Can Mantrailing Change Unwanted Behaviour?

While the primary focus of Mantrailing is not behaviour modification, it can certainly help address some common behavioural issues. Things like fear, hyperactivity, phobias, anxiety, reactivity, and aggression can often also benefit from Mantrailing training too.

What makes Mantrailing so special is that it lets your dog make the right choices on their own, which is incredibly rewarding for them. Over time, this helps change unwanted behaviours and replaces them with new, more desirable ones. It redirects the dog’s focus, providing satisfaction and even acting as a form of therapy. As a result, both you and your dog will gain more confidence and have less stress in your day-to-day lives.

Without proper training, these behaviours can lead to frustration, isolation, and missed opportunities to enjoy simple things like walks or taking part in fun activities. That’s where Mantrailing shines—it’s the perfect sport for turning pessimism into optimism!

One of the best parts of Mantrailing is that it's one of the few sports where the dog is truly in control, and the handler gets to step back and watch. The dog works the trail on their own, and the handler learns to read their body language. This builds a strong bond between you and your dog and helps improve your overall training, both in and out of the sport.

When you take part in Mantrailing, you and your dog become a team—one that celebrates each success together. The excitement of finding a missing person is something both of you can share, and it boosts your dog’s confidence and self-esteem in no time. As the dog gets less stressed, learns new skills, and has fun, they’ll naturally want to engage with you more and learn even faster.

Mantrailing is a great mental workout for your dog. Since a dog’s sense of smell is so powerful, it gives their brain a real challenge. It’s a fantastic way to tire out your dog without needing to rely on physical exercise, which is especially helpful for high-energy dogs, puppies, senior dogs, or dogs who can’t do as much physical activity for any reason.

It’s also not a competitive sport or something that over-excites your dog. Mantrailing is all about problem-solving, which naturally builds your dog’s confidence. As a result, your dog will be more open to responding to other training, like behavioural modification, because they’ll be eager to learn and engage with you. This helps change how they react in different situations, whether it’s with other people, dogs, or animals.

By making Mantrailing a fun, rewarding game, you’re shifting your dog’s priorities. For example, behaviours like chasing after a runner or barking at another dog can be tough to change through traditional training, but with Mantrailing, your dog learns that following the trail is far more rewarding than chasing a bike.

Once your dog understands the concept of Mantrailing (usually within the first session), they’re hooked. They become fully focused on their task, often ignoring distractions, whether that’s other dogs, people, or objects. We’ve seen reactive dogs completely tune out other dogs on their trail, and nervous dogs gain the confidence to pass objects or scenarios they would have once avoided.

Mantrailing isn’t just about training; it’s about building a deeper bond with your dog while helping them become a more confident, happy, and well-behaved companion.

Olfaction, or the sense of smell, is the dog's most powerful and most important sense. Their sensory world is so different from ours—they explore everything through constant sniffing and scent detection. While humans have about 15 million olfactory cells, dogs can have up to 300 million! It’s amazing to think that dogs can even detect a teaspoon of sugar in an Olympic-sized pool!

Canine olfaction is a rapidly growing area of scientific research, with new discoveries and applications popping up all the time. A dog’s brain is built around the information it receives from scent, which is closely tied to emotions. When a dog experiences excitement or stimulation, their brain releases endorphins—chemicals that promote calmness and happiness, and help reduce stress and anxiety.

When a dog's endorphin levels are low, they may feel stressed, which can lead to unwanted or obsessive behaviors as they try to cope. For example, a dog might chew on their paw, spin around, or chase shadows all day just to try and boost their endorphins to feel better.

The more you can engage your dog's brain with new challenges and behaviors, the more relaxed and content they’ll be. Mental and physical stimulation are key to helping your dog manage stress and maintain balance, especially if their endorphin levels are on the low side.

So, what are you waiting for? Contact your nearest Mantrailing Global Instructor to get started!

References

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/280446218_Canine_Olfaction_Scent_Sign_and_Situation

http://www.balancebehaviour.org/