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You Cheating Dog!


necron

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My wife and I are looking for a dog, and we thought it would be nice to take out on cache hunts. However, I remember back to my childhood when our trusty canine friend would lead us out of the woods in the middle of the night, or in very thick fog. I'm wondering if any of you cache with a dog, and if they lead you right to the spot?

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I usually have my dog with me when I'm caching. I haven't ever cached at night or in deep fog, so I'm not sure how she would do in those conditions.

 

I have actually been letting her sniff the caches and praising her when we find one. That way she will help me look for them while we're out. The only time she has really found one was at the 3 Floating Bubbles cache. She found the hiding spot, but she couldn't really get to the cache. She always gets very excited when I get my geocaching gear out and she knows she's going to get to go play in the woods.

 

This is how I enjoy geocaching with my dog. Others would probably say it is cheating to use her the way I am using her. I don't get too hung up with the way that others think I should geocache. We go out and have fun by doing it however we want to do it.

 

Have fun with your dog!

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while the dog may not find the cache (unless he eats regularly "from ammo cans and tupperware" :D ), he's great help once i'm done. i love that i can turn off the gps, put all the papers and junk in my pockets, give him the word "truck" and follow him right back. that's what hunting breeds are for (in this case, golden retriever), and that's when i really enjoy the scenery!! B)

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You haven't met my dog obviously! Haha. If anything, I should get extra stats for bringing her with me. (if I cared about stats).

 

I think a dog is a great companion. The only thing I recommend is that the dog is trained to stay with you at all times. In remote settings, there have been cases where dogs run off to protect their owners from wildlfe, only to either never return or come back with wildlife (bear) in hot pursuit!

 

And -- shameless plug -- if you are getting a dog, please consider your local Humane Society as a great choice for lovely animals. Mine was rescued off a reserve by ARF (Animal Rescue Foundation) and she is the most loving, pretty, best dog in the world!

 

RubyMaddie.JPG

Edited by Lemon Fresh Dog
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My dog hasn't been of much help out in the bush, however my friend's Bernese Mountain dog found a cache for us in Edmonton here. Chungo found the cache and was digging through the snow. He then stuck his nose in the hole where the cache was hidden. He sure received a lost of treats for that great find. If your dog does find a cache be sure to give him credit in the log!

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Two years ago we were caching in Northern California with the visiting Wienerdog team. For one of the caches I suggested that we let the namesake wienerdog, Chloe, find the cache because she likes to walk ahead of the group as most dogs do. So as she was trotting along the trail she suddenly made a 90 degree turn and put her nose into the cache site. Good dog!

 

Since that time I've thought that dogs must be making lots of finds. With this topic it is interesting to see that they are not as successful as I thought they would be.

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I have actually watched a dog find a cache well hidden in an ivy wall.  She was trained to sniff out ammo cans and was very successful.

Wow. Finally, an eye witness account of a working geocaching dog!! Too cool.

 

Was it trained to hunt ammo cans specfically for geocaching? It seems like it should be pretty simple, as dog training goes, and I have always been surprised it is not done more.

 

Do you know if it could find tupperware as well, or was/is it limited to ammo cans?

 

It seems to me like there should be some managably small variety of telltail odors associated with geocaches that might occationally get confused with trash, but not always.

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I often take my Aussie out with me on hunts in woods . . . he loves the time together & the runs but he has not helped me find a cache - he HAS learned patience with me standing in a small area hunting. Feeding him out of an ammo can might help . . . I did find a cache-eating tree, though (RLDILL cache, by that name) . . . it eats the whole container though, not just out of it.

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And -- shameless plug -- if you are getting a dog, please consider your local Humane Society as a great choice for lovely animals. Mine was rescued off a reserve by ARF (Animal Rescue Foundation) and she is the most loving, pretty, best dog in the world!

 

RubyMaddie.JPG

Shameless plug where no shame is called for.

Bravo.

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The Ladybug Kids take at least one dog with us when we cache for a variety of reasons:

 

1. On winter ski trips, the dog(s) have an uncanny ability to sense thin river and lake ice and skirt around it.

2. On packed snow trails, we can hook up to the dogs and skijor, thereby getting to and from the cache site more quickly.

3. When we arrive at the cache site, the dog(s) help leave all sorts of prints in the snow all over the area, thereby negating the number of "extra" circles we feel we should leave behind B).

4. The dogs warn us when moose and bears are around. From our experience, moose are definitely more dangerous than bears B).

5. And the dogs just have so much fun romping around in the outdoors, which is what this game is supposed to be all about (in our humble opinion) :D.

 

With respect to the dogs helping to actually find caches, we haven't had much luck, though Corky did help me find a virtual cache B). Here are some logs featuring our dogs: Ingrid, Corky, and Billie.

 

Disclaimer: All local leash laws are abided by, dogs are not allowed on groomed ski trails unless expressly permitted, dogs are not allowed to chase, bark at, and otherwise harrass wildlife, and dogs are not allowed to "meet and greet" other people encountered unless the "greetee" expresses an interest in meeting the dog. (Not all folks consider dogs to be peoplekind's best friend).

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http://img.Groundspeak.com/user/78f5167f-a...0bcf95dee7f.jpg

This is our geo pup and as the Boxer Crew might very well know, He might be able to lead you to the cache site but once he get's there he'll just keeep right on going, and going, and going. Unless of course it is very hot in wich case we dont take him out anyways. Boxers dont do well in the heat.

Even though he doesnt find them, man does he like to go. He also get's very excited just by me pullin the backpack out, and he's startin to learn the word "Geocache". That'll perk his ears right up, almost as if they were cropped. :D

So I suppose if he can learn the word maybe someday he can learn the sport.

Edited by GeoPhishers
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I've got a new pup... 3 months old now.. I love taking her caching to get her energy out. Last week I had bought a container (stainless steel mason jar kind of thing) to keep her dog biscuits in. I had other stuff though ... busy bones..rawhide stuff, that wouldn't fit. While out caching the other day I had a vision and came home and cleaned an ammo can to keep those bigger items in. It's only been a couple of days now and she starts salivating when she sees me get near the ammo can :D I'll let you know how much fun cheating is if we ever make it that far B)

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while the dog may not find the cache (unless he eats regularly "from ammo cans and tupperware" :D ), he's great help once i'm done.  i love that i can turn off the gps, put all the papers and junk in my pockets, give him the word "truck" and follow him right back.  that's what hunting breeds are for (in this case, golden retriever), and that's when i really enjoy the scenery!!  B)

NO WAY!! How did you train him ! I'd LOVE to have my Lab do this, or are you pulling my leg??? B)B)

Edited by Spzzmoose
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Our geocaching handle is named after our dog, Brodie. On weekends we take him to geocache, but he hasnt found any either. He is well trained and doesnt go off chasing after wildfire (I am sure he would like to). Being unemployed currently, I have geocached during the week and honestly I don't take him along simple because its too much of a production getting him ready, etc (though I have the time, not the patience) I am sure he doesnt like that but oh well.

 

I don't think taking the dog along is cheating. They just want to be with their people and its good exercise for all!

 

Enough

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In answer to the original question, no, I don't think it is cheating at all. Heck, I wish my dog could help me on some of them, especially the DNF's. I took her with me one time...now, my dog is a mixed old hound dog, so I figured with all that heritage and a good nose, she should be great at sniffing out caches. Well, also true to her heritage, she is about the laziest thing going, she only wakes up from her naps long enough to eat and scratch, and maybe change location on the porch about two feet. So I know I would end up carrying her the whole way into the cache and the whole way out. ;)

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Our geodogs are part of the caching team, so since we all share our finds, regardless of who find the cache, it's obviously not cheating. A a matter of fact it's generally very entertaining and relaxing. The geodogs love the hikes and our newest geodog is being training to find plastic. A tough proposition, but we are trying to scent train with plastic and old McToys, and we also let her sniff the cache before we pull it out. So far both of our geodogs have found at least one cache each. We can't be sure if our training works or if they simply smell everything everywhere! An we share Lemon Fresh Dog's view, there is a geodog in a shelter waiting for you to show up and take it geocaching! ;)

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Having an 8 month old lab that I'm training to hunt I would think that you could train a dog to sniff out ammo boxes. I don't know if you would get a 100% success rate, but it could be done.

 

I don't think it would be cheating either, for example if you cache in a group and only one person has a GPS, and a person without the GPS sinds the cache is that cheating? What difference does it make if the finder has 2 or 4 legs?

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I take my dog all the time when caching (and since I'm new, it hasn't been much ;) ). Since my geocache partner cannot come with me at this time, I rely on my pooch to be a deterent for suspicious people and to be my great companion. He has not found a cache....he doesn't seem to be too interested in the sport, but he loves going out into the woods to hike.

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I take my geopup, Timber ;) with me. She's an ALaskan Malamute. She's only been caching since September. She's alot more concerned with the animals and the waterfalls on the trail than the caches, she loves water and to go swimming whenever possible in any type of weather or temp. She also keeps an eye on everyone hiking, and makes sure she can see everyone at all times.

 

Sometimes she finds caches, but not all the time. Last week she stepped right on the ammo can and kept going...unfortunately, so did I.

 

I think the best thing with her is her size, when I'm by myself, she can be intimidating to others. She is great with rough terrain, loves to rock scramble. Her best attribute is keeping on the trail. She nevers misses a beat, and always knows exactly where to turn if we go off trail, or make a turn onto another trail. SHe is very good at following her own trail back out. If I ran out of batteries, I would totally trust her navigation skills to get back to the parking area.

 

ea007094-cec9-41bc-ad73-770b718dae03.jpg

 

She CITO's too!

Edited by Polgara
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I have to say that my Chocolate Lab also shows no interest in finding caches. He much prefers to look for animals, people, water, etc on our outings. We've never used him to find our way back to the car but as you can see from my stats, I have only just started caching and I haven't been to any super hard ones yet ;)

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I hope it's not cheating because I also started because of my dog! I first learned about geocaching through a dog organization and I wanted to start it so I could do something else fun with my dogs... So far I've taken her with on all my cache hunts and plan to keep doing so, except places where dogs are not allowed.

The organization I mentioned also has a geocaching badge your dog can get (they first have to pass a basic obedience test, though...)

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Hi. I'm the family dog, Rosita. Mom let me use this account to post a note. As you can see from this photo of a cache find, I keep them well focused on the task at hand. OK, I know it *looks* like I'm pulling away while they're trying to get a photo taken with the cache, but I'm really sniffing out the next one 8 miles away! Really!

 

e472ebd5-78a5-416b-9c83-c8b79adf439c.jpg

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NO WAY!! How did you train him ! I'd LOVE to have my Lab do this, or are you pulling my leg??? :blink:  :lol:

We competitively skijor and mush with each of our five dogs. They all finish strong back to the truck because they always get lots of treats and petting upon returning to the truck. During a race or training run we'll command "truck" one to two miles from the finish and they really pick up the pace regardless of which course the dogs are running on. Same goes when we're in the woods geocaching...when it's time to go back, we say "truck" and away they go, though the dogs are also loyal enough not to stray far out of sight. Treats and petting are the consistent reward for heading for the mobile kennel :D.

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Hi , I am a small dog ..

I just got started caching thanks to Patrick :blink::D . He is one handsome geocaching dog . I sure hope to meet up with him one day on the trails. That is if that LeadDog of Sixdogteam will ever let us! I am sure my people and caching partners would not mind !

So I am not so good at sniffing out the caches as yet but I do have great fun going with my friends!

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Here is a photo which I forgot to post in my last message :blink:

It is Ginger and I with our first find... Yeah I know I look awful, I hadn't got much sleep the night before so my eyes were all baggy :D Plus it was really cold!

 

cache1gingersm.jpg

 

Here's my other dog Pooch who has not yet had a change to go caching. I bet he could find a cache if it had something vinyl inside it, he's nuts about these vinyl squeaky balls I get and he can find them really well!

 

poochprofsm.jpg

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