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It's for a novel. Basic idea - one group of kids is following another group of kids, and a group of hunters are following the first group.
The hunters have scent dogs. What breed and what characteristics would those dogs have? What would they be like as they're tracking the first group?
The second group of kids know how to track. What kinds of things would they look for, especially through dry, arid areas with scrub and not much else; a meadow; and a forest?
posted
You probably want to pick a small dog from Hound Group. Tall ones are sight hound. I don’t have personal experience with them but Beagles are cute. Posts: 333 | Registered: Feb 2002
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posted
One of my favorite movies, Cool Hand Luke, has a scene where the bloodhounds are tracking an escaped convict. The convict is able to slow their trail by doing things like running through a stream, jumping back and forth over a fence as he runs its length (the houndskeepers have to keep letting the dogs through to the other side, since it is too high for the dogs to jump). He finally flummoxes them by pouring (and you'll love this part, quid) hot cayenne pepper powder across his trail. When the hounds get a snootful of that, they're done.
My husband's old old Boy Scout Handbook has all kinds of information about tracking and hiking, blazing a trail, what to do if you are lost in the wilderness. The Handbook is old (like from the '60's), but perhaps you can find something similar for information.
By the way, my husband tells me that they never did get to use the information about tracking wild bears and boars and the like while he was a scout. Perhaps other troops are more adventurous.
Posts: 10397 | Registered: Jun 2005
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The group the hunters are tracking don't know about the hunters, but the second group knows about the hunters and are trying to stop them from tracking the first group, so yeah, that'll work perfectly! Thanks!
Posts: 8355 | Registered: Apr 2003
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I have also heard of mustard powder being used to deter dogs.
However, I have also met a dog who loved the stuff. Instead of shying away when he came across it, he would actually rub his bone in it and then settle down for a good chew.
Posts: 4393 | Registered: Aug 2003
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Anything strong like chili powder or cayenne powder, or what not can screw up their olfactory senses. It's not a matter necessarily of them not liking it (which they don't), but once they get a good whiff it really messes up their ability to discern specific scents.
Personally, if I didn't have a spice rack with me to deter them, I'd send a decoy off into the woods to pee on a bunch of trees, then rejoin the group later. Any self respecting hound couldn't resist the chance to sniff a tree some other guy had peed on.
Posts: 21898 | Registered: Nov 2004
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Bloodhounds are still used quite often for scent tracking, but if you're looking for something a little less cliche, you might try a Lab, German Shepherd, Belgian Malinois, or Doberman. Those breeds are also used commonly by tracking trainers. Pretty much any breed can be used, and almost all breeds of dogs have at least one tracking-titled member of the breed, but the ones that are typically the most successful are large breeds with a lot of stamina, determination, and drive to please their trainer. Tracking dogs generally don't find and follow a scent like a bloodhound, baying the whole time while running in a straight line as portrayed in the movies, but rather they "quarter" the area they are searching to pick up a scent, by crossing through one space at a time. When they pick up a trail, they will give some sort of signal to the owner, usually by barking or sitting down until the trainer comes to them. They are usually leashed by a harness, and the trainer will follow as they track. The closer they get to their target the higher their noses will come off the ground. Tracking dogs are generally not viciously barking and straining at the leash, either. The trainer remains in control, but the dog is intent on the target. It's almost impossible to fool a tracking dog on a recent trail, but shedding various articles of clothing in different locations could at least throw you off and buy you some time, as the dog is likely to locate those items first. As far as I know, most spices will be unlikely to deter a dog tracking a fresh trail.
Posts: 1225 | Registered: Feb 2002
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Do you want a pack of dogs, or an individual dog? Certain of the hound breeds are more (beagles foxhounds and others) traditionally run in packs while tracking.
Some of the sporting dogs, pointers, irish setters, tend to work best in smaller groups.
I think you need to pick the character of the trackers, and then pick the breed that most closely fits the style of people they are. It depends their tracking style, are as to what kind of dogs they will be using. If these are actually trained search and rescue dogs, there will probably be 3 at most, each with their own handler, and the tracking will be very meticulous.
If they are hunters, the style of hunting they are used to, (bird vs mammal) can make a huge difference also. Economic status will also play into what breed of dog they have.
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I was thinking in terms of one or two dogs. They have the scent from a discarded article of clothing, and the group they're chasing is unaware of them. It's group two that tries to put them off the scent, although that's a whole other problem. Oh, these kids, they have so many problems...
Oh, the other thing is that the dogs don't have to be strictly terran, although that's not a problem. This is a scifi story, set in the future, where genetic manipulation and cloning is relatively easy. Money is irrelevant here.
Okay, so tracking style. No, the dogs won't be well-trained - there's no time for that. But they can be genetically manipulated and/or implanted with memories of training. The people doing that, though, wouldn't have a whole lot of experience with terran dogs, though. Domesticated animals are no longer common on earth. Does this clear anything up?
It's entirely possible that I wind up using a tracking animal from another planet, though, if that makes the story more plausible.
Posts: 8355 | Registered: Apr 2003
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Another thing to keep in mind is that different types of dogs track differently. When you walk your foot disturbs the ground slightly, this exposes bacteria, and a bloodhound, for instance, will actually follow the trail of disturbed bacteria (they smell differently). They may also be able to distinguish residual scents left by your footwear/feet.
In contrast some other breeds of dogs are 'air scenters' meaning that they actually sniff wind currents to find specific scents that are unique to each individual. An air scenter has to be downwind of the target to find them. The handlers of air scent dogs often carry a device that will release small amounts of chalk or some similar powder to test the wind currents in a region. An air scenting dog doesn't 'track' so much as he searches. Air scenting dogs usually work off-lead. They may be trained to give a signal when they smell something, or the trainer may actually be able to distinguish cues in their dog's behavior. Air scenting dogs work better when they are in smaller groups of people. If there are people upwind of them, it will make it more difficult for them to distinguish the scent they are seeking. An example of a keen air scenter would be a Setter, but I think the majority of dogs rely on air scenting, a minority are ground trackers.
Of course if you rub against an object, or abandon a piece of clothing all dogs would be able to smell this. The distance from the object, and time after touching that the scent would be smellable will depend on a lot of variables like the surface type, what was rubbed against it, etc. Also rain/snow erases ground scent, and makes dampens air scent.
Posts: 349 | Registered: May 2003
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quote:I think you need to pick the character of the trackers, and then pick the breed that most closely fits the style of people they are. It depends their tracking style, are as to what kind of dogs they will be using. If these are actually trained search and rescue dogs, there will probably be 3 at most, each with their own handler, and the tracking will be very meticulous.
I didn't really answer this. I started to, and then I sorta got sidetracked. Sigh.
The hunters were cloned in a hurry - not enough time to properly program them, so the programming begins to fall apart within 24 hours. Their programming includes tracking methods and, quite honestly, whatever else I want them to have.
They will be a group of perhaps half a dozen men tracking a couple of dozen people, mostly under the age of 18.
Um, I think the reason I fizzled on this answer is because I think I'm not entirely sure myself what characteristics they have as hunters. See, their programming starts failing and they begin having headaches and *ack!*
Posts: 8355 | Registered: Apr 2003
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