Whether you call it de-snaking, snake proofing or snake avoidance training, Search Dog Network members Katie Breland and Mary Haislet recently attended one of these clinics near Plantersville with three Search Dog Network canines.  Pat McHale of Ridgewood Kennels offers an effective and safe clinic once a year in August.

Many dogs are curious about snakes…after all they look like a fun, mobile tug toy! Being bitten by a rattlesnake is not only painful and possibly fatal to the dog, but the vet bills don’t feel good either!   With proper training the dog learns to be very wary of snakes and to back off or at least go around the snake.

The following is a description of how this was done at the August 7th clinic.   The instructor worked each dog with a long lead and an e-collar.  He used several defanged rattlesnakes whose mouths had been temporarily sealed.  Timing was crucial in applying the negative stem at the time the curious dog put his nose next to snake or the snake struck the dog.  When the dog ran from the snake back to the instructor he got a lot of praise.  After one or two runs the instructor put the dog in a sit about 6-8 feet from snake, backed up about 12 feet holding onto the long lead and placing the snake between them, and called the dog to him.  The dog would refuse to move at first so the instructor gave the dog time to figure out that he could run in a semi circle around the snake (pulling on the lead as hard as he could to avoid the snake!).  Once he reached the instructor he received a lot of praise.  This process was repeated with two different snakes, one with no rattle to give the dog an odor/visual cue and one with a rattle to give the dog an odor/auditory exposure.

One dog that had been to the clinic several times balked when he realized there were snakes in the area.  He kept trying to pull back from the snakes, and when forced to walk near the snakes he circled around them in a wide arc.  The e-collar did not have to be used on him and he received a lot of praise for avoidance.

Some of the dogs at the clinic were used to being worked with an e-collar and some had never worn one.  The effect seemed to be the same with all of them—the dogs left the clinic with a healthy respect and aversion for snakes and no aversion to e-collars.

After the instructor had worked the dogs,  Katie and Mary walked their dogs up to the snakes without using e-collars.  The dogs did not freak out, they just pulled hard on the leash to walk in a wide arc around each snake.

For more information and pictures go to:

http://www.ridgewood-kennels.com/services/desnake.shtml