This
is one of those topics that experienced Search and Rescue people
have differing opinions about. Dog people in general have a
hard time coming to consensus on many topics when it comes to
training dogs. It seems that everyone has an opinion about how,
what and where a dog should perform certain tasks. Even reward
systems are hotly debated. Let me be clear, I am not the final
word on any training subjects. I want to share some of my experiences
to help those who are just beginning and some of you who have
been training for years. I would also like to help you overcome
some obstacles and build a better working foundation . In my
opinion, one of the best on-line resources that relate to K9
issues is Ed Frawly at Leerburg Videos.
Back
to the topic. A wilderness search dog, by title, is a dog who
has been trained to do wilderness search for individuals or
articles that have been lost or discarded in a wilderness situation.
The wilderness search dog training is the foundation to all
other forms of SAR work. This training should be taught from
the beginning. Wilderness search dogs have been used to locate
missing persons, flood and disaster victims, and discarded articles
from a crime scene. Later on in the training of a SAR dog this
type of training will be categorized as air-scenting. This will
be part of the whole package that the dog is able to draw from.
The handler will be able to recognize this behavior and better
read his partner and the communication that he is displaying.
Training
a wilderness search dog is one of the most rewarding and fun
disciplines I have ever been involved in. One of the reasons
I like this type of training is, you can start a very young
puppy on the imprinting process as early as 8 or 9 weeks of
age. More about imprinting young pups is going to be described
in another article.
The wilderness search dog is categorized as an air
scenting dog. This is a part of basic behavior which is inbred
in the K9’s history. It relates back to pack involvement when
the K9 community had to hunt for their food. A typical air scenting
dog will have his head high, searching the area in front of
him for scent. I have seen air scenting dogs lock on to scent
as far as a mile away from the dogs location. More about scent
theory later. Upon locating the scent, the K9 will most likely
quarter back and forth until he has located where the source
of the scent is coming from. The process will narrow as he closes
in on the source.
The
scent pattern is emanating from the source in a cone shape pattern.
At the source, the cone is at its narrowest part, and widening
as the scent carries and gets farther from its origin. Many
factors have an affect on how scent is carried along and how
it reacts to its surroundings. Hedge rows, bodies of water,
and many other natural barricades affect the intensity and the
pattern of the scent. Another consideration is how scent is
able to be transported over great distances in wind and air
currents, as well as temperatures, humidity, sunlight, or overcast
days. All of these conditions have an affect on the intensity
and the dissipation of scent.
In
summary, the Wilderness Search Dog is a valuable tool when it
comes to locating missing persons or detecting the presence
of a crime scene. An air scenting dog typically carries his
head high and is scouring the countryside for scent that is
not common to other smells in that environment. The wilderness
search dog can cover a great amount of area in a short period
of time. These dogs are the foundation to all SAR programs if
utilized properly, and trained for every perceivable situation.
This training takes many months to build the proper relationship
between handler and K9.
To
train and become a Wilderness Search Dog team is one of the
most rewarding journeys you will ever take.
Tom Brown
