OTCWF Intermediate Scent Work - Week 3

Week three we have arrived.

I pawed through my bag to get my harness and trusty leather leash.

Once inside I played greeter.  Hi Martha, Hi Kelly!!!!!!!

Hi Cooper!

We got started with working scents in fabric.  My trainer explained that fabrics hold scents differently (absorbing instead of letting scent escape) than other objects we have been working with.  She burritto-ed a scent vessel in a small wash cloth for us to try.  (at first burritio-ing it close to the end then moving it further in the middle for later searches)

We then had the scent vessel hidden in a jacket pocket, lunch box with mesh panels (as well as adding elevation on it as well) and finally in a cloth reusable shopping bag hung from the ring gate.  She also suggested we can put it in pant pockets or in a laundry basket at home.  I love digging through the laundry basket.  BOL

We then moved to handler discrimination.  I got my own pawsonalized box to "hide" mommas glove in.  We decided to name hd searches simply "glove".  Instead of saying "search" when we are working momma will say "glove" to indicate we are searching for the glove instead of oil. 

We began with one open top box containing the glove. We walked up momma said "Lucy, Glove".  I poked my head in the box sniffed the glove and got my treat.  Then we added a second open top box that contained nothing.  Again walked up, "Lucy, Glove", I looked in both boxes, sniffed the glove and received my treat. (remember to reward close to source) To finish HD off the trainer switched the boxes around.  I went again, sniffed both boxes, then glove and was treated.  I like this one.

Lastly we went over but didn't get practice adding distractions.  Martha said our pawrents should put the distraction near the scent to start, keep it in a box/cage/container with a mesh covering so we can't self reward if the distraction is too hard to resist.  This way if we false alert on the distraction we will learn that distractions do not pay only scents get rewarded.

One question momma had for Martha this week was if at trial she could ask me to "show" what I was alerting to if I was unclear or she couldn't read me.  Martha said we could use it sparingly in the ring but has to be before we call alert.  Time stops when we call alert and we are finished.  10-4!

As we were searching Martha said that now when we are practicing (at home or in class) we need to be implementing the verbal calling of Alert.  She said during the last trial she ran out the timer because she forgot to call alert.  Prince (her dog) still Q'ed but if she had called earlier he would have placed.  She said one of her students went as far as to write ALERT on her shoe as a reminder.  I love that idea! 

Sniffs,
Lucy