A gallery of pics - I have more video than pics of this exercise...so check back...
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My Ted - hiding with his article, hoping he doesn't have to go back into the trailer
Ted has his own ideas about tracking! |
I used to do this round robin exercise on graduation day in my dog classes. We'd set up stations with different objectives (surfaces, obstacles) and the dogs would run through them. On the weekend I thought it would be fun to do it, so set up the same round robin as we did at a seminar last year - I just love this little open shack - thing. It seems to funnel scent and the dogs ALL emerged stronger for the second half of the track. We used chalk arrows on the sidewalk for the dogs (and handlers) to focus in on. They really work (as promoted by Steve Ripley, AKC tracking judge in his book Making Scents of the Urban Jungle).
These are just a bunch of pictures of the dogs doing the round robin. We re-walked it between each dog - each handler doing it for their own dog and putting bait down. The track went from grass to a sidewalk, then through the building, across grass to end on the parking lot. It was just amazing to see the dogs do it.
This does not replace foundation training, but it does show that with some motivation and interest, dogs are natural trackers. They were interested in the dogs and people who had been walking this over and over, so wanted to follow it. However, through 'discovery' they also learn that scent is on all surfaces and there are rewards (bait, plus enjoyment to track) if you follow it...
This is my own idea - and I love to do it at seminars. Now that I've shared it here, feel free to try it, even if you walk a track with one of your other dogs, then run it with a different dog - your dog will find it motivating to follow and it adds interest for them.
Gallery of Pictures...
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| Donna and Caden |
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| Caden |
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| Caden |
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| Caden |
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| River - she found the scent so over-whelming that she just wanted to walk it with her head up. Her nose is very fine-tuned after doing urban at a very advanced level, and I didn't want to 'teach' her to put her nose down, I just let her do her thing! As she is 11, every time I track with her is a blessing. |
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| River |
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| Michelle and Ash the Canaan Dog - Ash did a perfect corner on the chalk arrow |
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| Ash |
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| Ash doesn't hesitate to step down off the curb - a transition to the parking lot - we practiced transitions the day before and I am sure the dogs remembered it |
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| Another view of Ash doing her transition - Michelle a happy camper! |
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| Ash on the parking lot |
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| Ash on ashphalt |
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| Judi and Swayze - a big boy used to doing SAR - but by day two was discovering a new way to track! |
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| Swayze looking pretty nose-down |
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| Swayze on the parking lot - wow, nice work! |
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| This is Sharlet's experienced boy - he is 10 (Rider?) - what a good looking dog, and he did a fantastic job on this track |
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| This is Debbie and Fyre - this girl was so motivated to track. She was similar in style to Judi's Token who I hear is her mother. Fyre was great on day one in the field doing scent pads - it was hard to pull her away! |
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| Judi and Token - another experienced GSD doing the track with ease even though she is not an experienced urban tracking dog - though she has done it when asked. I love how this round robin shows how the dogs simply 'do it' |
And then , I thought I'd do it with Ted, after everyone had left, and before I picked up the stakes...
Ted aced it - but he refused to abandon his article... it is a little passive-aggressive thing he has going...
to stay out as long as possible and play!
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| Great work tracking, Ted! |
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| Ted guards his glove |
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| Ted? Ted? Are you there? This dog is so smart, and funny |
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He even tried to hide under the branches of an evergreen as I was picking up and getting ready to go!
I did eventually get Ted and his glove back into the car. It may have been the trickiest part of the weekend, for me! |
