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Post by rthonor on Apr 26, 2010 9:43:32 GMT -5
are you teaching again in the Lousiana region anytime soon?
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Post by oksaradt on Apr 26, 2010 10:24:37 GMT -5
I teach one seminar a year. Since I teach for free, there's not a lot of incentive for me to do more. Since Brad Dennis wasn't there this last time, I was basically working from before sun-up till after dusk to try to satisfy everyone's needs. If Brad isn't there next year then I probably won't be either.
Kerry Foster is right there close to you. You should hit him up to train with him. He knows as much as I do on this and has all the support of his fire department compadres as well.
It would benefit you to try out other seminars as well to see the different training and scent approaches. You'll find that you will migrate to an instructor or instructors that is the best fit for you and your dogs. With me, it was more the other students that attended than the instructor as you can learn as much or more from the serious students in this venue. Many times, as with this last seminar, the instructor is spread too thin to give each student all the one-on-one time they hope to get. You should also realize that most instructors teach what works best for them. Many will avoid discussing styles they are not comfortable in or have no experience in. It doesn't mean they are less of an instructor, just perhaps not as rounded as they could be. Some prefer a dog with off-the-scale ball drive to start with so that they can migrate from a scented tennis ball. Some prefer a "biddable dog" that works well under the e-collar or (the current politically correct phrase) pressure. Some teach from a live-find dog philosophy towards HRD and see HRD as a side-line rather than a specialty. All of those will work for some dog teams and not for others. While I personally prefer to start with (what I consider) a natural, I'm happy to train any dog that has a desire to find HRs for it's own sake and then we work with what "floats the dog's boat" to develop a working relationship. That doesn't make my way better or worse than anyone else. There are pluses and minuses to each breed, personality of dog, and training philosophy. In HRD more than any other venue, THERE ARE NO EXPERTS. Anyone that says they are is blowing smoke. There are some nice craftspersons out there, but HRD is still a continual learning curve. I would walk away from anyone that tends to blow off scent theory or thinks "cadaver is cadaver is cadaver" or tends to contaminate their sources with each other. After that, keep knocking on doors and asking questions as it's a continual learning process.
Talk to other handlers who work dogs the way you would like to see your dogs work. Find out who they learned from. Ask if they will be willing to work blinds with you. Network.
Regards,
Jim I got lucky and found other handlers that wanted to train for honest, bomb-proof results instead of ego-stroking experiences. Some handlers go to seminars for ego-stroking and validation and since they pay good money to instructors, some instructors feel compelled to give it to them. My focus is how to get someone's dog to be the best it can be and the handler to be the best support for that dog to perform its job. For anyone just starting out, I recommend they focus on no more than two dogs so that the handler can get his/her skills solid. I think a harder dog to train is actually better for the beginner as it forces them to develop better training skills in the scent work. Then when presented with the gift of a natural HRD dog (or whatever venue), training becomes a joy and the handler/trainer finds they are simply trying to keep up with the dog's learning curve.
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Post by rthonor on Apr 26, 2010 11:08:00 GMT -5
I did talk to Kerry about training and we are going to do that but I think he had some kind of surgery recently.
Your style agrees with me, and Kerry's will too I am sure. I do train with other people and truely appreciate what they have done for me. I learn something from everyone. You happen to be very scientific in your approach and that appeals to me. You also are cut and dried, no excuses type and I like that.
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Post by bonefinder on Apr 27, 2010 0:21:10 GMT -5
Tracie ( and others). I have "rejoined" under my new email addy, just to avoid confusion. I concur with everything Jim said ( not that it matters) except that I think it is EASIER to have an "easy" dog to start with, if you are an experienced dog person. I came into this game with a a fair amount of dog training under my belt, so it was much easier for ME to have an "easy" dog. I did not need to learn how to teach a dog basic obedience, manners, rules, etc. I have attended a variety of seminars and training opportunities in HRD. I have learned something from ALL of them. Even the ones that I found the LEAST interesting, I took a kernel of knowledge away from. I even joined a local SAR group ( and have since left)........all these efforts only helped me to define what I was REALLY wanting to do, and that is to find very old dead people. I hate to be so blunt. It's a specialty, in and of itself, in my opinion. Yes, there are cross trained dogs, but this is a specialty area, and historic stuff is even MORE specialized. For me, personally, it does not matter if it is a police case or a cemetery. I like to work behind the scenes, low profile, almost a solitary type of work. I think everybody needs to find their own niche, and you can only figure that out by exposing yourself to many training and seminar opportunities. Diversity of instructors is a GOOD thing, when it comes to scent training. Just define your goals, before you go, and do not let ANY trainer/instructor talk you in to something you KNOW you should not do, or your DOG should not do. I am on a number of training lists, all for different purposes. For hard core information on HRD, this one is the best, in my opinion, but Jim and I share the same interests, across the board. Hell, I don't even own terriers anymore and I'm here! Bonnie Guzman
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