00:02At $2,000 a kilo, black truffles are something of a buried treasure, and these pet pooches
00:08are learning how to find them.
00:10Any dog can go and smell a truffle, but there's a few little steps you need to take to actually
00:16teach the dog how to find the truffles.
00:19Lessons involve decoys that have been doused in artificial truffle oil, training the dogs
00:24to search on command.
00:26Good girl!
00:27It's hoped they'll turn out like Hepburn, a professional truffle hunter who's been sniffing
00:32them out for seven years.
00:34Do you find truffle?
00:35Good dog!
00:36We'll place a flag wherever she marks that she's found a truffle, so we might put out
00:4150 or 60 flags during that session, so that's a lot of sniffing for her.
00:46Australia's grown to be the largest exporter of truffles outside of Europe, with cool climates
00:50helping this luxury fungus to flourish.
00:53It's sort of at the stage where if they say there's a truffle there and I can't find it
00:56when I dig.
00:57I know it's there.
00:59So that's about, that's it.
01:01Wow.
01:02Promising students can graduate from cotton wool and be invited out to the truffle farm in
01:07search of the real thing.
01:08We've had four dogs that have worked out here and they've all learnt in the same way and
01:13they've all been really good.
01:15Truffle.
01:16Some dogs are naturals, while others are just excited to be here.
01:20It's now just about channelling that enthusiasm for being with us with food, for finding the
01:25truffle.
01:25That's it.
01:26Good boy.
01:27Show me.
01:28It's magical working with your dog and coming out to find the buried treasure on a beautiful
01:34day like this, you know, it doesn't feel like work.
01:38Sticking at it like a dog with a truffle.
01:46Actually I'm going to tell you about two dogs.
01:46I was going to hear you a little bit, it seems to me that they were going to get two
01:46dogs and
01:46how to breed up and get two dogs.
01:47But I'm going to keep in mind!
01:47I'm going to lay a dog if I'm going to try and let you move out.
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