Page 32 - Chiron 2024

detect buried spilled oil), I was requested to calibrate the dogs only to find specific oil levels. During the deployments following the spill,
the dogs recorded 10,000 finds, and some of those were so small that the environmental teams didn’t need to resolve them. However, because the dogs had identified them, they had to be documented and remediated. Based on my experience training Arms Explosive Detection dogs in the RAVC on very small amounts
to several tons of training aids and then the restrictions in the USA school to only train on the same amount of odor as provided by the manufacturer. I had observed the dogs trained at the USA school would have issues transferring from the typical training aid amounts at the schoolhouse to the amounts we
would use at the pre-deployment training facility in Arizona. I did believe this transfer issue was related to the dogs being trained on the exact weight of the training aid for several
desired range. This demonstrated that the dogs could be calibrated to specified amounts of a target odor. It also demonstrated the importance of varying the amount of training
months.
Therefore,
I believed
that we could
calibrate the
dogs to detect
certain levels of
target odor and
ignore smaller
amounts, so a
research project was funded by the American Petroleum Institute (API) to test the theory.
Four dogs were used in the Texas Tech University’s Canine Olfaction Lab trials. Again, the Olfactometer was utilized, but this time, just
one port was used, and the green dogs were imprinted with 0.01%
air dilution of isoamyl acetate as
the test odor. It was found that the dogs naturally discriminated odor concentrations at tenfold lower than the trained amount. The dogs were then rewarded when they responded on thresholds within a desired range and rewarded when they ignored the same odor outside the levels of the
odors you have and the risks that cross- contamination can pose to your detection standards. Inadvertently, you can calibrate your dog to ignore
lower levels of target odor through cross-contamination of the training areas.
CONCLUSION
My experience while with the RAVC has, without question, permitted me to develop skills and knowledge that have transferred into a continuance of my dog training career. In particular, the lessons from the
EDD program provided a deeper understanding of imprinting, buried odors, and working in austere environments. The full research papers, plus more studies, can be found on my website, www.Chiron-K9.com
“Inadvertently, you can calibrate your dog to ignore lower levels of target odor through cross- contamination of the training areas”
30 / Chiron Calling