The ACT Academy
&
Scent Detection Academy
ACT, Advanced Canine Technologies® and the SDA, Scent Detection Academy
are working together for many years aiming with their training and education courses, programmes, workshops, lectures, private lessons etc. to create a better understanding of the dogs themselves as well as in their diverse lines
of work. Building trust and create better teams. The dogs together with their people.
Detection, Tracking, SAR, vapour
All this has to do with scent, odour. Another world, a world we cannot see and only sometimes smell. Dogs are experts in scent detection. Medical detection, Medical alert, Vapour detection, Contrabande, Conservation and Eco, Outflow, People dead or alive, Data carriers, Pest control, Drugs, Explosives, and many, many more possibilities.
Also teaching any dog a non invasive or aversive scent to have fun together at home and outside.
Training techniques
& learning principles
Learning by heart what the learning techniques and principles are is always beneficial. But knowning how to recognize them and knowing when to use them or loose them is a practical job in small steps which needs experience and so called
flying hours under guidance.
profiling, human & dog lAnguage
Without knowledge of language, communication will lack content. We offer high level courses on human language and body language and dog language in divers contexts.
Training dogs & humans
Training the trainers
& training the trainer
Being a real trainer is an underestimated part of almost every dog profession. Theoretical knowledge is very important, but being able to DO IT is equally important. Working on behaviours in precission with knowledge of the background
of these behaviours is key for any success. Be it working as an instuctor with humans who own dogs or working first hand with dogs and maybe even with so called problem, unwanted or misunderstood behaviours.
Education and training, There are many possibilities
Tracking
Tracking on human scent
The dog follows the track of a person as precisely as possible and will find articles, belongings of that specific person on the track.
SAR, Search and Rescue are trained to find missing people under many different circumstances on land and water.
Children lost, elderly people lost, anybody lost, after nature disasters like earthquakes etc.
This is not tracking, it’s searching. Following a track might not be possible but picking up on a scent in an aerea might still be an option.
blood tracking
The dog follows the track of an animal that is wounded and on the run or maybe hiding. This can be to make it possible to provide medical help or to end the suffering of a severely wounded animal.
Detection
Detection is teaching the dog a specific scent or an object and teach him to find this scent under divers circumstances and sometimes divers places.
A few of the many possibilities and subject are mentioned below.
Medical detection
Medical detection can be analysis work where the dog analyses samples.
It can also be a practicle on the spot application where the dog searches for the specific learned scent on people or in places.
And than we also have the personal medical detection dog, the medical alert or scent service dog. This dog is with his person like any assistance dog and alerts if he notices the scent of the specific condition his human
suffers from. The dog has learned to do so in an early stage so the person can take precautions in time and prevent problems.
conservation detection and pest-control
Conservation is about preserving, wildlife, animals plants etc.
There are two sides to it. First side is finding out if the subject that should be preserved is actually still present in a certain area. Second finding out is there are threats to damage nature and its inhabitants. A side
of this last part is Pest-control. Animal, plants or anything threatening the native or threatened species can be detected and suitable action can be taken.
Generic Detection
Detection is an umbrella term for an enourmous amount of possibilities. Drugs and explosives are commonly known but outflow detection, contrabande detection, electrical devises and date carrier detection, money detection,
the list is endless.
recreational detection
Because detection in general is not only very important, can safe lives and can give us humans information otherwise hidden, we all understand the fact that dogs have exeptional noses and abilities to smell. This can also
be huge fun to do with your own dog without wanting to join forces or otherwise work professionally in this discipline. There are lovely fun possibilities. Our Nose Detectives, suitable for most dogs of most breeds is a
fun class that will show you your dog can use his nose in a way you might not have imagined.
Language
Dog language is the language every dog of every breed uses to communicate. Together and with other species also with us. It is our responsibility to try and understand them without interpreting and filling in gaps in a way that we
think is suitable but often besides the point. There are many things to take in consideration when we observe dogs, taking in account the context of things and the one or ones the dog is communicating with is an important part of
it.
Dog language
We offer education programmes in modules to start and understand dog language in every nuance.
Beagle language
Beagle language is dog language. Basically there is no difference. But because this part of our companies is about Beagles we organize special workshops and seminars just for the Beagle and his people.
Training
The importance of training is often underestimated. In many countries there is no education programme to become a trainer. There are in most countries education programmes to become an instructor. There is a gap. Only a general trainer
can become a specialized trainer and becomming a trainer takes time and effort. In our Training the Trainer (individual) and Training the Trainers (group) education programmes it is possible to learn to work in precission, to look
at exercises in a different way and start to understand why some, for us humans, logical steps are not logical for the specific dog. Not all dogs are the same so customizing a training can be the key to success. There is no shortcut
in becomming a trainer and it can not be done in a couple of modules. It takes dedication, effort and love for the job.
Handler
Before anything you have to be a handler. You work with a dog and get to know how to work together.
trainer
Once handling (many) dogs has become something you can do with some experience you may become a trainer. This is where you start to teach the dog behaviours, exercises and cues that might benefit the way you and the
dog can perform.
instructor
Only when you are capable of handling and teaching and training dogs you can become an instructor and learn other people how to be the best handler and trainer.
Expert
If you have enough experience in as well handling, training and instructing you can become the expert instructor who will teach his knowledge to other instructors.