Intro to Schutzhund Tracking

Hey guys Natalie here with Kenan performance, and today I have Matt Fiala here with me. He is going to be introducing us how to be introduced to shoots in tracking. We are going to be starting on a soft surface, but I’m gonna go ahead and turn it over to Matt.

He’s. Gon na introduce us into some of the equipment items that we need. What is the goal and objective of shoots and tracking and some of the different ways that we are going to start implementing and teaching our dog this behavior? So we are going to start with ground disturbance.

The very beginning, step to this, which will just be a tracking box, so we’ll. Take four flags like this: we’ll just make about a box about the size of the dog’s body width. So if you have a smaller dog, a puppy, you’ll, just kind of make it about the size of their body length.

And then, once you make the box, you’ll, go in you’ll make ground disturbance, because that is what they will be tracking. So when you go into the box, you’ll, go ahead and kind of step. All around the box – and I’ll – demonstrate it further when we set it up, but you’ll, give some groan disturbance and then you ‘

Ll set some food out, and this is really just teaching the dogs that the reward is in the disturbed ground and not in the undisturbed ground. So there may be cancer, some confusion with the dogs when they first start, but after a few sessions they’ll start picking up that the reward is in the disturbed ground and just to clarify a ground disturbance would be something typical to like footsteps.

On the grass so exactly and when you walk up to a spot, you ‘ Ll want to kind of take a big step in so we haven’t kind of stepped over here. So we’re gonna like take a big step in and then when you leave the tracking box, you’re gonna take a big step out so in and then you’ll take a flag and you’ll, put it right by your heel, and then you’ll kind of go up about the size of the dog’s body length, not too big another flag.

This is also very, very more clear to the dog when you do it in higher grass or areas where it can be more disturbed. It makes a lot of clear picture for the dog. Then you’ll, go in and kind of clear out.

The box. You don’t want to scrape your feet because most people, when they’re walking, they won’t, be scraping. So you just kind of want to step, so this will have some odor from my feet as well as the disturbed ground, and then you’ll want to go in and start with food.

I like to kind of make an X across the flags and then kind of go around. The edges is where it’s very important. If you drop any kibble outside of the edge, then you’ll want to make a new box. You don’t want the dog ever eating in the undisturbed ground area, because then they will start to get off the track and they’ll, be looking for food off of the track so for people watching at home.

How much kibble should they be using if it’s, a the dogs whole meal, just for one session to begin with? Yes, you can also make multiple boxes, so it doesn’t have to be too big and then remember when you do step out, make that big step it doesn’t have to be too much kibble just enough to keep the dog Interested and will always pull the dog out before the kibble is gone.

So then, you can walk in, take a big step for yourself as well, but the dog can walk right in so from about the Box, walk from about two feet away and then step in wherever, like the box yeah, wherever you can reach, you can even jump In but yep perfect, and what am I looking for from him just if he does look up yeah you’ll want to count that as a mental note and then, if they kind of look away three times or get distracted three times, take them Away if they lose interest, take them away, put them in a crate, show them that the only fun the only reward is here in this box, but I do not verbally correct him when he looks up or away no, not at all mentally note it.

Yes, exactly the punishment here is just gonna, be you’re, not gonna eat. You’re, not gonna. Do anything fun cool so far, he seems pretty committed to it. Absolutely he’s. Doing great right now and I’m trying to stay inside of the box right.

Yes, if they come over to you, you can move around, but just don’t, give any leash tension. Don’t give any Corrections. No! No commands just kind of stand there. Let them eat before the food runs out, just pull them out.

Don’t like mark him out with your voice, just pull him out if he starts drifting outside of the box to see. If there is something out there. Do I guide him back or do I just let him find his way back if he goes too far out, then you’ll just go ahead and take him away, but what you want to see is him go outside of that undisturbed area and Come back to the disturbed area, that’s, something that you want to mark in a mental note, but that’s, a positive thing like right there.

He stick his head outside of the box and bounced right back in that’s, something good but make sure you take him out before the food is gone. He seems to be going kind of in a pattern. So I’m kind of waiting for this last.

What I count as and know that he got distracted, that Matt was moving yep okay. So far as this great first first session, there’s a little bit left, but not very much so I would take him out yeah right now, just go ahead and pull slowly don’t like jerk, just like very soft pool.

Let’s, just take him out there you go and then don’t. Let him put his head on the ground as you’re walking out so now that you put them up. You’re gonna just want to keep his head up or you can put them in like a climb or some sort of position.

But if your dogs, don’t, have a very solid climb or obedience position, don’t, try and force an obedience after this, you want to keep the energy high from coming off of this trekking. So if their obedience is not too solid, don’t go ahead and do OB just put them in a kennel put them somewhere where they can’t get into anything else, and they can’t have fun doing other Things this is where they have fun.

This is where their rewards are. So. After this, we’re gonna go ahead and do straight lines, but this takes quite a while. We’re gonna go ahead. We ‘ Ll. Add some more boxes, we can go ahead and make them a little bit smaller, and then we can do three.

Four boxes start getting that duration on the ground and then we’ll, go ahead and start doing straight lines. Do you know they’re proficient enough before you can move on to so a couple? A couple of things that you’re gonna want to test for, is taking your dog and like slightly pull, giving leash tension to pull them out, and you’re gonna want to feel them fight to stay in that box.

You’re gonna also want to test them with noise, so you can go ahead and like clap and then like build up using phones, noises on your phone and all the way up to like someone blowing a car horn. Next to your tracking box, and you want to see them completely – ignore that don’t even lift their head up just stay in there eating that food focusing on the ground disturbance, alright guys.

That was everything for the intro into shoots and tracking. Thank you so much Matt for teaching us all of this super excited to get started and if you guys have any questions, please drop them in the comments and we will see you guys in the next one.