| Subject: tracking article 4 parts/crosspost from longwood |
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Date Posted: 20:04:33 12/05/08 Fri
Tracking Overview(article)
Posted on December 3, 2008 at 23:45:15 by Tracey
by Pam Green, © 2003
In case you are wondering why there could be value in any of my tracking advice, my first tracking dog, Chelsea, earned her TD (and a repeat one) , Canadian TD, TDX, and her FH (and a repeat one) and my second, Bones, earned his TD (and repeat), TDX (on first attempt) and FH (and repeat). Both tracked in exemplary manner, either with conventional harness and line or in total freedom. Both tracked with diligence and zest. I've had a few students along the way, and those who have stuck with the training have earned titles. I have also started a number of my other dogs in tracking, taking some to about TD level, and have started some of my Rescue foster dogs. Some of these have been less talented dogs, and of course it is the less talented ones who test the soundness of your methods. The talented dogs will learn to track despite mediocre methods, but the less talented ones need methods that make it clear and easy to learn what you want.
I probably should add that a lot of Schutzhund competitors use a very different approach, one involving a lot of compulsion and correction, but I don't like either the approach or the results as well as those from an inducive (reward based) methodology such as that of Johnson, or Brown, or any similar methodology such as the one I have evolved for myself. Whenever my dogs have competed in Schutzhund , they have earned very high Tracking scores and have worked confidently.
But if you are not sure about using my suggestions, just get hold of Glen Johnson's book "Tracking Dog" and follow it exactly and you will earn your TD and probably learn enough about reading your dog that for the next dog you will be prepared to consider a syllabus more tailored to that individual.
If your interest is geared towards Police tracking and evidence search or towards Search and Rescue work, you should be reading books and articles oriented towards those jobs, which have different empahsis and needs from those of competition. I would especially reccomend "Search Dog Training" by Sandy Bryson, which covers both SAR and Police aspects; unfortunately this book is now out of print, so you will have to find it at a specialty dog book source or perhaps on Amazon.
Throughout this article you will find links to illustrations and accompanying greater detail about the topic. I suggest that you open such links in a new window, so you can easily switch back and forth between this article and the other window containing the illustration. I did not want to insert the illustrations into this article because that would have made this file much too big and too slow to download over a dial-up connection.
BASIC BOOKS and where I modify the methods therein
"The Bible" for Tracking is Glen Johnson's book, "Tracking Dog, theory and methods". Almost anyone who follows his method can get a TD. It's written as a very methodical one tiny step at a time type of program that should work for even a very inept handler and a dog with minimal talent, enabling them to earn a TD. (Now for TDX you need a good handler and a dog with very good talent; that "X" really does stand for "excellent" !) Almost everyone who trains their first dog strictly by the book will then start to modify the method for second and later dogs because now they are able to "read" the dog and proceed at the dog's own learning pace, which is usually faster (and more interesting) than doing every single step of Johnson. So while I still utilize the overall scheme of very systematic lesson sequences, usually varying one aspect of difficulty at a time , and incorporating variable schedule positive reinforcement in the form of food drops at intervals that to the dog seem unpredictable, I have modified his methods quite a bit.
Note: although Johnson offers motivation based on the joy of retrieving as an alternative to motivation based on the joy of eating tasty food, I strongly encourage you to use food as your primary reward. Now if you happen to have a dog who is virtually anorexic but who is an obsessive retriever who could wear out a big league pitcher, then of course use the retrieve. For Bouvier, who are rarely obsessive retrievers but are anywhere from eager eaters to obsessive gluttons, I think that food is absolutely the way to go. Notice that a drink of water is also a powerful reward for finding an article, and is one that can legally be given during a TDX test. I usually let the reward for the last article of the day be the dog's normal meal , thus for an adult dog this would be half or all of his day's ration and for a puppy it would be one of his meals. The other articles are rewarded by praise and most of the time by some tasty bit of food or by a drink of water. I may also play tug for a few momments if the dog likes to do this. I would use any reward that the dog really appreciates that I am able to easily provide. For Police tracking , some trainers give the dog a bite on the tracklayer hidden at the end of the track as the ultimate reward. For SAR, the tracklayer is usually hidden at the end of the track and will play with the dog.
I also found some useful material and ideas in Wentworth Brown's "Bring Your Nose Over Here", a small booklet that might be hard to find these days. (I think it was essentially self-published and has probably been out of print for some years). It is fairly short and so is not hard to photocopy -- and I see nothing ethically wrong with photocopying out of print material as you are not depriving the author of his royalty on the sale since there cannot be a sale of something no longer offered for sale.
What I have used from Brown is primarily the method of introducing the turns with first very very shallow ones then less shallow and so on. For the first lesson, Brown also starts tracks with the wind at your back which is more likely to bring the dog's nose down to the ground instead of up in the air, ie to focus on the ground scent not the air-borne scent. To increase the scent strength in early lessons, rather than double laying the early tracks by returning in the opposite direction as Johnson does, Brown circles back to the start and does the second lay on top of the first going in the same direction. I've used this for short tracks, up to a 2 turn U shaped track, and it does work OK. The significant advantage is that the dog is going in an unambiguous foreward direction right from day one. Thus there is no confusion about the need to go foreward -- which becomes a real issue when you try to go on into TDX single flag starts
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EQUIPMENT
Johnson's discussion of appropriate harness is quite adequate. For the sake of the dog's total comfort , I prefer a harness that does not have buckles on the front straps, ie does not have buckles that might rub or press uncomfortably on the dog's shoulder blades. So I make my own harness with the front straps fitted to the dog, and the rear straps adjustable. But you would be just fine with a store bought one, and if nescessary you could add some padding on the front straps.
The most important thing about your line is that it is strong enough and can go through your hand in a nice way. If your dog is at all big, or strong, or fast, you will probably need to wear gloves so you don't get a rope burn if the dog takes the line out fast and hard after a turn or a re-find or on a re-start after an article. I like a polyester sheathed line better than a nylon sheathed one because it is easier on my hands. Cotton clothes line is easy on the hands but picks up any moisture and has to be dried out again before being stored ; cotton is really nice for dry weather tracking. Your line length should be 40 to 45 feet for AKC and 10 meters (33 feet) or a few feet longer for Schutzhund ; in Schutzhund you must always be at the far end of the line and the minimum is 10 meters, but in AKC you can be anywhere from 20 feet to 40 feet back from the dog. For AKC you are supposed to have a mark at the 20 foot point that can be seen by the judges; I like to take a section of tubular nylon and slide it over the line and then stitch it down to the line; but any arker you like will work. I definately have several knots near the end of my AKC line and one big knot at the end of my Schutzhund line. You may prefer a thicker or thinner line; a thicker one is probably easier on your hands if you have a strong hard pulling dog. I like bicycle gloves as they are padded on the palms and so can take more punishment from the line, but the bare fingertips are more agile for getting stuff into and out of my pouch.
I like a waist pouch (fanny pack turned to the front) to carry my water bottle, the dog's drinking cup, extra food rewards, and the final meal. It's also the repository for each article the dog finds. Another possibility would be a multi-pocketed hunter's vest or photographer's vest.
For flags to mark turns or articles (in early stages of training) , I like the ones I find at the farm store that the farmers use to mark their crops : about two feet high wire with a small colored plastic flag. For the start flag , I like something more prominent, especially if I will be working in a field that others are using. A three foot wooden dowel with one end sharpened in a pencil sharpener and a 6" x 6" square of cloth on the top works well. Or you can use a dowel with a couple strands of surveyor's ribbon tied to the top.
Your shoes should be sturdy and water proof, ie some kind of work boot or hiking boot. For the early lessons, it is often advised to use boots with "waffle-stomp" soles so as to disturb the earth and vegetation more when tracklaying; also these give you much more security in staying on your feet as you handle the dog working the track . Various sports shoes with cleats on the bottoms would go even further in that direction. Later on , make sure to include rubber boots in your dog's tracklaying experience, because a lot of competition tracklayers will be wearing irrigators' boots or wellingtons, ie rubber boots.
You will also want to have some waterproof pants or chaps, because when working in wet grass you will otherwise wind up wet to knees or higher. A rainjacket is also needed for those many rainy days that are so much a part of tracking. I'd advise Gore-tex or other high quality material that is breathable as well as waterproof ; unfortunately these garments are expensive new, but sometimes you can find used ones, eg at thrift shops or used camping goods stores.
the TRACKLAYER
Ideally you will have a human tracking buddy who is either your teacher , your student, or another novice, and each of you will lay tracks for the other to run. The main benefit of having someone else lay the tracks is that when you get beyond beginning stages , you will gain a lot of confidence from running "blind tracks" , ie tracks whose location is completely unknown to you the handler. Running blind tracks forces you to rely on your dog.
However in the real world, you may often have trouble finding a tracklayer, especially an experienced one who is able to find any part the track without error should the need arise to put you and your dog back onto the track after you have gotten lost. However I have found that you really can do most of your own tracklaying, including your TDX cross-track laying. When you get to the need for running blind tracks, I have worked out a number of substitutes for having someone else lay the track for you. The best of these is what I call a "deadweight track" in which you tie a weight (about 10% of your dog's body weight) to the handler's end of the line and drop it to the ground and walk beside it. I also like to have my dogs occasionally run tracks off leash; this is allowed in Schutzhund, though no one does it, but not allowed in AKC. I've also worked out ways to use any helpful friend as your cross-track layer even if they don't know a dog from a cat. I will write a separate article on what to do when you do not have a tracklayer.
Johnson's explanation of how to "line up" two distant objects to guide you to walk a straight line is excellent. Read it. Likewise, learn how to make yourself a useable tracking map that could let you locate every foot of track if nescessary. In early lessons, it is sometimes possible to lay tracks where dew or crushed vegetation will render the track visible for a time period beyond that in which you would be working the track with your dog. Visible tracks can be an oppertunity to lay curved or naturally wandering sections of track.
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