by Rita and Dan Comden
When I evaluate a team, I look for a responsive dog. To get a responsive dog you must use eye contact, physical control and voice commands. Most dogs hear better than humans, so unless he is deaf there is no need to shout. Whether you use English, German or Swahili, be consistent with the word for the action. (Before you get too exotic, remember sometimes we have to leave our dog in another's control). Consistency means that you don't use different or multiple commands for the same action. It also means that you give the command once, and if it's not obeyed, make the dog do the action. During initial training, it's better to not give a command that you aren't willing to enforce. Keep voice commands simple, using one or two word commands, then follow through physically, showing the dog what you want him to do.
Caption: Poul and Shocka at work
I find it helpful to use the dog's name first for any forward or moving
commands, but use only the word without the name for any negative or
stopping commands. For example: Fido, COME; Fido, HEEL;
Fido, UP.
SIT, DOWN, STAY, QUIET, etc. are stopping
or negative commands. For an example, let's use the DOWN-STAY
command. Say the command once, wait a second for the dog to act, if
he doesn't, physically place him in the down position. Immediately say
GOOD DOG, GOOD DOWN, in a happy, pleasant voice, reinforcing the
word with the action. This all should take about 3 seconds. If you want
him to stay, say STAY, placing your hand in front of his face and
walk away a few paces. Wait at least 30 seconds, return to dog and say
GOOD DOG, GOOD STAY. Gradually lengthen the time of STAY
with you in view to 15 minutes. Then you can start working on short out of
view STAYS, where you can be downwind and see your dog. Whenever a
dog breaks a command, tell him BAD DOG, go to him, place him in
position, exactly where he was and say STAY.
Watch him and get back to him before he breaks and then praise with GOOD DOG, GOOD DOWN-STAY. The dog wants to please you, so always finish an exercise on a positive note.
There are dozens of books on obedience training and different theories for every trainer in the world. Watch other teams and pick what works best for you and is a good match to you and your dog's personalities. There's no substitute for working with an experienced trainer who can note subtleties and cues about how the dog and handler are working and learning together. Some people are just better trainers than others, having a feel for the human-animal bond that can't easily be explained or taught to others. Take advantage of their insight and experience if you're having difficulty with a particular task.
A release word is important to learn and use so the dog knows when he is finished working. As in all the words in the dog's vocabulary, use one that doesn't sound like anything else. You can use: FINISH, ALL DONE, BREAK, or I like FREE DOG, rather than OKAY, which we use a lot in talking with other people.
Besides the basic commands such as: SIT, DOWN, STAY, COME, SPEAK, etc., build a vocabulary with your canine partner. Here are a few examples:
OUT or DROP: To release whatever is in their mouth
STAND: For grooming or examination
OFF: To get off or out of a vehicle or whatever
CLIMB: Going up a steep hill, stairs, ladder
OVER: Going completely over an obstacle
WAIT or CLOSE: To control distance without a full recall
THROUGH or CRAWL: Going under obstacles or through a tunnel
LEAVE IT: To ignore other animals or smells
OUTSIDE/INSIDE: In or out of a house or kennel
Research has indicated that an intelligent dog can develop a vocabulary well over 50 words. Don't sell your dog short!
Now that we know how to use verbal commands, physical association and praise to communicate with your dog, let's continue with a searching vocabulary.
The most important thing your dog will ever do is to find a missing person. Give him words to associate with each discipline of searching:
- GO FIND (name): Using this for air-scenting, this teaches the dog to look for a specific person, anywhere. Make sure he has made the find before giving praise and reward.
- GO TO (name): Helps teach recalls in training for the SHOW ME command. Also, use it to send the dog to his handler, family or helpers. It's easily learned at home with family or friends the dog knows well. When it comes time to learn the refind, you can instruct the subject to tell the dog to GO TO you.
- SHOW ME: After the dog has returned to the handler from the FIND, give him the SHOW ME command and make him take you close enough so you can touch your subject before you praise and reward.
- TRACK: This is a looking command, with the dog sniffing the ground, track or trail of the subject.
- SEARCH: As in a disaster, where unknown subjects may be buried. Rita used SNOW for avalanche and WATER for drowning subjects. Dan prefers SEARCH for all situations where finer, closer work is required and the subject is below a surface, so he uses it for avalanche, evidence and water searching.
- ARTICLE: Teaches the dog to look for human scent, not actual people. Use all forms of articles, glass, metal, paper and cloth. Some organizations don't approve of the dog picking up articles. If this is the case, start out with articles that are too large for the dog to carry, such as a backpack, and work down in size from there. Dogs will soon learn to do a find and refind for articles that are obviously important, such as something with recent scent.
- GO HURRY-UP or POTTY: Catch the dog in the act of eliminating and tell him GOOD DOG, GOOD HURRY-UP. When you are driving or on an airplane for 4 hours, you will be glad this command was obeyed.
- TAKE POINT or GO or PLACE: To get the dog ahead of you, such as on a narrow trail, beam or log crossing.
Always remember to reinforce the word after the command has been completed and give lots of praise, GOOD DOG and reward. These are ideas, not necessarily the words you will want to use. Whatever you use, be consistent with the same word. Realize your dog's intelligence and the fact that she can understand the words with the action.
Give him words for everyday things, such as: SWIM, SHAKE-OFF, FETCH, DINNER, NO BEGGING, DRINK, GO-TO-BED, etc. Have fun, too.
Find reasons to GOOD DOG and praise your dog and you will have an attentive, hard working partner.
Back to the main Search Dog page
Dan Comden