FAQ's

Mantrailing is when a dog uses his nose to find a specific person because they are missing or maybe just for fun.

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Mantrailing UK offer Mantrailing as a fun sport for pet dogs and their owner, but it is based on operational methods.

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Mantrailing teams across the world go out with dogs to find missing people in real cases working alongside the authorities. These teams have committed to hours of training and certification by awarding bodies. 

Misper is 'Missing Person', this is the person that your dog is going to find...

To get started contact your local Mantrailing UK instructor, they can be found by clicking HERE.

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Your local instructor will be able to provide more information about availability, prices and anything else you will need to know.

Dogs are not allowed to trail on their collars with Mantrailing UK for their own safety.

A harness is recommended to wear for Mantrailing to ensure a dog does not place unnecessary strain onto it's neck/posture and that any pull motion is distributed evenly across the dogs body to minimise risk of injury and discomfort for the dog. Trailing a dog in harness as opposed to on a collar also reduces the risk of influencing or restricting their trailing behaviour, this is really important in activities such as this where watching a dogs body language is important for dog to handler communication. Having a harness specifically for Mantrailing can also act as a prompt to your dog so they know which activity they are about to do, helping to get them in the right frame of mind for 'working'.

NO! We do not allow you to run when trailing your dog. As a Misper we may ask that you run to be more exciting for the dogs however you can always say no...

If we want our dogs to work to the best of their capabilities, then we need to find the right reward. How we pay each dog, can be very individual. The reward can be wet food, cat food, yoghurt, banana or a toy, to name a few of them. You may need to try different rewards for a little while to find the 'best' reward for your dog. Always remember “We wouldn´t go to work if we wouldn´t get paid”.

YES! Dog reactive dogs are very welcome with all our Mantrailing UK instructors, just make them aware beforehand so they can make sure to keep everyone happy and safe.

Human reactive dogs are also welcome however we would suggest bringing someone your dog feels more comfortable with, there might be additional steps that your instructor will need to take so again please make sure you make your instructor aware of this before attending.

Yes, absolutely! Mantrailing is a low impact sport making it safe for almost every dog/owner. We have instructors who have deaf, blind and tripod dogs while we also have owners who use wheelchairs or other mobility disabilities who still enjoy Mantrailing. Speak to your local instructor who can explain more about how they can help you get started. 

We believe that there is a difference between the two. Tracking is a learned behaviour. It is preferable that the dog puts his/her nose in every single footstep. Tracking dogs are mainly judged on how intense they search the track ("deep nose" etc) and if they indicate all the articles that are on the track. He/she needs to stay on the track at all times and if not, will lose points at the competition level.

To this day it is not scientifically proven, what human scent released into the environment contributes to successful searches of individuals. It's only scientifically proven that a dog can identify DNA.

When we are trailing, we do not expect the dog to be exactly on the trail, because at the end of the day we don't know where exactly this trail is, simply because we can't see it. It doesn't really matter if the dog goes off, what we believe, is the trail. As trailers we should care about getting onto the trail, gathering information and finding what we are looking for (or the end of a trail - eg car pick up) the quickest way possible. The dog handler and the dog build one team and in real case scenarios one never knows what to expect - the handler relies on the dog and its most distinct sense - the nose.

NO! In fact, Mantrailing is more likely to help prevent your dog from pulling on normal walks (with other training of course). When Mantrailing you are creating a brilliant bond between you and your dog and this naturally makes the want to be closer to you. The other reason Mantrailing will not make your dog pull more on a walk is your dog is getting an outlet for this 'pulling' behaviour but in a constructive way...

Nope, your dog needs no training to take part in Mantrailing. They will always be on a lead so you really need no training at all...

Yes, of course, this is especially the case if your dog struggles to be left in the car between turns.

YES! We train in all weathers in the UK, we, of course, take the safety steps when it is too hot or cold, or weather warnings but in general we will be training in the rain, snow, sleet, sun, wind etc etc...

If you still have any questions about Mantrailing please either contact us on info@mantrailingUK.com or speak to your local instructor.