"Hide and Seek"

In the last few weeks I have been testing Bolt for Search and Rescue work. A big part of the testing is playing the "Hide and Seek" game. This reminded how important this game is to building a strong recall. For beginners you will need someone to help you. Have the other person hold your dog get very excited and let the dog watch you go hide. Once in hiding call the dog. As soon as the dog finds you give it a big reward. If the dog can't find you, call its name every now and then. The goal is to make the game as fun as possible. Once the dog is able to find you while watching have the other person cover the dog's eyes. Run and hide and call the dog. Big reward once the dog finds you. Eventually you can make the searches tougher and tougher. Make sure it's always fun for the dog, and don't over do it. Doing these searches will increase the dog's drive to come to you. To wrap this blog up remember to make the first searches simple, then begin make the searches more difficult.