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In this scenario he has such a different energy than Vidoc. Fun to watch the differences.
This entire video is actually a great teaching moment about handler skills in when to offer the target when you can’t find the truffle.
GREAT job coming in quick on the first hide. THAT was awesome.
That first one was interesting. Good for you staying at the hole, and yes in a real world scenario you would have the tools and be looking in there too.
He backed up Crazy fast and then went looking for that odor again as he has now dispersed the soil around the area.
What you?ll have to be conscious of in these instances in the forest is of forcing an alert at a location where the truffle no longer is- but that is why you look with him- and try to keep him engaged.
What you do in those situations you don?t find it, is offer the reserve truffle you have just as you did, keeping him with you- because he is already off looking for it/ another one, and the important thing is to keep him with you engaged- OR you need to be focused on him and where he is looking. But what you did was good, and correct.
The hide at 1:40 was Fantastic. at 3:13 I like your, ?Esprit, hey hello?.? You?re doing everything right at the beginning there, he is just already on to bigger and better things. If you can?t keep him at source there, because you can?t find it and he is disengaging- that again is when you present the target to him so YOU & HE know that he is alerting on something correct and then you do the reward sequence and then leave it. You can come back and try to refind, but dwell on it. There will be more.
3:21 you don?t want him digging without you watching. You caught it, and that?s great, but you should be where he is and aware of his focus if he?s not staying with you. This is where offering the hot target to him comes in very handy. You don?t want him off finding lots of truffles while you are still looking for one!
If he?s having a day of not staying at source, present the hot target, reward and then move on.
It?s a little different in a training scenario because I know you want your truffle piece back- but honestly, just leave it. It is more important to stay with him and have an experience of success via your hot target that is offered then to find that piece. This is actually one of the exact reasons, and most common, why we use the extra target we have. Success for an offered alert when you as a handler can?t find it. It helps during some of these transitional phases when you are working on staying at source and precision.
It?s a very useful tool- and this is when you use it.
We do go a lot more into handler skills in the next course, as this is the stage when they start to play a very big role.
Well done over all- but remember to keep your focus on Esprit. Don?t dwell at that last hole, it ends up being an exercise in frustration for both of you. Just leave it, offer target and reward and move on. If he comes back and works on it, great, but don?t push too hard to have him stay there right now, especially if it is a day where it just seems like he isn?t staying at source.