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Synopsis of an off-lead trailing class instructed
by Jonni Joyce in August, 2000, written by Roxanne LaGreca, Beartooth
Search Dogs
Trailing
off-lead
Jonni
starts the dogs and handlers she trains with off-lead trailing because it
is the best method she has used so far to train both dogs and handlers in
the trailing discipline. The off-lead trailing method teaches the handler to read
the dog and teaches the dog what the handler wants. Off-lead, the dog is able to show the handler its unique
body language that can tell the handler when it is on scent, when it is
looking for scent, when it is off scent, without being hindered by the
lead or the handler. Urban work is another story, and eventually the
handler will have to learn lead handling skills. The idea here is that lead
handling is a separate skill the handler should learn after he/she has
learned to read the dog. For the purpose of this training, and a
review of this seminar, we will talk about a wilderness environment.
In the wilderness or forest, it is more
efficient for the dog work off-lead.
For most of the participants in this course, off-lead trailing is one of
their operational criteria.
To
begin the off-lead trailing seminar we started
in a safe wilderness environment. The area was away from roads and safe from
hazards. This allowed the handler to keep pace with the dog, and focus on
the dog's body language without the worry of impending doom. At the
beginning of the session Jonni asked us, "Describe to me what your
dog does from head to tail when it is on scent, and when it is off
scent" Some of us had ready answers for at least half of the
dog's body. Others confessed they had no idea what happened behind the
nose. Ask yourself these same questions: Is the tail up or down,
does it make sounds with its nose, does it zigzag when on
scent? When your dog is off scent, what does it look like?
Of
course to watch the dog, you have to keep
up. Some of us grunted and moaned, but later found that it wasn't
all that difficult. Our dogs generally zoomed out ahead, but we were
able to catch up to them when they got to scent pools, turns and other
scent obstacles. I could see how this method would quickly increases your stamina and
conditioning for the job.
Many of us
admitted that the lead had become a crutch for us. (The lead is a crutch when dropping it or going off the lead is
postponed because of fear of what may happen if the dog has free reign.)
One advantage to starting trailing off-lead is that problems with the dogs concentration or
distractions can be detected early in the training process, thereby making
a handler deal with each problem as it arises.
For example, you dont want to let the dog off-lead because you
fear it will critter. Then
you have to deal with the critter problem in the dogs training, and do
some critter dissuading separate from you trailing problems.
If your dog isn't listening to you, is not coming when you call it, or will
not go a direction you ask it to, you will have to deal with that early on in the training
process. If the dog is not excited to trail, you may also have to move backward to motivation problems with the
dog to reinforce interest in finding human scent. Of course,
motivation games are great for training, at any stage of the game, because
motivation keeps the game fun for the dog.
Pre-planning
for off-lead trailing:
There
are some handler skills that will significantly improve success rate in
trailing work of any kind:
1) Scent theory. Every handler needs to have a basic understanding of scent theory.
Suggested
reading.
2) Commands - Know what command for search your going to use, if
your going to use a separate command for track. Jonni suggested we
have a second command for asking the dog to "check it".
The reason for this was so that we didn't continually repeat the search
command to the dog, when we wanted it to check here or there for scent, or
to direct to another location, or to where we were last sure it had scent.
3) Obedience/Bonding - Handlers that had done their homework in obedience
and had a clear working relationship with their dog, had a much easier
time with off-lead trailing than those who needed work in that area.
4) Scent Articles - Know how to correctly collect a scent article.
5) Pre-Planning - 95% of problems are known to the handler.
6) Be "A Lert" or alert - Notice
what your dog does from head to tail when he is on scent.
Notice what your dog does from head to tail when he is off scent.
7) Atta Dog - Verbal praise is very useful when the dog finds the
right trail, makes the correct turn, or looks back for confirmation.
Ever seen a look in your dog's face like, "Hey, am I doing o.k?"?
Anytime you can say to the dog "Yes, that is what I want you to
do", that's training.
8) Debriefing - Crucial step to success - review each problem and decide what to work on
next.
Off-Lead
Trailing
Runaways
- The dog needs to do enough runaways so that the motivation level and
enthusiasm to find people is there, and the dog associates the search
command with finding a person or human scent.
Refind
- Means that the dog returns to handler and tells them that it has found a person.
Jonni feels this is the basis for off-lead work in a wilderness
environment, where the dog will be ranging away from the handler.
When the refind is taught at the beginning of trailing, it can be
incorporated into every problem thereafter. This repetitiveness
reinforces and builds
a strong refind. See
related refind article.
 Natural
Trails
- In the beginning of our off-lead trailing exercises we used natural trails to get the dogs' noses down.
This was especially useful for dogs who's primary focus was air scenting,
or had been started on trailing after they had learned to air scent.
Dogs are
able to focus, or put their nose down, where scent is naturally
concentrated. Natural occurring trails, footpaths or game trails
collect the scent of the subject who uses it.
Intersections
- In order to set up intersections, where the dog had to pick if the
subject went left or right, we found places that had natural intersections off the trail. If
the dog took the wrong direction, we followed, but watched to see when the
dog "threw a negative". Or in other words, what it looks like when
the dog looses the scent. The dog was given the opportunity to
circle back on its own, but if it did not, it was then re-directed back to where
it had
scent and we watched it take the right direction. Some dogs got it
right on the first try, and others were successful after just a few problems.
Breaking
brush - Once the dogs had mastered turns on known trails, with natural
trail breaks, it was time to teach the dogs that the lost subject doesn't
always stick to a path. Those delusional folks, who continually get lost,
sometimes break brush or
leave the beaten path to make their own way. Now would that actually
happen? Uh huh! To accomplish this training problem we set up
problems known to the handlers, with flagging where the subject left the trail.
This gave each handler a
chance to watch when the dog, again, "throws a negative" or
looses the scent trail. The handler then watched while the dog worked out the
problem, and when the dog chose the right direction it received an "Atta Dog!", from the handler. When
the dog was out off the scent, the handler took the dog back to
where it last had scent, and the dog was successful at picking the right direction the next time.
Scent
pools - Here we go back to Scent Theory 101, with perhaps a new
twist. Most handlers have run into the dreaded - - scent pool.
A scent pool occurs where scent is held because of pockets of cool
temperature, moisture or where quantities of scent are decomposing at a
higher rate than the surrounding area. A scent pool can occur in a
low spot in terrain where human scent has collected, or where someone sat,
slept, defecated, or fell down. A scent pool can also occur off the
path taken by a subject, due to winds or terrain, or in the immediate area around the
victim or subject's hiding place.
Jonni explains that a trailing dog operates by checking the edge of the
scent. The dog finds where scent is - then where scent is not, and stays
on the edge of scent to follow the path of the subject. Coming to a scent pool can confuse the
dog, and the dog will work the outer perimeter of the pool. It is up to the handler to lead them
through the pool, until the dog can work it out, and find its way to the
subject. Jonni pointed out that handlers who do 24 hr. operations, need to factor the scent pool
situation into the scenario when training. If a subject is lost for 24 hours,
he or she may stop periodically, or may be stationary in one spot for a
long period of time when they are found. In these situations a scent
pool can develop at intervals along the trail, and especially at the end, where the
subject is located. With training the dog will learn to work the
scent pool and work its way into the subject.
Multiple
Surfaces - We worked over gravel roads, on paved sidewalks, up decks
and wooden stairs, into buildings that were carpeted or tiled. Lots
of different surfaces gave the dogs new challenges. The dogs chose
to trail near the buildings, where scent had drifted off the actual
path. The dogs also tended to work off to the side of the hard
surface where scent had collected on vegatation or onto a more receptive
surface for scent collection. Most of the dogs slowed down in these
areas, and trailed wider at times, but all of them continued on the path
of the subject.
Scent
Discrimination
Scent
articles We added
scent discrimination with scent articles, using all types of objects. Some of
the articles used were plastic, cloth, paper, and metal. Then we
used a few drops of a subject's blood from a cut finger. I was skeptical at first, but I saw the dog take a whiff, and successfully follow the trail of a subject through a heavily
contaminated area, where it had to discriminate between the scents of 9
individuals. Jonni claims that a blood sample from your subject is
the best scent article you can acquire.
Working
multiple dogs on a scent discrimination problem - This was a really
great way to work a large group of dogs, and still get a lot out of a
short training session. We used 4 handlers, 4 victims, 4 flankers, 4 scent
articles matching the victims for the first set. 4 victims walked up a
trail together. Each victim (indicated as a V with a number in the
diagram) took a different branch and hid up the trail, not
far off the path, but out of view. Each victim left a flag or clothes pin
at their turn off. The order of victims and the turn off of their
victim was known to the handlers. The rest of the group, who was waiting
for their turn, marched around the start, or PLS, to
contaminate the area.
One at a time, handler, flanker
and dog, took their turn. The dog was presented the scent article and
headed up the trail. The dog made
the find, and everyone came back to the start including the victim.
Next, handler was up, and the sequence continued until all 4 dogs had made their
finds. The first dog
had to discriminate between many people at the
start, and several people up the trail. Each dog there after got an
even more complicated scent picture. Then, we repeated the whole
thing again, in the same area but a little further up the trail, with 4 different handlers, 4 different
victims, and 4 different flankers. I was amazed at how successful
the dogs were in such contaminated conditions. Some of the dogs had
problems on the first try, but most worked it out after another try.
Scent
Wheel - Here is my attempt to re-invent the wheel. The scent
wheel that is. I have drawn it out the way we used it during the
seminar. It was a quick and effective problem for training the
dogs to
scent discriminate. Or were we just showing the handlers that the dogs
could do this? I think the latter. If you have already been working with scent
articles on your problems, you will be surprised at how well each dog does,
in a seemingly difficult exercise. You can start with 3 victims and
work up to 5 volunteer victims, each one
brings their own scent article. The victims space out approximately 4-5 feet
apart (victim is denoted by a V with a corresponding number). Set up
the scent wheel as either a trailing or air scent problem. It will
work either way, because
scent discrimination can happen on the breeze or on the trail. At
the seminar, we used a trailing scent wheel. Each victim walked on different heading
from the base of a 180° half circle. Each victim widened the distance
between the adjacent victims as they walked. (see diagram) Victims
hid
where they are not in plain view of the dogs. This was done because
when the dogs saw the
victim, they had a tendency to run up to each victim, rather than concentrate on the trail
scent. Although dogs were lined out nearby, this was not set up as a
runaway, where the dog watched their own victim leave.
To
work the problem, the handler would start the dog in a strip pattern,
working across the paths of each victim. The dog generally took the
correct path the first time, but if this was not the case, the handler
took the dog across the paths for a second pass. The dog should not
be started with its nose point in the same direction as one of the victim's path, because the
dog will move in the direction it is pointed. Instead the dog was
positioned to start a strip pattern, and worked back into the scent area.
This was a really fun problem to run, and again, really amazing that the
dogs did so well the first time around.
Contamination
We
used the term "contamination" to have a different meaning than
"scent discrimination. Scent discrimination is where you ask
the dog to pick between the scent of a subject or multiple subject when
the scent article is present. Contamination is where other people,
things, or animals go through an area to contaminate the surroundings with
scents. To set up contamination we used a commons area at camp to do
problems through. We knew dogs, BBQ, food, cars, people and other
contaminates had been present in this area.
Trailing
distance - During the seminar we did some longer trails, but the
primary learning experience was on the shorter problems. The length of the problem depends upon your tracking
environment and end goals. We were reminded that a trailing problem that
is a mile or greater, usually results in a series of starts and stops
where the dog looses the trail in a scent pool and then picks it up
again. So achieving working stamina for long problems can also be
done in a series of problems in one day, while at the same time
concentrating on the training elements of the problem.
Varying
trail age
- Here is Jonni's theory of why hot tracks are similar, in the scent
amount present, as very aged tracks. From observing search dogs work
hot tracks, or freshly laid tracks, it was noted that it was tough for
the dogs to follow. On hot tracks, the dogs tended to seek a wider band
of scent, and only get bits and pieces of the scent along the track.
One possible reason for this, is that fresh scent hasn't settled
and hasn't begun to decompose.
When
observing dogs work tracks that were moderately aged, it was noted
that dog moves faster and did not cast as wide on the track.
Perhaps, bacteria has
had a chance to act on the scent, making it easier for the dogs to
detect. Finally, it was noted that very aged tracks take the dogs a while to
work out, and casting becomes wider on the track. One
possible reason for this is, that when scent ages for a very long period, it goes back to being difficult to
detect because bacteria has eaten most of it away, or it has been dried up
or effected upon by other conditions. So perhaps,
running hot tracks (again dependant up scenting conditions) may actually be
similar in amount of scent present as running very aged tracks. For
the purpose of search dog training this may be an important time
consideration. If you can get more problems done by running hot
tracks, yet still have challenging problems for your dog, you may have a chance to
increase the training level, without increasing the time
commitment. I know what works for my part of the country, as we have
very dry scenting conditions with low humidity levels. Moderately
aged and very aged, mean different things in different parts of the
country. You may have to experiment with this in your environment and
find the variety of trail age that will work for your requirements.
Stuff
that has nothing to do with trailing
 I
learned lots of stuff from the seminar that has nothing to do with
trailing, but none the less interesting. Coon dogs are COOL.
That little Blue Tick Hound named Jeb, sure could trail and he made a
terrific baying sound! Jonni's objective was to take what "God
gave that hound", meaning the desire to tree, and re-route that
energy to treeing a human. We all got to watch as Jeb trailed his
subject to the "baying" tree. When he got there it didn't
take him long to get excited and start baying. After she climbed
down, Jeb got to play with that person like it was the best thing he
could ever do. Knowing your dog's breed and working with its
strengths instead of against them can get you a jump toward your
goal. Fighting what nature put in them, on the other hand can be a
loosing battle.
Volunteers
are a precious resource. Treat your people as if they were rare
animals, because they are. A trainer or leader's responsibility is
to instill confidence in their people, build them up by showing them how
to succeed, and revel in their accomplishments.
I
may want to keep
a log for different disciplines of search dog training, especially because
my dog is cross trained in water, cadaver, evidence, trailing, air scenting and so
on. Jonni recalled that handlers can be called to testify in court about what your dog
found, or didn't find. At that time training logs will be property of the court,
sometimes, for up to two years. Separate training logs can prove useful because
a handler need only submit logs pertaining to that training which is in
question. The court can sometimes make certified copies of the logs, so that
a handler can keep the originals, but this is not always possible.
I am glad to have the opportunity to attend a
4 1/2 day canine training seminar held in Wyoming, hosted by High
Country Search Dogs. If you haven't had the opportunity to get out
and do some extensive training in a while, I highly recommend it.
Its good for your brain, good for your attitude and great for your dog.
I absolutely love the training style of Jonni Joyce, because she not only
tells you WHY, she shows you HOW, and then follows behind you to make sure
you are doing it right. This article will not be a substitution for
having taken the seminar, but hopefully it will help you in some small way
in training your dog.
Terms
by Jonni Joyce
Terms
A definition you apply dependant upon what part of the country
you are standing in.
Tracking with canines Dog follows disturbed or
crushed vegetation.
Trailing with canines Following human scent, whether
it is on the actual path the subject traveled, or nearby the path a person
traveled.
Contamination Multiple scents in one area.
Canine Scent Discrimination Choosing a scent that
matches the subject being searched for.
Find A person has been located or a body has been
found
Confirmed Alert Body or person cannot be recovered,
but was later found in the area.
Statistics Statistics lie, and liars use statistics.
Dawg That four-legged creature who is smarter than
us.
Werter That stuff you Feesh in.
Grid Pattern Crisscross pattern searching in four
directions.
Strip Pattern A stripped pattern, search in two
directions.
Blind Problem Not known to handler, known to trainer
or flanker. Will bring out
areas where training is weak.
Known problem Known to handler, and others.
Used when training the dog.
Test Blind to handler, used to validate the dog and
handlers training.
Reward Anything the dawg wants to work for, or goes
crazy over.
Refind Dog returns to you to tell you it has found
something.
Recall Handler calls the dog to them.
Runaway A motivational type problem to get the dog to
run to a victim.
E-Mail
Roxanne
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Trailing
Off-Lead
Definition
of Terms
