Training Your Family Dog to Look for a Lost Person

Teach a dog to look for lost or missing persons

Family Disaster Dogs Daisy and Willie

This dog training lesson is easy to do at home and teaches a dog to use an article belonging to the missing or lost person to find that person. 

In dog work this is considered and often called scent discrimination because the dog learns to smell the "scent article" and look only for that scent or person. 

It is very Important to not contaminate the article with your own and other scents. 

Read More (click) and go to the free lesson page for many posts about scent and how-to teach working dogs tracking or pets to help its family locate missing family after a disaster. 

To get Started

Training your family dog to look for a Lost Person

You will need:

1. Your dog
2. 1 person who will hide from the dog
3. 1 sock, or hat or glove the "scent article" from the person who will hide

You can do this lesson indoors or outside with or without a leash, depending on the dog.

Start with a person your dog knows and hold your dog by its collar as the person slowly runs and waves at the dog to a hiding place that is easy to find and with only one turn away right now.

As soon as the person is out of sight,,, 

Hold the scent article, the person's sock, to your dog's nose, say "Smell" and then turn your dog loose and say "Find so and so" use the person’s name, follow your dog to the person.

Your dog, no matter what age will attempt to find them.

If the dog has a hard time at first it is okay for the person who is hiding to call the dog or encourage the dog to find them so the dog gets the idea. Later the person will not speak or move but hide.

You will learn as we get further in training to read your dog's clues, in the meantime, learn to watch your dog's moves and body language for indications and reactions that lead to the trail or person.

If the dog does not go fairly quickly to the person then encourage the dog to go with you and show the dog with excitement how fun it is to find the person. 

When they find the person, praise, praise, praise by you and the person shower this dog with attention and they will be so happy to do this again, you'll hardly be able to hold him. 

Here is Bo taking scent from the scent article in a plastic bag before we start on a wooded trail looking for a person who is hiding. Bloodhounds often put their whole nose in the scent bag.

A leash is not needed at first with your pet dog if you train in a fenced yard or with a dog who is use to free roaming.

Check out the Family Disaster Dog book for all the lessons in paperback and kindle!