February 12, 2009 · Posted in
Pets While dogs are typically known as playful companions and man’s best friends, dogs also have a number of roles that are not as widely acknowledged. When law enforcement is called in to find a missing person, or a natural disaster strikes, dogs are often part of the first line of defense when the time comes to respond.
Burmese mountain dogs, Saint Bernards and Labrador Retrievers are among the most common breeds favored for search-and-rescue training. Their roles may include all or some of the following: wilderness rescue, avalanche searches, drowning searches, natural disasters, and in some cases, corpse retrieval.
Labrador rescue dogs in particular, being one of the more common breeds, are generally classified as one of the following: air scenting, tracking, or trailing. Air scenting dogs are trained to follow airborne human scents, while tracking and trailing dogs follow scent trails that have been deposited on the ground. Each of these types is limited by terrain and changing atmospheric conditions.
While the importance of Labrador rescue dogs is undisputed, the methods used for their training are far from trivial, and are dependent upon the trainer’s dedication and likewise, upon the dog’s disposition. Training is an intensive process that is often life-long, and begins when the puppy is between eight and ten weeks old. The dog may be deployed as early as six to eighteen months after training has begun.
Because every dog is different, the training is as important to the handler as it is for the dog. The handler needs to become familiar with the dog’s body language, so as to be certain that he has indeed made a find. When the rescue dog follows a scent or trail to its end, for example, the dog may return to the handler and give him a certain look. During the dog’s training, it is essential the dog and the handler become comfortable with each other and learn each other’s eccentricities. This is the reason why dogs change partners very rarely because a bond develops during training.
If the Labrador rescue dog has a competent trainer, it is expected that the dog’s skills will improve very rapidly, and often daily. Still, the many skills required of a search-and-rescue dog are essential and should be drilled routinely. Some of these skills are obedience, socialization and agility. Each of these skills should be trained daily for anywhere from ten minutes to one hour. Scent training is also an essential skill, and should be trained from three to seven days per week for five to thirty minutes.
As the dog’s skills progress, obedience, agility and socialization training should continue with the same frequency. Scent training, however, can become less frequent with time, and should take place three to five times per week, but should increase in duration to between twenty and sixty minutes. Focus sessions, which stress very specific skills such as scent discrimination, should be added after the dog has become reliable in the primary training area.
Labrador rescue dogs can begin training when they are between eight and ten weeks old, and may be deployed six to eighteen months after training has begun. Labrador information will explain the discipline involved in raising a properly training rescue dog.
