by Kayla Griffin

Created on: February 12, 2009

Teaching a dog to track is considered more advanced training. Not that it is hard, simply before teaching your dog how to track they should first know their obedience commands. The two of you should also be able to work as a team. Many owners think that tracking is something their dog does on his own, however this is not true. Every good tracking dog has an owner who has taken time to train them, love them and unlimitedly become a great team.

Before teaching your dog to track you should ensure that they know all of the following commands; sit, down, heel, stay and come. Your dog should respond to these commands when you verbally speak them but also from actions you give with your body. The reason this is so important is because tracking dogs will usually track off leash. Therefor you will need your dog to be used to working for you; if a dog is watching you for commands as well as listening then you know you have there attention. This can become crucial if you find your dog in a dangerous situation, or distracted by things going on around them.

If you can honestly say that your dog is able to listen to your commands and you feel confident that your dog will be safe off leash, then teaching your dog to track will be easy and fun for both of you. Dogs by nature like to be working, it gives them confidence and purpose. When you are teaching your dog obedience commands, as well as tracking you are working your dog. This is great for establishing and maintaining a bond between you and your companion and also has the extra benefit of keeping your dogs body and mind active and healthy.

To begin training your dog to track you should attach a leash to his collar. When we start teaching our dogs to track they truly have no idea what we want from them. At this point in our partnership we must guide and help our dog understand what we are asking of them. Once the lead is attached choose something you will get your dog to track; a toy of theirs often works well while training. The toy should then be shown to the dog with the command of "smell". Your dog will simply look at you happily not knowing what your talking about, this is OK they will learn. Place your dog in a sit position and hide the toy in an easy place. I found throwing it into long grass worked well!

You will then return to your dog and place your hand near their nose and give them the command "smell" again. They still will have no idea what you are talking about. Then proceed to give your dog the command "find it" or what ever command works for you. Take your dog by the leash and lead them to where their toy is located. Once they have spotted it PRAISE them. This is so important the praise is what is going to make the connection in their head of what they are suppose to be doing.

Once your dog has mastered this and understands what you want from him/her it is time to take the leash off. Hide the toy in harder places, however be sure to always be with your dog encouraging them with praise and giving them a reminder with the "find it" command. Keep offering them the smell of your hands because they will have the scent of the object your dog is tracking.

Once your dog has mastered this you can use these same techniques to have your dog find anything not just their toys. All you need to remember is to provide them with the smell they are looking for, whether if be clothing from a person, or the scent off your hand of a toy they love. Teaching your dog to track is a wonderful experience for the whole family, a bonding experience for you and your dog and a great party trick when company is over.

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