Tracking Practice - June 29, 2008

I got a kitten two days ago on Friday evening so I can train Dino for cat detection. Hopefully, I can use him to train other dogs in the future.

Today, Sunday, I went out on a search in Larkspur with Donna with her two dogs, I brought Dino along to train with afterwards. During the search we found a cat under a house nearby. After the search, I took Din over there while Donna set up the trap. Dino went right to the area and definitely smelled the cat. He was also interested in the tuna Donna had along.

After we left that house we went to a shopping center nearby to set a trail for Loki and then work Dino. We walked all around the center to lay a trail for Loki. When we got to a part of the center in the back, we ran Dino through these runs:

1. Kibble 1 1/2 feet apart in a wide inverted "C"
2. Kibble 1 1/2 feet apart in a wide "S" pattern
3. Kibble 1 1/2 feet apart in a wide inverted "C"
4. Kibble 1 1/2 feet apart for about 10 feet, closer toward the left turn, then a left turn, keeping the kibble close for about one feet and then back to 1 1/2 feet apart for another 10 feet.

He did really good on the tracks, closely following along and finding the kibble.

To work on:
1. Same as #4 over and over until solid and following track
2. At the start, put down my scent article (hairband), putting kibble about 1 1/2 foot apart for 10 feet, making closer for 1/2 foot near left turn and then back to 1 1/2 foot for another 10 feet to end.
3. Same left turn for ten feet, left turn and then another 10 feet. During the 10 feet, place the kibble random like maybe at 1/2 foot, then maybe at one foot, then back to 1/2 foot and then up to 1 1/2 foot.

MAR Dog Training Begins

The posts from this point on are about Dino's MAR dog training that are not covered in his MAR dog training posts because of the dates. I am not able to add dates prior to the existing dates, so I was not able to go back to add these in.

So in June 2008 in San Jose I took Dino to a seminar put on by Missing Pet Partnership (www.missingpetpartnership.org). They train the handler to search for missing pets with the help of a search dog. They also teach you about lost pet behavior and what to look for in a lost pet. It was fascinating, and I brought Dino with me and they tested him on the basics on how he likes cats and other dogs. They wanted to know if he would be good to look for cats and dogs both or just cats or just dogs. They definitely thought he would be a great dual-purpose dog because of his all around personality with both dogs and cats. The seminar was six days. I drove back and forth from Hayward. It was wonderful. I had a great time, and I couldn't wait to start Dino on his training. I would be working with Donna, the person who taught the seminar. She has two dogs she uses for her searches and her full time business of looking for lost pets.