L to R - Search and Rescue Dog Association of Alberta

ight!” “Jupiter is not aligned with Mars!”
Ask to see the dog work. Ask someone
who knows and compare dogs. You don’t
have to be a dog expert to know which
dog is working and which one is just
going for a walk.
TRAINING METHODS -
The methods of training search dogs is
pretty standard throughout the world.
This especially applies to detector dogs.
There are only three basic principles.
Detect odour, indicate odour and get the
reward.
Dogs can be trained to find numerous and
different odours, however the indication
will always be the same. An explosives
Detection dog can indicated on up to
14 different odours, but will always
indicate by sitting or some other passive
indication.
If a Search and Rescue dog handler tells
you his dog barks an indication for a live
person and whimpers for a dead person
or a Detection dog handler tells you his
dog downs for explosives/weapons and
sits for narcotics, please run away as fast
as your legs can carry you.
Think about the complexity of this type of
training.
A drug dealer on his way to make a deal,
with a 9mm handgun in one pocket and
some methamphetamine in the other or a
live victim lying on top of a dead person
trapped in a collapsed structure, are two
serious and possible scenarios.
Yes, dogs are a valuable tool. Dogs can
be taught a variety of amazing tasks.
However they are simple animals that
I cannot communicate with specifically,
therefore, I do not want to depend on
them to pick the proper indication in both
of these potentially lethal situations.
These publicity hounds usually have
Scent Dog News... 12
training “Secrets” they will not share with anyone.
I was invited as a trainer to a seminar
hosted by one of these fraudsters. I
questioned the wonder dog’s capabilities.
I asked if I could test the dog on a few
scenarios. Well! This person flipped out
and started to scold me in front of the
students. The person was appalled and
offended that I had the nerve to even ask.
This person then reminded me of their
publicity exploits and it was clear from all
this exposure that they had to answer to
nobody and demanded an apology for even
suggesting it.
Good trainers are not afraid to share
their knowledge with anyone.
They will not hesitate to challenge their
dogs or test them. Good trainers welcome
mistakes because it gives them an excuse
to train.
BILLBOARD CANINES -
I attended a Search and Rescue Dog
seminar with two of my students just
to see how our training faired with
other standards. The instructor asked
all the teams to group into beginners,
intermediate and advanced. Out of about
20 teams, my two students went to
intermediate. The rest of the group went to
the advanced.
I told my handlers that I didn’t believe any
of those teams were advanced and after
evaluations, our members were moved
up to advanced and the others had been
bumped down to beginners.
They later asked me how I had known. I
wanted to impress them with some wise,
sage guru-type skill that I possessed
but I simply told them that all the other
teams had outfitted themselves and their
dogs with waterproof camouflaged vests,
patches and other SAR decorated badges,
of the brightest and reflective colours so
that I thought I was in the pit lanes with a