JANUARY 2003 AND ONLY ONE YEAR OLD

A dog earns a TD by following a track 440 to 500 ards long with three to five changes of direction. The track is laid by a human racklayer and is "aged" 30 minutes to two hours before the dog begins centing. The goal is to use the scented track to locate an article left at the end of the trail by the tracklayer. The owner follows the dog on a long leash and can encourage the dog during the tracking test. The handler has no knowledge of where the track is and must trust the dog to find the way. Handlers must stay back 20 feet on the line and while they can verbally encourage, they may at no time guide the dog in any way. Tracking is unique in terms of dog sport in that the handler is completely dependant on the dog to execute the task with no direction from the handler. It's an amazing bond that forms when handlers learn how to read their dog's body language for cues that the dog is on the track or not. This carries over and expands the relationship as both dog and handler become more fluent in each other's language.

January 2003

KEEN IS OFFICIALY A TRACKING DOG

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