Summit Dog Training

Snake Avoidance is taught with positive reinforcement by focusing on what we want our dogs to do when they find a snake. The most useful behaviors are those that create space between the snake and the dog while alerting the owner to the presence of the snake. This course teaches the components of building an alert behavior that creates distance away from the snake, and then putting that alert behavior on the cue of the sight, scent, and sound of the snake.

You will need snake cuing supplies such as snake sheds, a decoy snake, a bluetooth speaker or phone, and possibly a few other props depending on what you’re teaching your dog to do as an alert behavior. Oh, and treats or toys too! In the first week of the course, we include links where you can purchase or find snake-specific props that you will need in later weeks of the course.

While we focus on snake avoidance for rattlesnake species found in Colorado (where Summit & Amy have their home bases), the concepts taught in this course can be applied to venomous snakes or poisonous creatures of many species. If you know a little bit about the types of dangerous creatures in your area, you can create a scent, sight, and sound (if applicable) cue picture most similar to that species, and use that for the cue for your dog’s recall and alert behavior.

Of course! Supplement support is available with online coaching! Online coaching sessions are available all year long, but the prime seasons for us are the spring & summer months. Learn more about Supplemental Support lessons at www.summitdogtraining.com/snake-avoidance

This online course covers a training protocol for teaching your dog Snake Avoidance skills; just like with all training, individual results will depend on the implementation of your training plan. Taking this course does not guarantee that your dog will not get bitten by a rattlesnake (or other snake), but we know it will give you and your dog skills to work together to avoid them!