# Truffle hunt



## dolf (Jan 22, 2015)

Hi! Sorry for my bad English, hope you understand... I would like to start training my girl to search for truffles. I have a friend who will give me some truffles after he's back from holiday. That friend bought an already trained dog and can't actually give me an advice about how to start. I have asked a local group of truffle hunters about how should I begin her training and they told me that my girl is too old(1,5 years old) and that I should get a baby dog and start training it but still they didn't explain me how could this training start... I rescued her when she was older than 6 months, she knew nothing about obedience and now 10 months later she is as good as(if not better than some) dogs who have been training obedience since they were little puppies. She has very good concentration, she's willing to work and never gets tired or bored during those kind of trainings. She has a pretty good toy drive and I reward her with toys instead of food. I think she's not too old to learn but I don't know how to start with this truffle hunt training. She loves searching for her toys and as I said before, she dosen't lose her concentration even in an area with other dogs running around. She is able to find her hidden toys after searching for them in a large area for 15-20 minutes.


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## carmspack (Feb 2, 2011)

usually prospects are chosen from litters bred for scent discrimination .

the pup showing high hunt drive , searching for something in rubble , (I use skids), or slightly buried and left for some hours, or in brush, or in a pile of tires . Searching for something where the dog has not seen the object being tossed.

a year and a half is not too old ! Many dogs going into law enforcement will be hand picked and introduced to their specific scents , become specialists . Until that time the dog is constantly being evaluated for tenacity in the search. If lazy or unreliable , another career choice is chosen . Keep the drive to search out high, very rewarding.

train as you would any other search - the method is the same whether it be drugs, bugs, or explosives or medical conditions.

here is one good link https://www.permaculture.co.uk/readers-solutions/how-train-your-dog-be-truffle-hound 

NWTruffleDogs ? Home of the MycoPilot

https://www.dogwise.com/ItemDetails.cfm?ID=DTB1244


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## dolf (Jan 22, 2015)

Tkank you for the links! I began burying her favourite ball. She has a pretty good drive and when she finds it we play with the ball. Do I have to use food rewards instead? 
I think she is able to find the ball because she uses only my scent as an orienteer, not the ball's scent. How to avoid that? When we are over with all lessons(hiding truffles) and I take her out to a real truffle hunt and when she sniffes a truffle will she start digging without me telling her to 'search'. At the moment I tell her to 'search' when the ball is hidden somewhere.


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