Human Scent In Mantrailing

In Mantrailing, we teach the dog to follow a specific human's scent.

But what does that actually mean? Is a person's scent just the smell of their skin? Their sweat? The perfume they're wearing? The answer is far more complex.

Every person gives off a unique and constantly changing combination of odours, and this individual odour profile is influenced by everything from genetics and skin bacteria, to diet, hormones, health and even recent activity.

Every Person Has Their Own Odour Profile

You can think of human odour a little like a fingerprint.

Every person has their own unique combination of scent compounds, created by a mixture of factors including:

• Genetics

• Skin microbiome

• Diet

• Health

• Hormones

• Lifestyle and habits

• Environmental exposure
  

Even people who are genetically very similar can smell different.

For example, identical twins may share the same DNA, but differences in their diet, lifestyle and skin microbiome contribute to differences in their individual odour profiles.

So when your dog is asked to find a specific person, they aren't simply looking for general human scent, they're processing a complex combination of information that makes up that individual's scent.

What Makes Up Human Odour?

Human odour doesn't come from one single source. We're constantly producing and releasing different compounds from different parts of our bodies.

Skin secretions, including sweat and sebum, can contain compounds such as lactic acid, urea, ammonia and fatty acids.

Our breath can also release compounds including acetone, isoprene and ethanol, while hair and scalp oils contribute their own scent compounds.

Even the bacteria living on our skin play a role, producing additional odours as they metabolise sweat and other secretions.

Our diet can also affect how we smell. Foods such as garlic and strong spices, as well as alcohol, can alter the compounds released through our breath and skin.

Medications, hormones, exercise, illness and changes in our physical state can all influence the scent compounds we release too.

And your individual odour profile isn't fixed either...

Stress, fear and other emotional states can influence the compounds your body releases.

Exercise can increase sweat and lactic acid production, while hormonal changes, illness, medication and diet can all alter the overall scent picture.

This doesn't mean you suddenly become an entirely different-smelling person every time you eat garlic or go for a run. Instead, your scent is dynamic. Some odours may become stronger or weaker, new compounds may be introduced, and others may be masked or mixed with environmental odours such as smoke, detergent or perfume.

But within that constantly changing mixture, there are still components that contribute to your individual odour profile.

Put simply, your scent isn't one thing. It's a complex and constantly changing combination of hundreds of different compounds and odours, and despite all of that complexity, dogs are capable of detecting and distinguishing incredibly small differences in scent.

What Exactly Is the Dog Following In Mantrailing?

Here's where things get even more fascinating... We know that human odour is made up of a complex mixture of compounds released from multiple sources and influenced by multiple factors, and we also know that dogs can distinguish between individual people.

But scientists still don't yet know exactly which components our dogs are actually utilising when they identify and follow a particular persons trail. What we do know is that when a Mantrailing dog follows a person's scent, they're working with a complex chemical signature, not one single smell.

We can study human odour. We can identify and measure individual compounds. We know that genetics, diet, health, hormones and environmental factors can all influence how a person smells, but we still can't completely see the world through the dog's nose.

We don't know exactly what information they're prioritising when they follow a trail, and that's something worth remembering when we're tempted to assume we know what's happening on a trail.

Human Odour Is Complex. Your Dog's Job in Mantrailing Is Too.

Every person carries their own unique and constantly changing odour profile.

It's influenced by their body, biology, diet, health, emotions, environment and daily activities.

As they move through the world, they continuously release scent that can interact with the environment in ways we can't see or fully understand, and then we ask our dogs to identify and follow one specific person within all of that information.

Pretty impressive when you think about it!

So the next time you're watching your dog work a trail, remember, Mantrailing isn't about following footprints. It's about following scent.

And when it comes to understanding scent...

They're the experts, not us.

Love learning about Mantrailing? Join our Online Mantrailing Club for in-depth training, video lessons and on-going support

👉 Learn more here: https://www.mantrailingglobal.com/mantrailing-membership

Want to turn your passion for Mantrailing into a career?

Our Mantrailing Global Instructor Course gives you the knowledge, practical skills and confidence to teach Mantrailing to others.

👉 Discover more here: https://www.mantrailingglobal.com/instructorcourse