SNOW!!!

Love it (me) or hate it (Kelly)....it's something to think about. A couple of years ago I judged in Ann Arbor, MI. Between the time the tracks were laid and run, 6" of snow fell. The test went on.

Who went out today and took advantage of the weather? I did! I put a track in for Gus before the snow started, by the time we ran it the vegetated portion was lightly covered in snow, the NV was wet without snow. He did great. Check--another set of conditions in his Rolodex.

I put a short track in for Fletch, waited until my footsteps were covered (15 min!), and ran him. No problem!

Dogs track well in the snow, and IMHO it's not because they can see the track (mine couldn't see it today). We humans often assume they track well in the snow because the track is visible....but we really have no way of knowing what sense they are using. They aren't visual beings.....

What can you learn from tracking in the snow? You can see precisely how far your dog overshoots the turn. You can see how he responds to cross tracks, either human or animal. You will probably see your dog track better than you've ever seen! Enjoy it....

When the snow melts, tracking seems to become hard. So go train! I've no idea why it's hard....we can all offer theories, but until the dogs can tell us, we really can't know. What is important to know is that it can be difficult...so we should make time to go practice in melting snow!

Who went out today and took advantage of the weather?? Tell us how your dog did!