TRACKING question - Page 1

I made a new thread because even though this is a tracking question, it's not about articles, so I thought it better not to hijack the article thread:

OK, so:  With my dog, he has always been a very drivey tracker.  I track him with a taunt line, but I am not struggling to keep him moving slower, he did need to be kept slower when he was a pup, but not anymore, he moves at a good pace.  He has a  deep nose in each footstep and is careful at corners, articles and starts with nice drive  from the articles.  BUT:  If I don't have the line fim,   he goes a little wonky. He doesn't leave the track or anything, but I can tell he is insecure with a loose line or maybe  he thinks there is something wrong (his nose isn't as deep, his moves differently).  Is this something I need to correct and if so, how can I correct it without screwing up something else? 

if you going to compete soon don;t change anything but dog on track has to have good  study pace  and at  the competition time he should show one speed from start to finish . there is no points off for fast or slow dog . One of the reason handler wants his dog to go slow is not to miss any footstep and by pulling he will not pay attention %100 on footsteps and trying to pull you to get to end of track .This is not clear cut  steps  some times you want dog to seed up to keep  good same speed and  some time you need to slow her down  . for your dog with insecure on loose line all you have to do offer him better bait that he really likes and bait  will tie him to footsteps. you have to   find his stride pace .

Hey Sue,
I'm not sure there really is a problem.  The taught line may be causing his opposition reflex to kick in and causing him to pull.  I do like to vary the tension on the lead.  With my female I would periodically drop the line and just walk behind her as she worked the track.  I would watch her body language and know when she was working well or having a little difficulty.

If you think it may be an issue, lay a track and have an easy length of the track that is well scuffed and baited.  As you approach this area let the leash go slack.  If the dog begins to lose confidence or become insecure the track will help him.  He will be able to follow that section of track easily and get rewarded often which should give him confidence.  Before you hit the end of the well baited area put some tension back into his leash and let him finish the track. 

Do you ever do "step offs" or jump to the side to make a turn, leaving a 2 -3 gap in the track?   These problems on the track teach the dog to problem solve and not become frantic or nervous when things change on the track.  It also teaches problem solving ability for the dog.

I always remember that we don't teach the dog how to track, but the track teaches the dog how to track. 

JMO FWIW,

Jim

Wow,  some great help here!  No trial date coming up, but thanks because that is good to remember about not changing something right before a trial!   So  to be sure I understand what you guys are saying, I should go back to heavily baiting my track in places, as you both recommend and give him a looser line as he hits that area and is fully committed to the track, so that he will build confidence on a loose line, right? 

I have heard of the step off but for a different problem, what you are describing sounds like a good idea for building confidence, I am going to give everything both of you suggested a try. 



Thanks very much.

Another great thing to do is video tape your dog doing a track. This will allow you to watch him working the track from a different angle.
Also since you are not trialing soon, I would walk closer to him for a while and slowly move back keeping the same tension on the leash. If you do this slowly I think he will become more confident. Make sure to verbally praise him.
He sounds like he is really doing well.
Pat

Okay, thanks I will move back up the line closer to the dog, I can see how that will also help his confidence and now that you mention it I think  I may have moved back too far, too soon with him.   Also I had a flip video camera but it broke.  Now you have given me a legitimate excuse to buy another video camera!