What the heck is Mantrailing?
Mantrailing is the sport of teaching dogs to find people by following their unique scent trail. All dogs possess a natural instinct to hunt, and mantrailing gives them a safe, constructive and controlled outlet for the behaviour.
It’s accessible for dogs of all ages, sizes, breeds, and temperaments and can be practiced pretty much anywhere! Mantrailing is a fun, stimulating and rewarding activity that strengthens the bond between humans and their dogs.
Photo by Mantrailing Global
Mantrailing differs from tracking as it focuses on following a specific person's scent trail rather than physical ground disturbances. In the sport of mantrailing, the dog is considered the expert and they decide what methods they want to use to follow and find the trail layer. Mantrailing is an excellent way to build confidence in reactive dogs and meet the needs of working breeds such as hounds and retrievers.
The sport involves five individuals; the dog, handler, trail layer, flanker and instructor. The trail layer is the specific person the dog and handler are searching for and the flanker is moving with them to help prevent disruptions to the trail such as off leash dogs. My role as an instructor is to provide ongoing support and guidance to help facilitate successful completion of the trails.
Each and every trail involves a starting ritual, main trail, and intensity trail to finish. The starting ritual lets the dog know they are about to start trailing and involves performing a scent inventory of the starting points and all possible exit points, equipping the dog in their harness and longline and giving the trail layer the dog's reward. At this point the dog is taken over to the scent article and given their ‘take scent’ and ‘trail’ cues which signifies the start of the trail!
Photo by Mantrailing Global
Once the dog completes the main trail by finding the trail layer, the trail layer rewards the dog and initiates the intensity trail. The intensity trail involves the trail layer firing up the dog using their favourite toy and laying a short, simple trail to set the dog up for an easy win.
You might be wondering where a team's mantrailing journey begins. The answer is by attending an introduction to mantrailing workshop! During an intro workshop, trailing teams gain key skills for the sport including line handling, training the ‘take scent’ and ‘trail’ cues, along with other foundational knowledge and techniques. From there the sky is truly the limit; there is no end to the possibilities of progression through the sport of mantrailing!
Mantrailing is a great way to increase your dog's confidence and provide an outlet for mental enrichment. It’s also a great way for you to enjoy the great outdoors and have fun in a dog friendly social environment. The sport of mantrailing offers an exciting and rewarding journey for both dogs and their handlers; why not give it a try!
Photo by Mantrailing Global
