Debby Kay's Super Sniffer Program

16/01/2025

So very proud of the Brazilians that came to train with me and learn about the Sweet Snoopers program for medical alert dogs. Here is a post of one of their successes. :

“A little over a year ago, after returning from a medical alert dog training course in the US, my friend and dog trainer made me an irresistible offer, to donate a chihuahua puppy to a boy with type 1 diabetes so that the puppy could be trained to alert its owner in case he starts a hypoglycemia frame. Immediately I asked Glauco to come and pick out the puppy, the chosen was a female shorthair, today called Geni.
After a few months of training Geni starts to show her skill!

"According to Bruno Casulli, 34 years old who has assistance from the dog Geni, the chihuahua breed, Maison Lapinus. He's been living with type 01 diabetes for 20 years, even after that long, the best alternative to knowing what my blood sugar level is still sticking your finger in the glucose meter. “The problem is that you don’t always have time. Hypoglycemia can occur without warning, and severely low levels can cause loss of consciousness, seizure and death,” he explains. “Acting quickly is crucial in these moments, an alert dog can warn its owner in advance about the need to ingest food before the episode occurs.
Today, no technology does it so quickly and efficiently. not so spectacular and active"

We at Kennel Lapinus are very proud of Geni and the work done by Glauco and Bruno.

We're already preparing other chihuahua puppies to do this beautiful job and it makes our hearts warm!

If you want to help with the project, contact us via Direct and share this post!
www.caesdealertamedico.com.br

O programa Sniffers – Cães Médicos é uma iniciativa inovadora que visa o treinamento e a divulgação do universo dos cães de assistência e alerta médico. Surgiu da dificuldade em encontrar informações adequadas sobre cães de assistência no Brasil.

01/01/2025

Very proud of this Chilbrook girl who retry passed her state certification test for professional detection work in Michigan.

30/11/2024

Congratulations to Kerrie Laird and Gage.
Gage earned his NW3, NW3-C & NW3-I titles yesterday in Eldred NY. Keep up the great work team.

18/11/2024

Relationship between a dog and handler is the foundation of success in scent work of any kind. This amazing search and rescue team has successfully followed 24 hr old trails to successful conclusions, an extraordinary feat by any standard.

14/11/2024

Love when my students get so over the top excited to be tracking. Makes my heart sing! dog sniffer

05/11/2024

Fabulous day for tracking even if a bit dry. We practiced with leaves, more dry dirt areas, paved walk crossings, and a few other things. The dogs are progressing towards advanced titles.

13/10/2024

Absolutely over the moon excited for two of my most recent tracking students that passed their first test to earn TDs. Both are excellent working dogs with dedicated handlers. Hugs and congratulations to all. Pictured is Phyllis Bower with Cooper, the Clumber Spaniel, and Susan Glenn with her Minature Poodle Davis.

24/09/2024

So happy to see dogs being used so creatively to help with this situation

A citizen science project is turning canines into crop protectors, and challenging what researchers know about dogs’ powerful noses.

05/09/2024

Intro to strong odors on the track, deer and fresh cut hay

07/05/2024

Training today was in heavy fog, damp grass and 65 degree weather.

When preparing a tracking dog for competition it’s important to track under as many different weather conditions as possible. Scent will behave differently under each set of conditions. Practicing with you dog gives them the experience that builds a confident tracker.

24/03/2024

Training Tip: if you have a dog that loves a ball or certain toy you can use that to train them for specific scents. Just add a tiny amount to the toy/ball as your tossing start to make the tosses longer and more complicated so the dog has to search for it. As they are searching they will start to key in on the special odor and when you pair a word cue with that you’ll be training your dog to find that odor before long.

16/02/2024

Rereading some of the great work done by Tinbergen in the 40s and 50s on the functional peculiarities of innate releasing mechanisms, I realized a key point when working with the labs on field exercises. With the highly developed sensory organs of our dogs (sight,smell,hearing) there are multiple signals triggering input to the central nervous system. Only a fraction is used however of what they perceive in any situation. Part of that is known by other studies done since Tinbergen on the neural network; think of it as a selection made due to limitations of the capacity of the system. From the groundwork done, it appears the motivation is key in determining which inputs will influence perceptions hence performance.

This tracks well with my early memories with my father’s hounds. When they were hot on a scent you could not stop them. They heard nothing else. Decades of breeding that specific reaction to the smell of the target game honed the response to its purest and strongest pinnacle.

With my Labradors my interest has always been in the use of their scenting abilities for some highly specialized jobs. In addition to the acute sense of smell, I have chosen traits like “watching”, “second degree problem solving” and “curiosity” to produce dogs that can learn their task and do it quickly with little training. They also are able to perform under very complex situations with overwhelming stimulation present staying focused.

In reviewing my notes on this again I’m reminded that as a trainer I need to keep in mind that the dog’s behavior in the field during training is to help channel the input into the desired behavior. My exercises need to teach them how to filter that input into what helps them achieve success.

26/01/2024

So proud of these graduates spreading the knowledge and helping dogs

Congratulations Jacqueline for completing our Academy and becoming an Atlas Certified Trainer!
We are very excited to have Jacqueline join our team of Atlas Trainers. Her dedication and passion for helping disabled individuals lead more independent lives with their service dog shines in everything she does.
Jacqueline offers training in Austin, Texas and virtually. Check out her bio here: https://www.atlasdog.org/jacqueline-mueller/

Please help us celebrate Jacqueline on this awesome accomplishment!

Image description: A photo of Jacqueline kneeling in the grass next to her dog, a red tri-colored australian shepherd who is sitting next to her. On the left of the photo is a quote from Jacqueline: “I’m proud to help make service dogs more attainable by helping disabled individuals to train their own service dog. I have a special passion for service dog placement and training for mental health disorders, particularly trauma disorders, and working with medical providers to align and incorporate these as part of treatment.
It’s incredibly rewarding to help someone transform their life into a healthier and more independent life in this way."
Above the photo and quote, in bold letters: "Congratulations to our new Atlas Certified Trainer"

28/12/2023

Great tracking today. Love seeing all the progress dogs are making.

22/12/2023

The Chocolate 1year old female in this photo would make a great detection dog for competitions. She is sweet and loving but truly loves to work. Offering her for sale to serious working home. Smaller size- 50 pounds. UTD on all healthcare.