Yup, the basic idea is you leave food in every footstep for the dog to find. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> We're doing this with our mini Dachshund and it's fun.

It really IS easy. I didn't even use any food-I had someone else use my dogs to find ME, which they'd both much rather have than food. Then, we tracked the other guy and HIS dog. Any dog can track, as long as they have a sense of smell. If you're alone, I think food would be a very easy way to start, but would this eventually affect their desire to track other things/people??? Will they be more likely to quit if there's no reward?

I guess it depends on the dog. We started Lieke with food, but we hardly ever use it now; she ignores it or picks it up and drops it. She still tracks very well, amazingly well for her age, she just isn't very food-motivated generally.

Becky, it depends less on the dog and more on the trainers willingness to simply *only* feed the dog on the track.

Believe me, by day three with no feeding except for the tracking food, *any* dog will be totally enthralled with whatever food is on that track.
It's just that most trainers will give in before the dog does - that's the real problem, trust me.

We feed no dinner the day before tracking and of course, no breakfast that morning. We are slowly converting to raw, and if it isn't chicken backs, turkey necks or beef bones, she pretty much is starting to turn up her nose at it. Guess we could bait her track with ribs. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Jenni, I run the tracking dog program for a large law enforcement agency and now have thirteen dogs. Not one morsel of feed was used to train any of the dogs. I can tell you the really hard-core track dogs want desparetly to catch the individual they are chasing and rip his clothing from his body. On one very intense and long track last summer I had one dog overheat causing him to lose use of his hind legs. He had fallen behind the rest of the pack and when I got to him he was pulling his hindquarters with his frontend and was still bawling on track. I picked the dog up, loaded him on a mule, and headed for the nearest water hole. As long as he could hear the other dogs he would bawl and fight to get away. This is what it takes to make a mantracking dog that will stay till the job gets done.

I'm confused-did you mean to respond to Kristine, or were you building on what I said regarding my dogs being so determined to track without any food reward? I've only just begun "teaching" this (they pretty much know how; we just need to show them what we want), so I'm far from experienced, but was amazed at my dogs' intensity in searching for me. He immediately air scented and cut the track in a straight line! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> He needs to learn to slow down, I'm told. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/crazy.gif" alt="" /> Anyway, it really is fascinating and fun to see how much natural ability ALL our dogs possess, even my little chihuahua. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> (Although certain males of the human species refuse to admit that my chi tracked me-he must've seen where I went or heard me, even though I was several hundred yards away and no way did he see over the prairie grass!) <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> MEN! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

Jenni, I was responding to you to affirm the idea that dogs can be trained to track people without using food. All our dogs are started with games of hide/seek. I wouldn't know anything about slowing a dog down on track. I want a dog to track as fast as possible. All our dogs open on track and we ride mules to stay in hearing distance of them. I do realize our methods will not work for most individuals or departments but I feel if you are seriously considering training a dog to track and find people, that dog must be driven by a desire to track and find.

Erm...I thought we were talking about sport tracking.

My GSD has foundations in sport tracking. Then we moved him on airscenting without food--he'll even search for someone that's not me, after he realized what we wanted. The best thing about this is if he loses scent, he will immediately revert to the lessons he learned from sport tracking and use the ground to lead him to where the person went.

Ever since Lieke teethed she has been air-scenting more. Not good for Schutzhund. Before teething, she dotted her nose down every couple of feet or more, now she'll track at a dead run if we let her.