Hi: Since there is a lack of lesson 6 videos at this time, I would like to comment on Mary and Salu #5669
Hi Mary and Salu: This was an excellent search overall, especially since Salu shows independent thinking. He has great potential as a scent detection dog. I would watch overall in your video the times when Salu is sure he has the truffle, and you discourage him. At 7 he alerts, 14 when he alerts and you discourage that he walks away then re alerts again. at 23, he scratches and then re alerts the same hide. At 56 there is a lip lick, a sign of stress too. At 1:20 he indicates and you discourage him. He scratches again at 1:22 AT 2:10 he shakes off, and then re alerts again. Love his persistence and thinking of how to tell you to go and look again. I think you recognized these as definite signs of him communicating: by your trust your dog comment. I like to see the dog persist on showing you the hide rather than give up, and he certainly tries to tell you. I find that videos of your searches are great to analyze, and turning the sound off and just focussing on what you see is great to help your observation skills. Many times I have taken videos thinking I was not having a good session, and then watch them and see they are not as bad as I thought. Just some suggestions. As an instructor, I get the advantage of watching the team work together that when you are working you do not see some things the instructor sees in real time. This is why when I train by myself I will take a video and see what I am doing right, and what I can improve for next time. Even though Salu showed some signs of stress, he was persistent in his alerts and showed real thinking on how to show you. I think that is awesome, just what you want in a detection dog.