Practice Session, 3.2.2026 - "Back in the Saddle"

Quinn has been tentatively cleared to start activities again so we are excited to be back to tracking!

On Monday, I wanted to remind him what tracking is and make sure we were all-systems-go to return to class on Tuesday (3/3). 

Usually I lay out all the tracks I want to do at the beginning, but since I wasn't sure how he was going to react (and how hard to push him), I laid one track at a time, got him out to run it, and then let him have a break in the car while I set the next one. 

Weather conditions:

• Temperature: 39° F 
• Wind: NE 2 MPH
• Humidity: 69%
• Overall: Cloudy, cool

Track 1: Laid 9:53 AM, Run 10:01 AM 

Track 1 was very elementary, but it has been a while since we put the pieces together. I made a scent pad, scuffed (robustly!) 5, food drop, repeated for about 75 feet, article at the end was a glove. I was not sure he would remember what we were doing so I put an article at the start flag and had him lay down and think about it before asking him to track.  

 

Track 2: Laid 10:07 AM, Run 10:12 AM 

I thought Track 1 could reasonably be deemed a success, so stepped it up a bit for Track 2. Scent pad, scuffed 5, food drop (repeat 3X), then walked 3, food drop, repeated for about 110 feet. When the grass changed to slightly deeper cover, I went back to scuffing (five steps, x3) just to make sure he had enough information to work with. He found the glove at the end in good order!

 

Track 3: Laid 10:18 AM, Run 10:23 AM 

By Track 3, it seemed like he was clear and confident on the job so I made him a track with a turn just to help him remember (before Tuesday's class) that turning is a thing we can do. I debated whether this was a fair ask, considering how long of a break he'd had, but decided to let him try and be prepared to encourage/reinforce/assist him a little more than usual if he needed it.  Shortly before the turn he did lose focus and reinforcements were deployed - after which he got back to work and found the turn pretty handily. The distance from turn to final article was a little short - I hadn't realized how close we were to the neighbors and thought I better stay well inside the boundary just in case.

I made him a scent pad at the start flag, scuffed five with food drop (repeated 3 times), then resumed our walk 3 with FD on 2 pattern. At the turn, I scuffed five again and dropped some food for him. The article at the end was a glove. 

 

Three things Quinn did well:

1. Handily put my fears about his long break to rest - he was very clear on the goal, happy to get to the start flag, and overall pretty focused.
2. He dealt with changes of cover/proximity to distractions (pine trees with critters, dogs in the parking lot, etc) and continued working.
3. Other than some brief confusion/distraction before we got to the turn, I thought he did well with that. His recovery of the track at the turn was a lot faster than I anticipated. 

 Three things to improve:

1. Keep working on turns - don't be surprised if he is quicker/more efficient than I anticipate. (Or try NOT to anticipate and just be ready for whatever he offers.)
2. I stayed a little close to him this time since it was our first real outing; but I was probably overreacting. Work on giving him a bit more space (where we were before the break.)
3. Be patient and let him work things out; trust him even when I can't predict what will happen next. 

Goal for next track: At Tuesday's class, he was a little stymied by tracking across the furrows in the field at Cool Water. I am hoping to find some similar terrain for us to keep practicing that type of cover. Other than that, we are just working on gaining back fitness so slow and steady work all around!