Retraining Tracking - Page 2

Becky,

  I am new to tracking too and I am experiencing much of what you are describing with my 10 month old DDR male, Berlin.

Wants nothing to do with scent pads, pulls like a freight train, ignores food and is very sloppy on corners, air scents at times.  If I were on a blind track, I feel certain he would fail.

I use a ball at the end of the track to motivate him and it is though he just can't wait to get there.  I haven't used food for months as he flies over it. He is normally a food glutton, but the ball seems to have more value to him.

BTW, I am training for AKC tracking and figured that footstep tracking is only for schutzhund.  I may have to restart like you.

Does anyone here have any experience with Ed Presnall, an AKC tracking judge who puts on camps for 'Urban Tracking"?

Seems to me there was a little more to retraining Andy than canned chicken in the early sessions, LOL. He had a fairly serious 'tude when we started, needed a few little "discussions" about giving us the finger, (a suggestion or two from Steve Miller when he was out here for a week) but Melli's persistence and dedication paid off big time in the end.

Great job, Melli!

SS

Wanda

Sometimes the motivation at the end is greater than what is throughout the track.  If that is the case, why wouldn't the dog pull you through to get to the end and skip the minor stuff throughout?

We are dealing with canines.  We can't treat them like they are three year old children.  They don't possess the rationality of a small child.  Even a three year old if fed would skip to the good stuff.  If I put some ham, green beans, mashed potatoes on a plate and put a slice of chocolate cake next to it, which will get eaten first?    Now, because a small child can reason, I have to explain that he/she has to eat their meat and veggies before they get their dessert.  Now I have used the cake as motivation to eat the rest of the food. 

I think that a dog that doesn't understand what you want is going to please themselves.  Why not go straight for the gold? 

You either have to explain that they get X by doingY, or you have to make Y rewarding enough to eliminate X.

It is hard to evaluate a dog over a computer.  I don't know really what they are doing and what type of drives they possess.  Tracking is hard with a poor food drive!

Wanda-

First, get rid of the ball!  I made that mistake with my high drive female, because that was the way it was taught at my club.  However, for her, it created poor tracking habits. Make sure your dog is hungry when she goes out to track.  My Storm was focused on getting the ball, not pleasing me doing a clean track.  We restarted tracking, no ball, nice and easy, lots of food on the tracks, line under her right front leg to keep her head down, and a clam attitude.  Variations in the track only after she had figured out the reward was in the footsteps, not at the end.  First get your good habits down, then variations in the track and location.  Good foundations first, always.

Wanda........good luck!

Don, his food drive is not extreme.  His toy drive is better.  He is not overfed.  He is on a special diet, so feeding his meals entirely on the track won't work, I know many suggest this.  I'm hoping a higher value bait will work.  Hotdogs, he can take or leave.  He will leave dinner in a flash if he thinks I'm going outside.  I need a good bait, that's for sure.

He could be confused, he does get hectic.  Stressed?  I'm not sure, but I don't think so.  New places are taken in stride by him.  We train in many areas, with varying distractions from ducks, to malls, to playgrounds,  he does very well.  Why he sometimes seems to not want to track in a new area, I don't know. 

His is not a socialization problem, of that I am sure.  I'm sure it's a handler problem.  Yes, I can get impatient.  When I do, I stop training. No, I've never gotten angry at him, and I'm glad you said not to push him that way.  He is a soft dog, with an extreme desire to please, and will go into avoidance if pushed too hard. 

From what you, and the others have said, I seem to have rushed things way to fast.  He does not understand.  I will go back, slow down, and build the basics again.  I am going to try short, heavily baited tracks instead of scent pads.  I'll get him to check out every footstep.  We'll see how we do. 

Thank you very much for taking the time to help. 

Becky

Before you get to the tracking, figure out what bait you are going to use.  Find as many thing as you can think of and see what floats his boat. 

Turkey, liver, cheese, tuna, etc.  Do this off the track.

Thanks Joyce and Don. The ball will be replaced by good food on the track and a hungry dog.  I have been very frustrated lately and this thread has helped me alot even though I didn't start it.  Thanks Becky for bringing this up.