Permission to sniff

[lokilou96]

So happy to have the forum back!!

I was on a group in FB and watching a clip on training a dog to ask permission before going to sniff something while on a walk. I watched it through once and before I could watch it again, FB reset. 

Pretty sure it was getting the pups attention with a treat, pointing to an area, toss the treat to the area so they sniff to find it and you mark the sniffing. Now, I do have a horrible memory so I could be lying. I was wondering if any of you had trained your pups to do this or seen anything like this before? 

 

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Hello and welcome back!

More and more dog trainers and dog owners are recognizing the importance of allowing dogs to sniff on walks. After all, we walk dogs mostly for their benefit, and not allowing them to sniff, which is their most important sense, is somewhat similar to asking a person to walk blindfolded. However, we cannot afford to have a dog who pulls left and right all the time wanting to sniff every bush or lamppost we encounter on the road. So what can we do? We aim to find a compromise and train them to sniff on cue!

Here is how I train it, although every trainer may have their own version of it. 

Every now and then, when your dog is walking nicely by your side, walk towards an area that you'll be using for your dog's sniffing pleasure. Practice walking to this area on a loose leash. Make it a habit to say "go sniff" so that your dog understands that you are giving him permission to go on a sniffing adventure. When you loosen up the leash to the point of touching the ground most dogs will take to sniffing easily. Some dogs may need you to point to the ground or bush to prompt them to sniff. This is  one of the easiest training cues you may ever train as most dogs know what to do when you let them approach an official "pee-mail" area.

Make sure you give your dog a bit time and when he seems to be losing interest,  say “let’s go” praise, and continue on your walk. Or even better, if you have access to a fenced area where your dog can safely stay off leash and sniff to his heart's content, walk towards this area, and when that leash is dangling in a nice slack "U," snap off the leash and say "go sniff." Most dogs at some point get tired of sniffing, so once the novelty is gone, this is a good time to call your dog and reward him.

You can even use it as a reward. "Walk politely on the leash to that bush and you'll get to sniff it!"

Now, while most dogs will sniff the ground without any problems especially if you take them to a stimulating area, some dogs may not get message. In those cases, yes, you can use a treat tossed to the ground to encourage sniffing, however, there may be chances that the dog learns to  go on a treasure hunt rather than a sniffing adventure. So after eating the treat, they may be looking at you with a quizzical look as if they are waiting for another treat (especially if the dog is very treat-motivated and the value of the treat surpasses sniffing things).