Most dogs will automatically use their noses to search for things to eat or to investigate new objects. Harnessing this instinct and teaching your dog to sniff on cue is great fun. Not only is it fun, but it helps grow confidence in timid or young dogs. Gaining confidence in solving tricky scent puzzles can translate into confidence in other situations too.
Once your dog understands the game, the possibilities are endless!
Remember Flash, the rescue dog who started training? Here’s an update on how his training.
How to get started
Flash loves his kibble, so I started by teaching him to search for it at mealtimes. Starting with small, simple steps is very important. Initially, I would place Flash in his crate and sprinkle about 10 kibble pieces around his crate with him watching me. Opening the crate, I’d tell him to ‘go search’ (using a happy, gentle voice). Because he is used to being fed from my hand during training sessions, he needed some help with the transition to putting his nose onto the ground. So, in the beginning, I had to point out the kibbles to him.
When he put his nose down and sniffed the kibble, I would gently reward him with his marker word, ‘nice’. This is important because although he is being rewarded for searching by eating the kibble, he also needs to learn that ‘search’ in itself is fun and an activity that gets rewarded.
After all the kibbles were finished, he would go back into his crate, and I’d scatter kibbles again. During the first session, we’d probably repeat this three to five times. I never rushed his search. Some dogs will gallop around looking for the kibble, while others, like Flash, are slower and more methodical. It could take him up to nine minutes to find half a cup of food in a room initially. Search style tends to change with experience and confidence.
Once he was confident and began to immediately (like not looking at me first) search out the kibble as he left the crate, I started making it a little more challenging in two ways. One, the kibbles were placed further apart (up to a metre apart at this stage), and two, he was no longer allowed to watch me while I placed the kibbles out. After he ate the first one, he would typically look back at me questioningly. Using a gentle and encouraging voice, I would say ‘go find some more’. I would not move or point at this stage.
If after 20 seconds he was still watching me with no attempt at searching, I would move in the direction of the next kibble. This worked quickly, and he soon understood that ‘go find some more’ means keep going!
Going outside
This game has now diversified into looking for kibble outdoors and throughout the house. I hide kibble in a variety of objects as well as different but reachable heights. You’ll be surprised how hard it is for many dogs to lift their heads higher than nose height to locate a kibble! A fun game in warm weather is to fill a shallow kiddie pool with plastic balls and kibble in the water. Flash must then get into the pool and search for the bobbing kibble among the balls.
Hiding kibble in objects that Flash needs to either move with his feet or open with his nose has helped him gain a lot of confidence. For example, hiding kibble inside old tyres, beneath a towel, inside a shoe or behind a cardboard box are all examples of more daunting yet doable tasks. Placing kibbles inside an empty egg carton and closing the carton is a fun advanced game too.
I also varied the type of search. So, some searches would be searching in one room or multiple rooms, while others have a more formal ‘line-up’ structure. For a line-up, I place three plastic flowerpots in a line, about 40cm apart initially, and place a few kibbles beneath each one. Standing close to them, I would point and tell Flash to ‘go search’. Because he already understands what ‘go search’ means, he would investigate the pots and use his nose to flip them over. Again, once he actually located a kibble. I would verbally mark it ‘nice’.
I’d repeat placing kibble beneath all the pots a few times and then start only putting kibble beneath one or two. Placing kibble beneath all the pots in the beginning is important to teach him to check all the pots.
Have fun trying different layouts with the pots: in a line, in a circle or in a diamond, and vary where the ‘jackpot’ is placed. For example, lay out five blank pots in a circle and place the jackpot in the middle of the circle.
Once he understood how to ‘search’, I could move on to hiding a favourite toy. With a toy, keep it very easy in the beginning and use the innate desire to chase. I would hold Flash gently by his collar and throw his toy out of sight (behind a couch or into long grass, for example). Releasing him, I would tell him to ‘go search’. Ideally, he should run straight to where the toy disappeared and find it. Once he finds it, we would celebrate by having a game with the toy and then repeat. As with the kibble, once he understands the game and what he’s looking for, the hiding places are limitless!
Keep this in mind:
- Be careful not to hide kibble in places that may be dangerous, for example, behind a piece of furniture that might topple over onto your dog.
- Remember, this is supposed to be fun. If your dog is struggling to locate the food or toys, put them away and move the hiding place to somewhere that’s more manageable. Confidence is critical in this game, so it’s important that they ‘win’ and find their objects. Signs of frustration can include barking, lying down, scratching, bringing you other objects and simply disengaging. Never punish these; just take a step or two back and make it simpler.
- If you use a play pool, place rubber matting at the bottom of it to prevent your dog from slipping on the plastic.
- Be consistent with your verbal cues. This will help your dog gain a clearer understanding of what you are asking him to do. So, stick to ‘go search’ or ‘go find it’ or ‘find it’, for example. Don’t use different phrases.
- Remember to include easy searches regularly – puzzles don’t always need to be difficult!
Have fun and happy searching!
By Sanjo Rose
