Training

The first test is to make sure the dog is capable of working in a new environment and to show that the dog can perform the same tasks in the new environment as it did at its home.

The dogs ball drive is assessed again to ensure that it will still search for and retrieve the ball. The ball is thrown into cover so it cannot be seen by the dog, although he is allowed to see it land. The dog will then be commanded to "seek on", although it is preferable that the dog finds the ball it is not essential. What is important is that the dog continues to search without showing signs of distraction or boredom. A dog with good drive will search for ten minutes although at this stage five minutes is more than adequate.

The dog will then being taken indoors and allowed to roam freely, whilst being closely observed on how it reacts to different environments.

Scent Training

TNT is the first scent that the dog will be introduced to. The reason for this is that it is the hardest of the scents for the dog to find. All being well if it can find this scent it should hopefully be able to find all other scents.

The first step is to roll a ball onto a container with TNT inside. The container has small holes in it which allows the scent to permeate into the room. After this the ball is placed on top of the container encouraging the dog to associate the ball with scent of the TNT. Then dog is allowed to retrieve the ball from it. This stage is continued until the dog is confident with the process.

Protection Dogs

The first test is to make sure the dog is capable of working in a new environment and to show that the dog can perform the same tasks in the new environment as it did at its home.

Before the dog enters the workout area it is encouraged to sit and go into the down. At this stage it is not essential but preferable.

The dog is initially encouraged to play with a rag toy (dolly) until it has achieved a sustained bite and hold.

The dog then moves onto a bite pad, this encourages and gives the dog more confidence to bite closer to the PTAs' body. Once the dog is comfortably achieving three consecutive sustained bite and holds on the hard sleeve it is introduced to a moving target, as before three consecutive sustained bite and holds must be achieved.