Dogs And Geocaching

[charliechapman]

Has anyone had experience training their dogs to find a cache, once you get close? It seems like it might be a natural fit to me. I'll also let you know if I have any luck with it.

[+TeamK-9]

I cache with my dog. Who's a golden retriever bred to be a hunting dog. Sometimes it seems like she'll stop and sniff spots that later, I find the cache at, but it's never been proven...

[+tirediron]

I know that a couple of 'cachers have claimed to have trained their dogs to sniff out Tupperware and Lock & Locks. Makes sense to me. The 'cache is going to have human scent all over it, and unless you are FTF, there will probably be a good scent trail leading up to. Not quite sure how you would go about it, but it sounds like an interesting project...

[+Team GPSaxophone]

I havent' been caching much in the last couple of months due to planning an event cache. Now that it's passed, I can spend some time training our Golden, Geody

[+Stunod]

My dogs can't find caches, but they sure can find smelly things to roll in and burrs

[+PSUPAUL]

My dog can only find moldy bread and donuts out on the trail. And an occasional stick she wants me to throw. I personally think she is a little light in the brain dept but she sure understands the word "walk" and the sound the treat jar makes. My wife thinks she is the smartest dog in the world.

[+flask]

my dog finds ammo cans really well in the house, but outdoors he doesn't know what to smell for. he can find all of MY ammo cans, but since other people don't hide MY cans, my dog isn't so good at it.

 

besides, i don't always take him with me, since i often stop at places or caches where he is not welcome. i am not capable of adequately supervising a dog and hunting for a cache, so i don't take him if i'm going alone.

 

he's a well-behaved dog, but he IS a big goofball and i know it's my responsibility to watch out for things he won't think of. if i can't live up to my end of the deal, he stays home.

[+SixDogTeam]

My Jack Russell, "Patrick" is an expert at finding ticks...

[+Lazyboy & Mitey Mite]

I would be interested in training a dog to clean up their own plops.

[+coast2coast2coast]

Here are a couple of my logs about our Geocaching Pup

 

**** January 19, 2003 by coast2coast2coast (230 found)

Zoe actually found this one! We were there with Cacherunner and scrambling through the brush when Mrs Coast2coast2coast said Zoe's got Something over here! We went over to where the Pooch was and low and behold it was the cache!!! All our hard work and training with Zoe paid off...LOL...Great place to hide it... (ADVISE FOR US FOLICLY CHALLANGED)>>>Wear a hat in and around this cache site...My head is all scratched up!****************************************

and this one********

January 14 by coast2coast2coast (198 found)

Found this at about 0930 this morning...Well to be honest with you Zoe Dog found it I was looking around and saw that Zoe's Nose was stuck in a hole, low and behold she was sniffing the cache I trained my Zoe dog well

Took...the first finder thingy

left...paradise********************************************With Zoe its hit or miss! One time she will try to find it, the next She will be too busy rootin' around every where but the cachesite.

[+gussys]

Our bloodhound goes out with us on the trail. You might think this would help a bit as she is a S&R dog but no luck. If you get lost at the cache we could help LOL

[+rusty_tlc]

I would be interested in training a dog to clean up their own plops.

Outside his own yard Rufus would only poop on command. When we traveled I had to take him to a field and tell him to go or he would hold until an there was an explosion.

He was worthless at finding geocaches, but having a dog gives you a reason to be poking around in the bushes, looking for the ball don't you know.

[+nfa]

Hi,

 

I tried geocaching with my beagle once, but he kept popping the lid of the tupperware and catching up to me, so eventually I had to return the golf-ball.

 

nfa

Edited June 8, 2004 by NFA

[+Bjorn74]

Anyone have a Bernese Mountain Dog as their caching friend? It's the breed I most want, but I'm not sure s/he'd be up for the multi-mile days.

[+Alan2]

My Jack Russell, "Patrick" is an expert at finding ticks...

My poodle Buddy takes after Patrick.

[+Gizmo & Brazin]

Since we have three dogs, we try and rotate who gets to go. None of them have a clue about looking for an ammo can or Rubbermaid. Our 'big dog', Blitz, loves the weekends and knows the cache backpack. When it comes out, he hits the door. We didn't get to go this weekend, as I am studying for a major exam in a week, but every time one of us got up and even walked in the direction of the cache bag, he had his nose to the door and tail going. Poor guy, he is really going to go into withdrawal when we don't get out again this weekend.

[+SuzyQhoo]

Well, "MaceyBB" found one all on her own (I think it was a difficulty 3...right at her nose level...LOL!) and has "helped" find many others!

 

This is Macey and newbie cacher, GlowBaby last weekend.

 

 

Her GC screen name is MaceyBB. I log all her finds when she is caching with me. She LOVES to go and knows when I start gathering the caching equipment and her leash that she is going to get to go also!

 

[+Morock & Miss C]

Our pound/hound mix, Chloe dog, has found a number of caches. One we had trouble finding was Fort Hatchery GCE337. After more than 30 minutes on the second try, Miss C had gone back to the rig and I had walked away a couple times, only to get a better signal and return. Chloe ran right over the tupperware, buried in pine needles in front of me, making a hollow 'tunk' sound with her toe nails. As if to say 'here it is, let's get down the road already'.

That day she helped find another one. Of course, if a lizard or squirrel catches her attention that's the end of her looking for human caches.

If we get our Rino 120s out at home, she won't leave our side until we go or convince her we're just uploading more waypoints and she won't miss an outing. Pretty funny to watch her antics. Jumping, nosing our legs, whining, she will even lick the GPSr. Yeh, more dog slobber.

Dogs and geocaching pretty much go together around here. Most areas in our neck of the woods are dog friendly.

[+Team Sand Dollar]

My dog loves to go caching. But in the 1000 plus she has gone with me on she has found only one and it was out in the open. I keep hoping.

 

Team Sand Dollar

[+Blaylockgang]

Our 4-month old Jack Russell Terrier, Emma, is a caching nut! She loves going out on the hunt, although she hasn't actually found one on her own yet. She, too, is good at finding nasty stuff to roll in, or jumping in the creek, puddle, etc. She always needs a bath when we get home from caching, but she loves it all the same. A few days ago we thought she ran off with the cache lid. We spent a good ten minutes looking for it until my daugher, age 19, remembered that she had stuck it in our cache bag!

[Earthdog Patrick]

Blaylockgang Posted on Jun 8 2004, 08:50 AM

  Our 4-month old Jack Russell Terrier, Emma, is a caching nut! She loves going out on the hunt, although she hasn't actually found one on her own yet. 

 

Don't underestimate Jack Russell Terriers! I've got over 40 finds!!

[+HoundGrrls]

If you are truely interested in scent work, email me. My two poochies scent non-geocache things and they are super good cammo. In addition to the "looking for poop" or "looking for a ball" we used the "looking for "it"" in an urban micro setting where this guy waiting for his table to be ready kept trying to talk to me and pet my dogs. I walked away, put on their "I'm working" vests and we sniffed for something unnamed but official (drugs/bombs/?) and he nervously walked away. Ha Ha Ha.