In aggressive dog training Fredericksburg, is it possible that your dog will learn how to search just like in the movies? Wouldn’t it be nice if your dog can find things whenever it hears the command words “Go find”? Truth be told, this type of command is quite similar to teaching a dog to find a particular scent. It’s also the same as asking your dog to retrieve a toy.
Even though it’s not your mission to turn your dog into a tracker dog, learning this skill is a huge bonus. Plus, it can make your life easier. One example is when you lose your house keys. If you train your dog with this command, you’ll save time and frustration looking for the keys because your dog will do it for you. Keys are easier to find because you hold them a lot and your scent is on the keys. When your dog is used to finding your shirts or socks, then it’s fairly familiar with your scent. When you say the command words “Go find” it will only be a matter of time before your dog brings you your house keys! See how convenient and practical that is?
Training a dog to search follows the same guidelines as scent tracking. You will identify an object and hide it and then command your dog to find that hidden object. You can do this by letting the dog sniff the object before you hide it or simply show the dog what the object looks like and then hide it.
How To Get Started
First, you’ll need an object for your dog to find. It can be your dog’s favorite toy or an object that has a very strong scent of you. You must also prepare treats to reward your dog especially if it shows patience. So basically you’ll need a favorite toy, a T-shirt that you wore the night before or a shirt that has your scent on it, a collar and a leash, and someone to hold your dog. The trick is to turn this into a game so that your dog will think that it’s playtime instead of training.
You must introduce the name of the object to your dog so when you command your dog to find it, all you need to do is to add the name of the object after the command words so your dog will know what to look for. This isn’t necessary if you let the dog search by scent.
One of the most popular methods used in this type of training is the Favorite Toy Method.
In this method, you need your dog’s favorite toy and ask your dog to find it. Again, your dog must know the exact name of that toy like “ball” or “bone”. The next step is to arouse your dog’s interest by letting your dog play with the toy. You can then ask your friend to hold the collar or tie the leash to a stable stand so that your dog can’t follow you. The next is to hide the toy. Once the toy is hidden, you can then say the command words “Go Find”. Instruct your friend to release the dog and it will go sniff around to find the toy. Say the command in a jubilant voice. If the dog seems confused, you may add the name of the toy. If your dog doesn’t get it the first time, you may show your dog where you hid the toy and then once he retrieves it, give your dog the treat. Repeat the process over and over until your dog masters it.
This training is easy and will make your dog think it’s a game, which makes it all the more fun. However, we suggest that you teach your dog basic commands first like Stay and Sit so it would be easier and it won’t get distracted.