Scent Training

[Kturnill]

Searching for information on how to scent train a dog to detect low blood sugar in my diabetic little boy. We live in perth wa, does anybody know if this can even be done and if so who can I contact? Thanks

[Kavik]

Hi :)

I know of 2 trainers who specialise in scent detection - Steve Austin and Gary Jackson. Neither of them are in Perth but they would probably either be able to help you or point you in the direction of a local person who can. The user Nekhbet on here may also know of someone.

Just a note you only need to start one thread on a topic :) People are not always in front of their computer, sometimes it can take a little while for people to respond.

[OSoSwift]

There is a lady with a diabetic alert Whippet called Winston. There is an organisation that trains diabetic alert dogs I will see if I can find some more information for you.

[OSoSwift]

http://www.pfd.org.au/ this is one place the raise money for

[Kturnill]

Thanks, I've actually just spoken to that lady, not a lot of help, they only train dogs of their choice, they reckon that the chance of getting a dog to have the right temperament, the willingness to learn and a bond with my son is slim to non. I actually feel quite dispondant now! May see if I can get hold of those other guys the 1st reply mentioned

Thank u

[Nekhbet]

A friend of my dads trained his little chihuahua x pom to detect his low blood sugar because he blacked out a lot. All he did was test his blood sugar more often, when it was getting low all he did was call the dog over, let it sniff him, encourage the dog to keep sniffing and get excited, bark etc then give him a schmacko. Dog was 100% right every time. This was a man with no dog training experience, he had some experience with horses back in Russia as a boy and that's it.

The trick is to get a clingy little companion breed that is bonded to your son a lot, that they enjoy each others company. A younger dog with few bad habits, well socialised so its not distracted. Work from there.

[Kturnill]

Oh really that sounds interesting! I know they use a swab from the inside of your mouth when low to acquire the scent but didn't really know where to go from there, I can't imagine it would be too difficult to do if you were a qualified trainer but I'm hitting brick walls with all my enquiries. Maybe I just need to try it myself, what breed would you recommend out of interest?

Thanks

[Leah82]

While I don't know anything about scent detection of low blood sugar if you need a dog with the drive to sniff things out and that will become a very close companion for your little boy a cocker spaniel would be a good fit.

I might mention this to my fiance, his dad has never managed his diabetes very well, they have a cocker spaniel but she's on her last legs. Would only be beneficial if they're thinking about getting another dog in the future.

[Nekhbet]

Oh really that sounds interesting! I know they use a swab from the inside of your mouth when low to acquire the scent but didn't really know where to go from there, I can't imagine it would be too difficult to do if you were a qualified trainer but I'm hitting brick walls with all my enquiries. Maybe I just need to try it myself, what breed would you recommend out of interest?

Thanks

Depends what you can cope with as well in the house. I was speaking to OH about it last night and he recommended a little staffordshire bull terrier :laugh: any dog that is a companion breed and you see that instant head over heels bond with your son. As much as they have hair pomeranians and chihuahuas are clingy little dogs, happy to bark and very intelligent. You want to see if the dog has a natural curiosity and intelligence, it can be as easy as hiding a bit of food under a blanket and seeing if the dog is willing to keep going until it finds it. A dog that gives up easily or can't be bothered may be a little more difficult to be motivated.

I know they would use swabs from low blood sugar as the body would be producing ketones, that really distinct smell they get on their breath as they would be training a dog in general not on a single person. You could take swabs from your son as well, you can grab a couple of specimen plastic jars from the doctor and you keep it in there. Sterile gauze is a good medium to start on you just have to watch for cross contamination.

If you're willing to try I don't see why you couldn't get somewhere. I'll see if I can hit on anyone in WA that has scent detection experience that can help you. Message me what area you're in and I'll see what I can do for you :)

[Kturnill]

Thanks very much nekhbet! We are in the northern suburbs of perth, yanchep to be precise. A little out of the way of most things but I'm used to having to travel a bit to get anything out of the ordinary.

We haven't purchased a pup yet, was wanting to do the ground work on training research 1st to make sure it could actually be done. Looking at maybe poodle... I'm allergic to most dogs

We have a 10yr old westhighland terrier who is pretty much just interested In sleeping!

I don't think it would be that hard if you had a scent detection experienced trainer, and a dog with the right temperament and willingness to learn. The dog part will be easy enough but finding someone who knows how to train it seems the hard part! Especially here in perth it seems, over east, no problem but unfortunately that's a long way away!

If you know of anyone that would be great. Thanks

[Nekhbet]

Sent you a private message :D