Rat Hunting
Dogs love to hunt critters. They are hardwired to use their noses to find interesting odors. Rat hunting is fun and creates a bond between the dog and their owner while building confidence and focus.
There are five venues of critter hunting: Scent Dog Association (SDA) Rat Games (RG), Barn Hunt, North American Sport Dog (NASDA), and Earth Dog. They all use domestic trained rats in dog safe containers typically tubes or critter cages. Comp K9 offers instruction in all venues except Earth Dog.
Because most competitors who hunt critters show in multiple venues, we combine instruction for critter hunting into hunting skills that are applicable to any venue. Dogs are taught to go to the "source" or "hot" scent and mark it. Rules for all organizations are discussed.
Instruction varies by the dog's level with master hunters doing complicated searches, intermediate dogs polishing skills while beginning dogs progress at their own rate. The classes vary from week to week focusing on different skills and playing games from one or more of the venues.
Classes Offered
Rat Class - Beginning Hunters
Rat hunting is all about finding the "hot" scent in the midst of other competing scents. Beginning hunters start on scent recognition of the rat in their dog safe critter cages.
Beginning dogs get highly individualized instruction in rat hunting basics like discriminating between hot scent vs. residual scent, tube or critter cages as containers, different types of locations, signaling, height work and how to communicate with their owners that they have found the rat. Handlers learn to understand their dog's signals and body posture as well as how to work a course efficiently to assure maximum success. If your dog doesn’t signal clearly, we can teach them to give you a concise signal.
Once the dog understands how to hunt and begins to signal, we progress to searching for the cages in a mix of other items from boxes, crates, on shelves or slightly elevated, etc. From there the dogs learn to seek the critter cage in all sorts of environments.
Dogs can start at any time during the month. Drop-ins are welcome. Class fees: $20/class. Paid monthly. Drop-Ins are welcome. Drop in fee: $25 per dog.
Rat Class - Intermediate Hunters
Intermediate hunters know how to search and signal but may not be ready to work difficult hides, elevated hides, discrimination challenges, or are inconsistent in their signaling. Dogs learning to search in another venue with different rat enclosures will be given an opportunity to search multiple types of containers.
Intermediate hunters will receive individualized instruction in advanced rat hunting skills with a focus on discriminating between hot scent vs. residual scent, signaling, height work and speed of hunt. Multiple hunts with different challenges are set allowing the dogs to learn to work more complex hides and searches while building problem solving skills and confidence. Work on refining signaling is done where needed.
Dogs can start at any time during the month. Drop-ins are welcome. Class fees: $20/class. Paid monthly. Drop-Ins are welcome. Drop-in fee: $25 per dog.
Rat Class - Master Hunters
Master hunters know how to search and signal and are actively competing in one or more organization. These hunts focus on difficult hides, elevated hides or all types, discrimination challenges, and off lead hunting.
Dogs must have competed and titled at a minimum of the second level in any rat hunting organization or by permission of the instructors. The goal is to challenge these hunters to problem solve and signal at speed.
Dogs can start at any time during the month. Class fees: $20/class. Paid monthly. Drop-Ins are welcome with instructor approval. Drop-in fee: $25 per dog.
SEMI-PRIVATE INSTRUCTION
We offer semi-private instruction for groups up to four dogs at a time a date that is convenient for you. All Semi-Private Instruction is scheduled in one-hour increments. Enroll for the instruction and a trainer will contact you directly to set a date and time. Class Fee: minimum $100
PRIVATE INSTRUCTION
We offer private instruction for groups up to four dogs at a time a date that is convenient for you. All Private Instruction is scheduled in one-hour increments. Enroll for the instruction and a trainer will contact you directly to set a date and time. Class Fee: $80/hour/student
A WORD ABOUT OUR RATS
Our rats live very well. They are housed in a large habitat with lots of toys, plenty of nooks and crannies to hide in, good basic food plus lots of fruits and veggies and way too many treats.
Our rats were all born as "feeder" rats. They were originally bred to be fed alive to snakes and other predators. Instead of that fate, we ask them to work 1 day a week and an occasional weekend. They are trained to get into the tubes and boxes and quickly figure out that the dogs can't touch them. We frequently see them tease the dogs then sit back and smirk.
Rats live to be 3 years old or a bit older if they are well cared for. We use them to work for about a year to a year and half then they retire to become someone's pet or they live in our retirement villa for the rest of their lives. Don't worry about our rats, we keep them well protected.
| Rat Games | RatGames.com |
| Barn Hunt | BarnHunt.com |
| North American Sport Dog | NASDA.dog |