HOT DIGGITY DOG, IT’S TRUFFLE SEASON!
If you’ve ever been captivated by the unique smell of a truffle, then you’ll understand that there’s no comparison – their earthy, sweet and pungent aroma is as much of a mystery as finding them. Luckily for us here in the New England, Bridgett Hone from Scent Shepherds and her highly-skilled dogs Finn and Bea show us how. Keen for the complete farm to table experience? You can even purchase a truffle to take home. Now there’s a day well spent..
The New England region is home to the winter Black Perigord Truffle. Often growing in farms where they’ve been inoculated, truffles share a symbiotic relationship with trees, growing underground from their roots. For this reason, they are rarely spotted by the naked eye – that’s where Finn and Bea come in.
Scent Shepherds
Although they look every bit the cute and fluffy pet, four-year-old German Shepherd x White Swiss Shepherd Finn, and two-year-old White Swiss Shepherd Bea are not your average pooches. Both highly-skilled in the art of truffle hunting, they regularly lead Bridgett and guests to some of the best truffles the New England has to offer.
Finn is trained to find multiple target odours and is working at the highest level with his obedience training. Bea, being two years younger, is still learning – but her search skills are developing quickly and she often competes in obedience and scent trials.
“I train with Phil Evans, he owns YES Training for dogs in Invergowrie – he's just a wealth of knowledge and hugely inspirational, says Bridgett. With dogs, it's all about setting them up for success so that they can be the best that they can be – if I’m at a point where I think ‘ah, that's not going the way I want it to’, I will often have a training session with Phil and we work it out together. He's a real backup for me, especially when I compete in obedience trials.”
The hunt
You might like your truffle baked in brie or marinated in olive oil, but if you had the chance, would you like to experience finding your own truffle? If so, you’re in luck…
“We actually service five farms in our region and I have access to at least four of them for public truffle hunts. Usually, we meet somewhere and head out to a specific farm where we have a brief on how the farmers have planted the trees and how the truffles are harvested, then we do a demonstration with the dogs so you can see how they locate the truffle.
“Finn will run to the spot where he’s smelled a truffle and he'll paw at the ground, then he sits and doesn't move from that spot until I mark it. Next, we start to investigate where the truffle is.
“It's kind of a slow process, but it's really fun and we do let people have a go if they're feeling up for it. Then if you want, you can buy your truffle at the end of the hunt – of course, it's the freshest truffle you’re probably ever going to have.”
How to book
With only a few more weeks left of truffle season, it’s important to book your spot as soon as possible. Contact Bridgett directly on 0457 272 943 or go to her website to learn more.
