08/19/2025
Teaching, Training, & Proofing Tuesday
The Pre-Search Scan: Stop, Look, Listen… Then Tell
Before you ever step into a search area, your job as a handler is to gather intel. Odor doesn’t exist in a vacuum, it moves, drifts, gets trapped, or blown away. A pre-search scan sets both you and your dog up for success.
TEACHING the Scan
- Learn the why: Odor is affected by air flow, moves too through under over and around obstacles, is affected by temp, and takes a while to understand.
- Practice walk-throughs without dogs, notice air flow or wind, clutter, and distractions.
- Use “Hides for Eyes” drills to predict where odor could pool.
- Follow a checklist: Air/Wind Direction and Speed -> Area Layout -> Obstacles and Hazards -> Start Line and Thresholds.
GOAL: Handlers understand what to scan, the Dog doesn't go to the walk through or watch the video... the handler does. Use this.
TRAINING the Scan
- Make it part of every threshold: 5–10 seconds before the release.
- Call out what you see; wind, obstacles, distractions. SEE IT - SAY IT - SOLVE IT!
- Video and Review to see if your scan influenced your search. If it didn't why? If it did, why?
GOAL: The scan becomes second nature, automatic like switching from the traffic/obedience collar to the search harness/tools.
PROOFING: Can You Still See the Picture Under Pressure?
Teaching gives you the what. Training builds the habit. But proofing answers the question: Can you still do it when it matters most?
When it comes to the pre-search scan, proofing means making sure you don’t skip it, rush it, or misread the environment, even when adrenaline, nerves, or time pressure hit.
How to Proof It:
- Shorten the Window -> Instead of 15 seconds, give yourself 5. Can you still catch wind/air flow, layout, and hazards?
- Add Distractions -> People moving, judges talking, noise nearby. Train your focus to stay on the scan.
- Hide Placement Pressure -> Set hides that punish a sloppy scan (e.g., deep corners, odor pooling downwind).
- Handler-Only Drills -> Run “scan reps” without your dog. Step up, stop, breathe, scan, call out your read. Hides for Eyes!
- Video Review -> Proofing this isn’t just about confidence, it’s about gathering evidence. Check if you’re consistent under pressure.
The Goal: Your pre-search scan should be automatic, resilient, and repeatable, no matter the setting, distraction, or nerves. Your scan should impact how you search in some small way. Or why do the walk throughs and watch the videos?
