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Pick the brain first: The right nose, breed, and training method will follow is a 90 minute webinar, live online on July 8, 2015 and then recorded for OnDemand purchase and viewing. Dr. Simon Gadbois will discuss a neuroethological perspective on basic and applied scent processing in dogs.
The approach emphasizes taking advantage of the natural behaviour patterns of dogs while the olfactory system is activated. It is also heavily focused on motivational parameters, making it a motivational perspective as opposed to a cognitive perspective. The approach put forward here differs on two levels from the mainstream: It diverges from strict behaviour analysis methods by highlighting the need to adapt to the dog, as opposed to forcing the dog to adapt to strict protocols (I call this affordance training), and the realization that cognitive performance is superseded by motivational factors. In other words, a dog that *wants* to work in an appropriate setting (during and after training) may perform beyond and above what selection by breed or by nose assessment would suggest.
This approach does not minimize the importance of breeds (in fact, it puts breed at the forefront, but suggests non-traditional breed choices) or of the nose (on the contrary, but it emphasizes “software” over “hardware”).
Relevance to academic research, R&D, and direct applications will be discussed.
This talk is moderated by Monique Udell, PhD.
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