DS180 Introduction to Shed Antler Hunting

From Fetch to Go Find!

Course Details

Are you ready to take the leap into one of the fastest-growing dog sports out there? Shed hunting combines scent work, retrieving, and the great outdoors, and this class provides the progressive, layer-by-layer training plan you need to reach the start line of your first trial. To get the most out of this course, your dog should already have a functional retrieve—it doesn't have to be fancy, and it doesn't have to be antlers. If your dog enjoys a basic fetch game with a ball, a sock, or a stick—and is reliable off-leash or on a long-line—you are set! We’ll take that natural desire to fetch and channel it into a specialized, confident search and retrieve covering all the scenarios you'll encounter in a trial setting.

You’ll start by generalizing your dog's basic retrieve to antlers and then merging that skill with growing search patterns.

You'll also learn:

How to avoid human scent contamination for wild antler hunt training
Where to hunt for wild antlers
How to prepare your dog for the very well-scented antlers they'll find in trials.
How scent travels outdoors
How your handling influences the search
How to create fair challenge increases choose
Strategies for trial situations that give you the highest odds of success.

By the end of the class, your dog will have the skills to get started in competition, or to find naturally shed antlers in the wilderness. During the last week you'll even have the opportunity to participate in two Virtual Mock Trials, helping you to build your own confidence for online testing opportunities too!

Teaching Approach

At the start of each week, all lectures will be released so that students are able to plan for the amount of homework for that week. Each lecture will contain detailed written directions, diagrams, and demonstration videos. Students are encouraged to plan for short, but regular training sessions throughout the week.

Feedback for gold and silver students is detailed and encouraging- typically, the feedback is provided in written form but occasionally screenshots with markups or video demos are provided in order to help clarify next steps. You will receive feedback on what is going RIGHT as well as what needs changing.

This class will have a Teacher's Assistant (TA) available to help the Bronze and Silver students in the Student Study Group Forum.

Syllabus

Pre-Class Lectures:

Supplies and Spaces
Identifying a SHED antler

Week 1

What is Shed Antler Hunting
Team Roles
Foundation Skills for the Course
Retrieve Pattern
Generalizing the Retrieve
NOW Antlers

Week 2

Reading Your Dog
Reading YOUR Dog
Startline Rituals
Search Pattern
Generalizing Antler Retrieves

Week 3

Building Independence
Trial vs Hunting
Scent and Contamination
Visual Searches
Outside Searches
Trials Overview: NASDA

Week 4

Searches by Scent
Antler Finding Hot Spots
Wind
Adding Handler Movement
Introducing Multiples
Searching for Multiples
Trials Overview: NASHDA

Week 5

Wild Hunting- Tips and Tricks
More Drills!
Mastering Multiples
True Blinds
Trials Overview: UKC Elite Shed Dog Series

Week 6

Advanced Challenges
Additional Search Patterns
Trials Overview: NDS
Mock Virtual Shed Antler Test Run Through

Prerequisites & Supplies

Prerequisites: Basic retrieve (I'll help you get your dog started on antlers, but your dog should already be eager to retrieve some other item so that we can transfer the kill- doesn't have to be a formal retrieve or even a retrieve to hand- picking up any item and bringing it near the handler will do!) A solid stay/station behavior is helpful- alternatively, you can use a crate or a helper for some training exercises so that your dog is able to watch your set up without interfering. Supplies: Antlers for training. At least two, ideally of the species you are most likely to be searching for (or if planning to trial, you'll want deer antlers) Pet store antler chews can be used for early lessons, and are a good idea if your dog is smaller, young, or tends to take some time to adapt to new retrieve items Full-size antlers- don't have to be fancy or fresh. Ask in local hunting groups for 'ugly' or 'old' sheds or unwanted antlers from harvested animals, and check marketplace, or ebay. There may be authorized shed antler buyers in your area which are good contacts. Note that purchasing antlers may have legal restrictions in some areas, check your local regulations- this is less likely to be the case with antlers that have been shed vs harvested but you still need to check and may need to have antlers given to you for free if purchase is prohibited. Some exercises can use rubber training antlers in lieu of real antlers. If you are struggling to get real antlers, get at least 2-3 rubber antlers AND at least one of the largest pet store antler chews you can find. Available at various hunting stores and pet stores like this one in Canada and this one in the US. Rack Wax or Bone Clone (scented wax used in trials- not necessary if you plan to hunt for wild shed antlers only) - Available from some hunting supply stores and amazon Baking Soda (if training for practical hunting) latex gloves (if training for practical hunting) 5 gallon bucket (if training for practical hunting) A few antler-sized tree branches Access to an outdoor training space

Sample Lecture

Quartering Search Pattern Drill

With visible antlers, spread them out 30 yards or more apart, into the wind, alternating from side to side. Set the dog up aiming at the nearest one and send them when they are locked on. Party and reward when they retrieve it, then turn to aim at the next one. Your goal with this pattern is that the dog begins to predict that the next antler is going to be forward and to the side and begins to develop a quartering pattern on their own. You can run this drill regularly, and aim to minimize your back-and-forth handler path until you are walking the center line into the wind while your dog maintains the left-right quartering action.

Note: If your antler supply is limited, you can use 'antler-shaped sticks' in place of a couple of antlers in this drill. Always change the location of the sticks for each run through though- we want to make sure our dogs is always motivated to maintain the pattern and not accidentally trained to bypass areas because he knows they have a fake! Those branches are not meant to be retrieved by the way.... their use is a to visually draw the dog over which will help maintain the zig-zag pattern, so if you are using these, they need to be visible rather than concealed from view.

Here Mezzy is doing her first quartering drill. Unfortunately, there was NO wind right at that moment so it made things a little trickier- however, the short grass allowed her to see the antlers pretty easily. (In fact, she sa the 2nd one before the first one and just goes straight there- not a big deal, we just zigged back over to the first one after she finished the retrieve).

Because there was no wind, I decided to set the quartering drill up again exactly in reverse of the first run. If there is wind, you would be better off to go back to the original starting point and run it in the same direction again. Here, you can already see she is ranging a bit more each time we change direction and then looking to the next side for the next antler. I will want to run this here a few more times and then to progress this start fading out my side to side motion and let her do that part more independently.

Instructor

Erin Lynes

Faculty

Erin (she/her) is a lifelong dog enthusiast from Quesnel, British Columbia, Canada. Erin is certified as a Karen Pryor Academy Training Partner, a Certified Professional Canine Fitness Trainer, a Licensed Family Dog Mediator, and as a Cani-Fit Leader, ...

Registration

Choose the plan that fits your goals and start learning at your own pace.

Gold

$260

Available seats: 10

Access to all lectures and homework forums discussion
Read all posted questions and answers
Watch all posted videos
Post general questions to discussion forum
Submit written assignments
Post dog specific questions
Post videos (unlimited)
Receive instructor feedback

Registration dates:

November 22, 2026 - December 15, 2026

Silver

$130

Available seats: 15

Access to all lectures and homework forums discussion
Read all posted questions and answers
Watch all posted videos
Post general questions to discussion forum
Post dog specific questions (video only)
Post videos (up to 2)
Receive instructor feedback

Registration dates:

November 22, 2026 - December 15, 2026

Bronze

$65

Available seats: Unlimited

Access to all lectures and homework forums discussion
Read all posted questions and answers
Watch all posted videos

Registration dates:

November 22, 2026 - December 15, 2026

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