While your dog has the nose, all the responsibility doesn’t fall on them. As the handler, it’s our job to manage the search area. This includes ensuring our dog has covered the area, remembering the in play vs out of play areas, remembering where we have or haven’t been, recalling what we’ve already called, and keeping track of the clock. That’s a lot to manage! But how can we confidently call finish if we don’t know if we’ve covered the area, can’t remember where we’ve been or what we’ve called, or even lose track of our time and time out?
Success at all levels requires proficiency at these skills to an extent, but they are especially necessary (and even more difficult) at upper levels of competition across levels with larger and more complex areas and unknown numbers of hides. This webinar is for competitors in all venues and levels looking to increase their competitive edge by improving their search area management skills.
This webinar will:
- Discuss the essential components to search area management including prerequisites from your dog
- Discuss what it means to “cover” your area and how strategy may vary across venues, with different parameters, search area types or time constraints
- Discuss tools to help handlers maintain orientation in search areas, recall where they have or haven’t been, and keep track of their found hides
- Discuss tips for time management and pacing
- Discuss how to handle search area boundaries
- Discuss how to put all the pieces together and still be a connected partner for your dog
