ever had that feeling....

[k9sarneko]

That you are just there cause you can release the leash?

Have any of you ever had a K9 that blew your mind because he or she knows the game before you train it?

I have always called my area search(Lexi) my "hands off, God given dog" but at training Sunday she really blew me away. She is scent specific and we have done many exercises with subject id. We have even trained presenting 2 scent articles at the same time and having the K9's id the 2 sujects with decoys. One thing we have only trained once with was article searches. I do mean ONE TIME!!

Ok I told you that to tell you this....Sunday I took her out to perform a short search in a large unused clay pit. Interesting area due to air flow ect... anyway shortly into the search I note Lexi is scenting heavily an object on the ground. Since I have only trained once on articles and never thought she grasped it when we trained it I was about to tell her to get back to work when I was told on the radio that there were articles in this search. Moments later Lexi returned to me and alerted, returning to the object to sit beside it. It was the subjects glove. Not sure what to do, I took a page from my HRD training and praised and told her to "find more", same routine with the subjects other glove and jacket and then the subject herself at which point Lexi received her true reward (her ball) before it was praise and then "return to work". I mean it was beautiful, a perfect execution of an article and subject search. I wish I could say I earned it but....I have never trained it!!

I ask those of you who have a history of training dogs, have you ever had a dog who just seemed to "get it" with minimal training? I swear I have never seen this before, and maybe I never will, but "training" Lexi has been an amazing experience.

Don't get me wrong, Lexi is not a perfect dog, goodness knows her drive levels make me nuts at home. If she's not worked very frequently and exercised and mentally stimulated daily she can be neurotic, but when she is out in the field working....wow, I feel like I am along for the ride. I have even used her to train green handlers on technique because they just cant screw her up.

Anyone else ever handled a dog like this? My other dogs are good, my HRD dog is my heart dog, but I had to work so very hard to train them to their current levels and certifications, so I know its not my wonderful training techniques. This dog is just something special.

[dog27]

Originally Posted By: k9sarneko
Have any of you ever had a K9 that blew your mind because he or she knows the game before you train it?

When I first became a dog handler in my unit I acquired Benny, a very driven 14 month old GSD. We bonded for a month or two and then it came time for his official evaluation which he had to pass to be accepted for air scent training. One of the tests was to have a person excite him, then run across a field and hide in the bushes, just to see what he would do. When I released him, he took off quickly towards the subject, found her in the bushes, then looked back at me. After staring for a couple seconds he came charging back to me. "Go, go, go!" said one of the evaluators as I stood there like a dummy. So I said "Show me!" and then ran behind him while he led me back to the subject. I was not at all expecting a refind, but there it was.

[k9sarneko]

That sounds just like Lexi when she tested shortly after she was adopted at a year old, almost 6+ years later and she still throws in something new that can blow you away....and they say you cant teach an old dog new tricks, heck this one learns them all by herself.

[SunCzarina]

Rex was one of those get it got it good dogs. I taught him something once and he knew it forever. Too bad he wasn't never healthy or he'd have been perfect.

Otto's a fast study too, very bright and eager to please.

[BJDimock]

I don't do search and resue, but my second guide dog foster, Seda, made me feel that way. Anything I taught her she took one step farther. She absolutly drove me nuts at home. She couldn't stand it if we weren't working.
That dog could work busy streets and crowded areas like it was nobody's buisness. And she expected you to follow her lead and keep up. I think I lost a total of 10 pounds in the year and a half that I was blessed to have with that dog. Power walking with Seda was a great excercise program. She would get you there safe, but she would get you there first!!!
She was partnered with a young college student on a busy Flordia campus. Fidelco was thrilled to find a dog that could handle such a bustling place.
I have not come across a foster since that was so dynamic. Boy I so do miss her.