There’s no denying it: We primates instinctively fear snakes. Numerous studies with a variety of apes, both greater and lesser, have proven this fact. For many people, this revulsion to snakes is as ingrained as breathing. I rate myself somewhere in the middle of that greater-lesser ape spectrum, and I can assure you that while I don’t hate snakes, I certainly won’t approach a hissing, buzzing rattlesnake willingly. Canines, however, don’t carry that same instinct. Dogs see snakes as just another object to inspect, sniff, and possibly—heaven forbid—pick up.
We all know that hunting dogs live in a world fraught with peril, but short of staying home there’s not much we can do to keep our dogs out of harm’s way. So, we hunt, we hope, we worry, and we train. It's that last item, training, which offers us the most peace of mind. And if you live or hunt in venomous snake country, you know the value of snake aversion training for your hunting dogs.
Enter Web Parton. For one thing, Parton has a bucketful of rattlesnakes, which is not something everyone can say. He’s also licensed to handle them and—this is important—defang them without injury to himself or the precious reptiles. A defanged rattler isn’t much of a threat to human or dog, but you can’t tell that to my amygdala. I still want to run away. Parton, on the other hand, has a prerequisite relaxed, confident manner around venomous snakes, whether they still have their fangs or not.
From his home in southern Arizona, Parton has trained thousands of dogs and their owners to avoid potentially deadly interaction with rattlers. He has educated everything from pugs to pointers. He knows which types of snakes are typically docile and which are perpetually irritated, and he knows more horror stories than Stephen King. Yet, unlike maximum voltage snake aversion trainers, Parton has a gentle touch with both snakes anddogs.
Snake aversion training is the process of training a dog to avoid snakes in order to keep them safe from snake bites. (Photo courtesy of Kieth Crowley) The Process of Snake Aversion Training The aversion process starts with Parton carefully watching the dogs and how they react to something as esoteric as the stress scents left by earlier canines on the circle of green carpet he uses in every session. Before the dogs learn anything else, before Parton ever shows them a snake, he wants them to know that something serious happens here. He even places a remote speaker under the carpet to play coyote and puppy-in-distress sounds.
Parton uses electronic collars but doesn’t touch a stimulation button until later in the training session. He starts with those invisible stress signals, progressing on to indirect contact with a recently defanged Western Diamondback. At this stage, Parton gauges each dog’s reaction to being near something both unknown and curiously compelling.
Naturally, the five dogs in our session don’t know why they’re here and why everything smells funny. It takes a couple of the dogs, including my two-year-old English setter, Ruby, nearly direct physical contact with the snake before they even recognize there’s something alive here in the center of the old carpet. That’s good. Parton wants them to find out on their own what a rattlesnake smells and sounds like. The coiled snake rattles its tail and flicks its tongue, but is otherwise motionless, so Parton jostles the carpet and using a snake hook lifts the Diamondback into the air in front of the dogs. He does everything possible to attract the dog’s attention to it.
Once the dogs learn that the smell is coming from something alive, Parton moves on to negative association using the e-collars. The stimulation begins so mildly that most of the dogs don’t react at all. One by one, we approach the snake from downwind with our dogs on lead. The dogs look at their owners, watching for cues as to what they should do. We pretend to be blissfully unaware of the looming danger.
Parton mildly corrects the dog as soon as it acknowledges the presence of the snake. Owner and dog rapidly retreat about 10 yards and the stimulation is stopped. We do this several times and then we drop the lead and circle the snake. If the dog follows us toward the snake, Parton corrects again. When the dog refuses to follow, it’s on to the next stage.
During snake aversion training if the dog moves toward the snake then it is corrected. (Photo courtesy of Kieth Crowley) Creating Aversion to the Scent of Snakes Parton stresses that initially dogs react to the location as much as the snake, so he moves the rattler to several new locations, minus the carpet and its abundant scent signals. We repeat this stage until all the dogs decline to approach the snake, even when we owners casually walk right on by it. This is the only time that the correction ramps up. If the dog follows its owner toward the rattler, Parton hits the stim button a bit “harder.” In our little group, none of the dogs followed more than once.
For the final exam, Parton puts the snake in a mesh bag to prevent it from rattling or moving, taking away those potential cues. The bag also reduces the amount of scent the snake is emitting, forcing the dogs to use those invaluable noses of theirs. We move to yet another site and again try to lead the unleashed dog into the danger zone. All in, the process took about three hours and I’m proud to say that Ruby and the other dogs in her group showed exactly what we all wanted to see: A complete refusal to approach the snake even though we foolish humans walked right past it. Class dismissed.
Parton points out that no amount of training can prevent every snake bite incident, but he is confident that each dog in our session will remember that rattlesnakes are no fun. I share his optimism since Ruby now likes rattlesnakes even less than this primate does.
You can reach Parton through his website: freerangedogs.com/aversion-training/
