (it is in play, but he is very possessive) so I say “steady now” (which is a herding command Scott Glen taught him) . He is learning to wait and be patient.
Ted is a son of Scott Glen's Pleat. He is two years old, but only learned to track last Fall. This winter, I’ve been working on his article indications with toys in the house. I ask him to lie down though he often picks the toy up and flips it in the air as well. He should not lunge at the toy when I try to pick it up (it is in play, but he is very possessive) so I say “steady now” (which is a herding command Scott Glen taught him) . He is learning to wait and be patient.
Today I used the "steady now" command on the track at articles. He would come to a glove and leap on it, toss it in the air and then lie down. When I tried to pick it up, if he lunged I said “steady now." Ted realized right away what we were doing. I told him in a very calm voice - good boy, let’s go find more.
At first he stared in disbelief while I looked up at the sky. I had a little piece of sausage for him just after each glove, so he would get a reward for getting back to work. After about 4 gloves, he started to whirl around right away when I took his glove away.
It is so apparent to me that Ted has had such a good training foundation from Scott Glen, who owned him until I was lucky enough to buy him last spring. He is very open to training suggestions from me, and amenable to going with them in a very trusting manner until he gets the big picture and adopts the behaviour. Although we often say dogs without a lot of training do better in tracking, I find that some dogs "learn how to learn" and become more open to working with their handler as a team. I also find tracking and herding are very compatible, as tracking does not require any looking back or "watch me" behaviours, and actually encourages a dog to take charge and let's them think for themselves and sort out problems using their natural talent and instinct.
At the LAST glove – he got to play and run and be goofy and I tossed it for him for about 10 minutes. The only thing I am thinking about now, is to make sure that he stays motivated and that I don’t “Un-motivate” him by accident, since this is new to me.
Ted is the most toy / play focused dog I have ever trained to track and he doesn’t really need so much food – he is the first dog I have ever trained (Jet included) where I can actually use play as a reward! Imagine after all these years of tracking having a dog with such different behaviours that I am still learning new stuff. I love it.
By the way, I did a track for River today too, with lots of articles as well. She had her nose right down, and nailed her turns! She always make me feel very proud. River has never been much into play, despite many early attempts to interest her in toys when she first learned to track. She is more into stealing and hording toys from the other dogs. Tracking with River helped me to get a picture in my mind of what I am aiming for with Ted...a steady and consistent track, with a lot of flow. River put up quite a fuss when it was Ted's turn to track...after all, shouldn't it be all about River? This photo of River was taken during a Christmas tree hunting expedition last year. She is a long-coated German Shepherd. Despite her funny "attitude" ear, I find her very charming and pretty.
Category Article Beginners tracking, Border collie, German Shepherd, River, Ted, Tracking training, Training theories, winter tracking
