Mantrailing with a Corgi
Uschi Dürr with Anderl vom Holledauer Bockerl
At the end of November 2012, our Cardigan dog Anderl vom Holledauer Bockerl and his handler Uschi Dürr passed the mantrailing trial of the rescue dog team, according to the regulations of the German ASB (Arbeiter-Samariter-Bund = Workers' Samaritan Federation). This makes them one of only 6 ASB mantrailing teams in Germany. ASB is one of the most active organisations within rescue dog work. However, mantrailing is still a relatively young discipline in Germany and that is why there are only few experienced trainers.
Thus, it was the first time that the trainer of the Rescue Dog Team Ingolstadt (Bayern), where Uschi and Anderl are training, has successfully trained a mantrailing team all the way to a fully operational team, although she is active with her own rescue dogs in area and rubble search.
Uschi wanted to work with Anderl and thought that rescue dog work would suit her. In May 2010, she and Anderl participated in a taster course arranged by the Rescue Dog Team Ingolstadt and then continued with regular training. During a 3 month trial period, the handler has to find out whether the work suits the owner and the dog and whether they have the necessary time (a lot is required). At the same time the Rescue Team can evaluate whether the prospective handler/dog team fits in with the existing group of rescuers and dogs.
The training in all three fields where rescue dog teams work (area search, rubble search and mantrailing) starts with the activation and enhancement of the dog's motivation to search and find a person. During training, the dog will always be generously rewarded with cookies or his favourite toy/game by the found person so that he will learn that finding a person is the greatest thrill in the world.
Area search dogs are working off leash and their handlers will send them out to search for any person who might be in the area. Rubble search dogs are doing the same in ruins, i.e. both dogs have to search for human scent in an otherwise deserted area. Once they have found a person, they give a signal (usually by barking) to their handler, who often is far away.
A mantrailing dog, on the other hand, is on a long leash and wears a special search harness, and has to follow the trail of a specific person. The individual scent, e.g. in the form of a worn T-shirt of the missing person, will be presented to the dog's nose at the beginning of the search. This 'scent carrier' is usually kept in a plastic bag. The handler will then let the dog stick his nose into the bag for several seconds to properly register the scent.
At the starting point there must, of course, be a trail of the missing person. If this is not the case, the dog has to indicate a 'negative', in that he has to tell his handler that there is no trail of the person whose individual scent was on the 'scent carrier'. 'Negatives' are evidenced by the dog's body language that he has run out of scent.
When the dog has been able to pick up a trail, he has to follow it in the right direction until he has found the missing person - or until the trail is lost, e.g. if the person has driven off by car. In which case, the dog again has to indicate a 'negative'.
Especially at the beginning, mantrailing is trained on tarmac or pavement so that the dog learns not to follow ground disturbances like in tracking, but instead exclusively the scent of the missing person. A human sheds about 40,000 flakes of skin per minute, which will be decomposed by bacteria at a varying rate, depending on the weather conditions. In addition to skin flakes, a human also sheds sweat and other odorants. This odour trail is first in the air and then, sooner or later it settles on the ground as a broad or narrow trail. This depends on weather and wind conditions and where the missing person has passed (even if quite a bit away from it)... also, the odour trail changes with time, otherwise the dog would not be able to determine the direction taken, or to discern older or fresher trails of the same person.
A human with his underdeveloped olfactory organ cannot possibly imagine what a dog can smell with his nose. Therefore, it is the handler's main job to trust his dog's nose. When you think you know where the trail is, you will easily tend to mistakenly correct your dog, depriving him of the possibility to learn by himself how to best reach his goal. Possibly you may even prevent your dog from learning what he is supposed to do. Once, at a mantrailing workshop, Uschi was told by an instructor "Again at last a 'stupid' dog handler who just follows her dog!" And it was not meant in a derogative sense!
It may have been to Uschi's advantage that she never trained a dog in obedience, and therefore only rarely corrects him with the leash when she thinks that the dog doesn't walk properly.
Instead of mentally figuring out what might be the right direction, the handler should rather try to avoid any hazards for the dog, e.g. from traffic, and to keep up an even pull on the leash so as not to influence the dog in his work, but more importantly to learn to "read" the dog. For instance, the handler must learn to recognize when the dog doesn't know what to do next or when he has lost the trail of the missing person. When this happens, the dog usually finds himself in a so called 'scent pool' - an accumulation of scent particles of different age, which can make it difficult for the dog to find his way out because the trail leading away can be less strong and fresh than the scent particles which have accumulated in this pool. In such a situation, the handler can help the dog to find the 'exit'. Once, in very cold weather, Anderl had to follow a trail through a subway at the station of Ingolstadt. At the lowest point, where apparently the majority of scent particles (both older and newer) had settled with the sinking cold air, there was a large illuminated advertising showing the more than life-size portrait of our Federal Chancellor. Here, in front of Mrs Merkel, where the scent was most intensive, Anderl indicated "Found: this is the person" by sitting down. After all, no-one else was present and everywhere else the scent was less intensive for his nose.
It is of utmost importance to train in all kinds of weather so that the dog learns that trails can develop differently, depending on the temperature and humidity which influence the decomposition of the bacteria. In this respect a human has no clue which weather conditions make it easier or more difficult for the dog to follow a trail. In any case, it is most important that the dog can distinguish between old and fresh trails for in a genuine operation he will often be 'trailed away' from the home of the missing person because there logically will be numerous old trails, but the dog must strictly follow the freshest trail to find the person.
It is also important to train trailing in busy areas, e.g. pedestrian zones. The dog must learn not to give an 'indication' at the next best kebab shop or - like Anderl once during training - at a butcher's.
The first hurdle for rescue dogs is an aptitude test in the form of a minor temperament test. The dog has to show that he, despite unusual optical and acoustic stimuli, remains practically unimpressed and that he is socially compatible with humans and dogs.
Next, the aspiring team has to pass a preliminary trial which was made mandatory to reduce the high failure rate when it comes to the official trial. Only teams which have passed the preliminary trial have access to the official final trial. The team has to pass the trial every 18 months if they want to take part in future operations. Prior to the official trial, the handler has to learn a number of things. He has to successfully complete courses in emergency medical service as well as 'first aid for dogs, 'cynology', 'orientation and map reading', 'radiotelephony/radio technology', 'accident prevention/safety during operation' and 'operation tactics'.
After Uschi and Anderl both have worked their way through all this, they are training more intensively as ever and it is becoming increasingly difficult for me to 'borrow' Anderl for a dog show. At the moment, efforts are directed at breaking Anderl's habit of cocking his leg during trailing so that he can fully concentrate on his work. Furthermore, they want to find out how old a trail may be before Anderl is no longer able to follow it. Recently he successfully followed a trail right to the end which had been laid three days before. But Uschi was just as pleased when Anderl successfully finished a trail which was only one day old, but despite a whole night with heavy rain he managed to pick up the few remaining odour particles.
Actually the trial was a rather nail-biting event. Both his female Corgi house mates were in season (Prada had even reached the peak). Therefore, two days before the trial, Uschi and Anderl moved to a pension near the venue of the trial so that he should find some distraction, but the unfamiliar surroundings did not really boost his concentration. His doubtless elevated testosterone level made him frequently cock his leg during the trial. One of the judges was already asking for a knife - thereby hinting that unaltered dogs were not suitable as trailers. Nevertheless, Anderl and Uschi passed the trial, in fact as the only team out of the four participating mantrailing teams.
Some day they will be called to their first operation and I hope very much that Anderl will prove himself also because corgis, just like in ordinary canine sports, so far have not really been taken seriously as working dogs. This is a great shame because the Cardigan corgi, besides a good nose (which most dogs have) has all the properties for nose-work, namely motivation, joy of working, eagerness and ability to learn, intelligence, weather resistance, endurance and the streak of stubbornness when it comes to getting his way with a handler who thinks that the trail goes in another direction.
Luise Pfalzgraf, Germany
www.vom-holledauer-bockerl.de/
From the German 'Corgi Post' 1/2013
Translated by ANo with the kind permission of the author.
12.04.2013
