THE END! Well kinda....

Sooo it's been about a month since I've updated the blog (bad Erin! bad Erin!), and I've already been home for almost 2 weeks! This will be my last entry I guess, so I will be sure to catch you all up on the last two weeks of the internship this time around. :)

I will be starting another blog or two since I'm kinda addicted, but they prob won't be quite as fascinating as this one. The one that I have set up already is just a training log for my escapades with my Border Collie, Maggie Mae, so it's very different from this one. The addy is: http://multipurposedog.blogspot.com ; feel free to check it out if you'd like.

Now on to the update!

The last two weeks of the internship were a whirlwind! The highlight, by far, was my trip to Orlando and the National Detector Dog Training Center there. I flew out of DC around 9am, got into the Orlando airport around 11am, and met my contact, John, near baggage claim. John and I hopped in the government van and drove off to the Center.

The Center is smaller than I expected, only housing for 35 dogs and one large training room, but they do get a lot accomplished in the small space. There are two auxillary buildings offsite as well; the primary use for these buildings is cargo and vehicle search training as well as special projects.

John introduced me to some of the trainers, staff, and current human trainees before heading off for a grand tour. I got to check out the classroom/instructor offices, training room, kennels, and exercise yard. The Center recruits beagles for passenger search and larger dogs, usually lab mixes, for cargo, border, and mail search. Almost all of the dogs trained are rescues from shelters or private homes and are trained to detect contraband agriculture articles. Drug and bomb dogs are trained elsewhere.

All dogs go through a rigorous screening process, so if they get to the Center they are generally good candidates. The program has about an 85% success rate with dogs that have passed the initial screenings, but little data has been kept on these details, so this is a rough estimate.

After lunch, John and I got to see some training with the large dogs in a cargo and vehicle setup. Despite the high temperatures, the dogs were impressive and the instructor I worked with was wonderful. The students were in good spirits.

All dogs go through about 5 weeks of basic training before being paired with their new handlers. The dog-handler teams complete a 10 to 13 week course before a final performance evaluation and graduation.

Back at the main building, I learned more about the enrichment programs for dogs in training. Dogs are given time in exercise pens with other canines, toys are rotated in the kennels, and some dogs are given access to an agility training course for additional stimulation. While there, I didn't see a single dog that appeared unhappy or depressed.

Before I had to leave, Craig, one of the other instructors, let me work with one of the dogs waiting to be partnered with a handler. After setting up a baggage arrangement, Craig showed me how to help the dog pick up scents and focus on the task at hand. After a few mistakes I got the idea and the dog I was working started focusing better. I had a blast!!

After that exercise, John and I set up two boxes, one target, one non target, to start basic training with a new dog. Target items are citrus, apples, mango, beef, and pork; non targets are anything other than target items, including cheese, honey, chicken, pasta, etc.

The dog I was now working with hadn't been worked on scent yet, just obedience, so it was up to me to start things! All dogs were clicker trained, so I was in my element. After a few reps, John thought it looked like the beagle would prob end up as a good detector dog given his responses. Very cool!

After getting a copy of the dvd on screening dogs for the program, John took me back to the airport for my flight out at 6:10pm. I was back in DC by 8ish, and back to the apt by 9pm!

I had a great time and I might, if things work out, be going back in the future for a longer visit.

Other than the Orlando trip, I also got to shadow an inspector (spent a day at a research facility, no major problems found; I learned a lot as usual), have lunch w/ my boss' boss (got a new project that may last past this summer and learned some interesting details about how he tries to manage people), and finished up filing everything HPA related lol.

Emily and I met up for dinner in Old Alexandria and we had fun eating at a little Thai restaurant and getting ice cream down the street. We stayed out until about 10pm and I didn't get home until 11ish!

The Thursday before I left DC, my new friend Gretchen, who raises and trains service dogs for Fidos for Freedom, and I met up after work and went back to her house for dog training videos, talk about all things canine, dinner, and obedience practice observation. It was nice to meet another crazy dog person, talk about training methods, and play with a few dogs.

Overall my internship has been wonderful. I loved the variety and the people - def time well spent, and hopefully I can keep in touch with everyone down the road.

Hope you enjoyed the trip along with me despite info delays!

Ciao!