Page 113 - K9 News - Issue 14 - December 2020

dog finds irresistible. It can take some trial and
Amazingly, there is scientific proof that dogs can
identify DNA although not exactly how they do
this, but if you are scientifically minded, read up
on the reaction of dogs to identical twins!
I first went on an Introduction Course held
by qualified trainer, Amy Millward, to see if
it was the sort of thing I wanted to do – and
was immediately hooked! A brief intro with
Bibi showed me how easy it was, then a full
course with her daughter, Sula, turned me into a
Mantrailing Geek!
Having had horses for many years, I didn’t need
to buy a ‘tracking line’ as we had a lunging lead
lying around somewhere. I used a borrowed
harness to start and then bought one (which is
used ONLY when Mantrailing).
The basis of Mantrailing is simple – find the
thing your dog loves the most and use that as
a reward for ‘finding’ the Misper. In the case of
most dogs (and most Newfs), food is the best
method. Anything that smells good – sardines,
cheese, liver, wet cat food – whatever your
K9 NEWS DIGITAL / DECEMBER 2020
error to find the most tempting food/treat that
your dog will do anything for! A larger sandwich
container or similar is filled with the smelly
treat (as long as it is a sloppy consistency –
which takes a little longer to eat and prolongs
the ‘reward’). Two smaller sealed-top plastic
containers are taken as well. At the start of the
exercise, some of the wet treat is put into the
two smaller pots (which should be small enough
to carry in a pocket and must be able to be
sealed so that the dog is not following the scent
of the food).
To start, it is made easy for the dog – the Misper
stands at the starting point while the handler
walks the dog around them in a circle, then
puts on the harness. The two small pots are
given to the Misper and he or she ‘fires up’
the dog by slightly opening the lid and briefly
‘teasing’ the dog with it. At first, the Misper runs
away, calling the dog’s name a couple of times
then disappears behind a building or similar.
Meanwhile, the Misper will have left a scent
article in a sealed bag on the floor near you.
The bag is opened and the dog made to sniff
the article before the handler drops the bag and
says the trigger word ‘Trail’ to the dog. Most
times, even a dog who has never done it before,
will head off in the direction the person took. On
‘finding’ the person, the sealed pot is opened
and the dog gets the treat along with lots of
praise. A second trail takes place immediately
afterwards with the same Misper (and the
second sealed pot!) firing up the dog again, but
this time, the dog’s view is obstructed as the
Misper runs away. This time, the dog will have a
better idea of what to do and heads off straight
away (this is where the long line comes into
its own as the handler cannot always keep up
with the dog and can let out the length of line as
needed). Once the dog has ‘found’ the Misper,
the harness is taken off and the dog is walked
back to the starting point to wait his/her turn for
the next ‘Misper’ to challenge him/her. We use
this time to refill the small pots in readiness for
the next two trails.
In a training session, we have a maximum of 6
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