Your+Dog++May+2019

(avery) #1
28 Your Dog May 2019

Steph Rendall with
her dog, Freyja.

Discover mantrailing — a fun, new


activity for dogs and handlers of


all ages and i tness levels.


on the scent!


M


antrailing is the art of working with
a dog to utilise his extraordinary
sense of smell to search and locate
a missing person. It is a popular sport in
America and Europe, but in the UK it is
a fun, reacreational activity for dogs and
handlers. This month we caught up with
Steph Rendall, from Bristol, who began
mantrailing with her Jack Russell Terriers
last summer, and is setting up a new
mantrailing group in her local area.

Q Tell us about your dogs.
A “I have Iti, a four-year-old Jack Russell
Terrier, who I bought to do heelwork to
music (HTM). I’ve done HTM for several
years and had visions of training her and

Q What made you decide to have a go
at mantrailing?
A “I was just looking at various dog training
workshops on social media, and I saw an
advert for an introduction to mantrailing,
which sounded interesting. It was in the
Forest of Dean, which is not far from where
I live, so I signed Freyja up for it. By chance,
someone else dropped out of the course,
and I asked if I could take Iti as well, so

perhaps one day even competing at Crufts!
Unfortunately, Iti had other ideas. Although
I competed with her several times and she
always got placed, I just didn’t feel she was
happy. It felt like she was only doing it for
me, and so I stopped competing. Then I got
my two-year-old Jack Russell Terrier Freyja,
and she wasn’t one bit interested in HTM or
l yball, so I started to look for a new activity
that they might enjoy.”

HOT


Dogs i nd the sport
intensely rewarding.

Focus

on dog

sports

24-26 Mantrailing CS(SW)ok.indd 28 26/03/2019 09:27

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