Use a cue before tracking - What is that? A cue can be almost anything that lets the dog know what activity is coming next. A classic example is when people say 'Whenever I put on my coat, Fido knows I’m going out and gets all excited.' For you, putting a tracking harness on your dog is a simple one, showing your dog the reward he will find at the end of the track while he is in his crate is another. Different cues should be used at different times, so don't show your dog the ball six feet in front of the starting flag. Look for more on cues in Motivation.
Practice, Practice, Practice - What can I say? There are no shortcuts and tracking your dog once a week just won't cut it, any more than doing obedience that infrequently would. Short tracks with little aging are better than no tracking. Creating behavior is what you are after. Extending the length and age can come later. A friend of mine, Anthony Braccio, is a vice-president for a large financial institution. His work load is enormous. He gets up and tracks at 5 in the morning to track on a nearby soccer field - before he goes to work. Did it pay off for him? He's made the World Team - twice!!!
Slow down - She can make Schh3 next week. That may sound like a contradictions to #2 but it’s not. Many new handlers (and many not so new handlers) have a tendency to rush, to ask their dog to do things before they are ready (this is true in all phases). Trust me, you can't start your dog in tracking one week and hope to do schutzhund 3 tracks a month later. You can, however, track your dog three, four or five times a week. Be realistic about how much progress to expect -- regardless of the dogs eagerness to track. Exercising self control is sometimes harder than you think (and yes, I am speaking from personal experience). You are always better off doing less (progress wise, and sometimes frequency wise) than too much. Take small steps. If you misjudge, the error will be less costly. You can't really hurt your training if your dog has a successful experience, regardless of the amount of progress made. Learning takes time and the right amount of repetition helps make that happen.
Find the right motivation - and realize it might change over time. And that is not a contradiction. It simply states an important fact about training, which is that it is a dynamic (ever changing) situation, not a static one. While hot dog bits might work for months, one day your dog my not be interested in them any more. Your job, from day one, is to find a motivation that gets your dog pumped up and eager to go, every time you track. For most dogs (especially hungry ones) finding a treat they will search for is not too difficult. More on this in the section on Motivation.
Teach footstep tracking - Our sport has very specific requirements regarding each phase (see rules),and tracking is no exception. In essence, your dog is judged on how accurately he follows the trail and indicates the articles - and air scenting will not get you those points. (see First Tracks)
Provide relief first - As obvious as this may sound, you'd be surprised how many people do not give their dog the opportunity to relieve themselves before they put them on the track. Getting Fido to take care of his business beforehand is an easy habit to instill. The pressure it takes off the dog makes it easier for him to concentrate on the task at hand.
Stay close - for a long time, and more often than not, but move around. You can move way back next week. Staying close (from right at the dog's rear end to 5 or 6 feet) allows you to keep an eye on what is happening, especially in the early learning phases. There are exceptions to this which will be discussed later. But in essence there's time enough to handle at 10 meters - a place where you have to learn to be and a situation with which your dog must be comfortable. For some dogs this is no problem at all, for others it can create insecurity.
Always know where your track is - This is perhaps the most important thing you can do to help you and your dog make progress in tracking, but it is not an easy thing to learn. But consider the alternative -there is no way you can help your dog if he gets in trouble and you don't know where the track is or finish it.This is a disaster for many reasons, but one that is preventable. There are many suggestions for how learn this ability. (see Track Laying, Track Building)
The dog always finishes the track - If the dog gets lost and you don't know where your track is - are you beginning to get the idea? One way or another, the dog must finish every track and you can’t help him do that if you don’t know where it is.
Add one new thing at a time - Although this might seem obvious in any learning situation, I have restated it for empahsis. For example - if your dog is doing a fifty foot strainght line, don't add corners and articles on the next track. (see Track Building, Adding difficulties,etc.)
Never track where you do obedience and protection - The last thing you want to dois walk onto the obedience field and have your dog glue its nose to the ground looking for food or articles. Dogs learn what places are for. Should your dog be able to track on the obedience field? Of course. Does he ever do that in a trial? No. Simple enough.
Tracking is an obedience exercise - It doen't matter how motivated your dog is, or how much "he loves to track", ultimately your dog has to understand that he must track - no matter what. And that, as they say, is a whole other kettle of fish. (see Removing the bait, Proofing, Tracking is an obedience exercise)
This is just a cursory discussion to get you thinking about these ideas. These points will be covered in detail in various sections of the website, and often more than once.
