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Show It should also be mentioned at this point that dogs, when tired or exposed to storms, suddenly start to dig and simultaneously turn around in circles. This does not mean that they are pointing to an object. It is their inherited instinct to hollow out a protected resting place and to curl up in it. For example, it can almost always be observed that a dog does not Simply throw himself down on the ground. Instead, he will first turn a few times on his own axis and then assume his position of rest. He does the same thing on the avalanche. Only there, he will try to dig in as a protection against the weather which is changing for the worse. Trying to distract the dog. If the dog leader is in doubt whether or not the dog has found the source of a scent, he makes one or two attempts to distract the dog. This means that the dog is called off and started on the search again at a spot approximately 10 meters away. If the dog returns again and again to the first- indicated spot ( his discovery hole), then this is accepted as proof that a source of scent exists at this spot. The attempt at distraction is a reliable aid to the dog leader, because generally a dog will not simply desert his discovery spot* The discovery. The closer the dog approaches the source of the scent, the more excited becomes his scratching and his entire behavior. The dog should discover the origin of the scent ( man, animal, object) for himself. Even though the rescuers can determine that a fictim is buried at a certain spot, the dog must not be removed until he has learned the origin of the scent himself. He is very happy because he can tell by the praise of his master and by his detection of the scent source, that he has solved his problem well* Therefore, under all circumstances, the dog must come to know theobject of the scent by himself* He must be permitted to smell it in the closest proximity* It thus makes no difference ( this has already been mentioned) whether we are dealing with the sought- for object or with an unimportant object ( a stick of wood)* A find is a find. The dog cannot know which find the master considers to be the right one. The priase has to be the same! - 69 - |