Glossary of terms used on this site

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Back-Chaining
Glossaries: K9 SAR Glossary

Back-Chaining : A teaching methodology, where the training of the chained behaviors occurs in reverse order. The final behavior is taught first, and the second-to-last behavior is added and taught next, and so forth.

For example: the very first behavior a back-chained "live find" dog is taught: is to play with new humans (the reward). For a Stay-and-Bark, the second behavior would be to "bark at a stranger" and then play. 

Behavior Chain
Glossaries: K9 SAR Glossary

Behavior Chain : a series of learned behaviors, carried out, after one command. 

Blank Search
Glossaries: K9 SAR Glossary

Blank Search : A training or certification exercise in which the target odor is not present  

Author: Scientific Working Group on Dog and Orthogonal detector Guidelines (SWGDOG)
Blind
Glossaries: K9 SAR Glossary

Blind : A training exercise is considered Blind if the person person searching does not know the location of odor(s), and/or if any are prescent, BUT the accompanying Instructor/Evaluator DOES know.

VSRDA Glossary

  • Scent Cones
    Scent Cones: movement of scent away from subject/source -in the shape of a cone.
  • Stimulus
    Stimulus: A change in the environment. Dog Training focuses on discriminative stimuli, which causes a change of state in the dog, causing it to perform a specific behavior.   
  • Shaping
    Shaping: Building new behavior by selectively reinforcing variations in existing behavior, during the action rather than after completion, to increase or strengthen the behavior in a specific manner o