At last year’s NATGA (North American Truffle Growers Association) conference, a good friend, Simon Cartwright, addressed fellow truffle growers. Simon and his wife Linnet have a fantastic Truffiere just south of Eugene, Oregon. Simon shared the importance of accounting for the costs of hiring dog teams as a necessary part of truffle farming. As this industry is really still in the nascent stages, this is a critical consideration for farmers who’ve been waiting for five, six, or even ten years to harvest their first truffles. Simon stated that his own truffle hound would likely be worth $60k or more in insurance coverage, such is the importance of a good dog to the entire endeavor. That got me thinking…

When we first started our adventure, I really had no idea what we would soon be investing into West Coast Truffle Dogs. In my mind, we needed a dog and a place to hunt and we’d be laughing. Mind you, I wasn’t thinking about it as a business, but more as an experience to relish, which we do. But now a few seasons later, I can understand exactly what Simon was talking about.

So for those of you who are either interested in getting started in the truffle hunting arena (orchards), or for our farmer friends who need to consider hiring a dog team as part of their harvesting costs, here is a semi-detailed list of our investment:
It’s important to start with the right vehicle, something comfortable (because we sometimes drive more than 1k miles in a trip) and capable (because winter and wet can be challenging). We wanted enough room for everything, including the safe transport of our dogs, but we also considered the economics because MPG matters. Our Subaru Outback Wilderness has been absolutely ideal.
Next, we want to ensure we have all the dog supplies we need: treats, tracking collars, harnesses, leashes, first aid, food and water, crates for travel and sleep (we often use different ones), towels, portable shower, etc. 

Then we must consider our hunting tools: bags, backpacks, markers, targets, cold storage, boot cleaners, disinfectants (boots and dogs), trowel or hori hori, snacks for the humans and of course celebratory drinks!

These are just a few of the considerations and investments, and we haven’t even packed our clothes: water resistant pants and shell, warm layers (merino and @paka), hats, sunglasses, spf, gloves, and more layers.

And truly, that’s just the beginning. We like to bring at least two dogs to help cover as much ground as we can while the conditions for hunting are right. So that means that we have to double up on a lot of these items. To do that, we added even more room to our vehicle with a Yakima Skybox, and more recently, a Yakima Gear Box. And additionally, this year we’re adding an awning for our Outback to provide additional shelter when we’re in the field!

And while all of this certainly adds up, to the tune of several thousands of dollars (crates alone are often over $500), there are even more significant expenses to consider: dogs. The cost of a good dog can range from several hundred, to more likely several thousand. And I say good dog, because purchasing (or rescuing) a quality dog is only the beginning. Training is the essential ingredient that will turn a good dog into a better dog. We’ve invested thousands of dollars in our dogs, and then invested thousands more to train them with the best: our friends and partners at Truffle Dog Co.

It’s important to remember that training is not just something you purchase; it’s something you invest in over and over with time (a lot of time) and money. And the truth is, sometimes a dog won’t hunt. They may be perfectly wonderful dogs, but no matter what you invest, sometimes it’s just not going to work. We have more dogs than hunters, and that’s fine with us.

We hope you find this post informative, but realize that we know its not exhaustive. As soon as someone else reads it, they’ll remind us of what we’ve forgotten. But the aim of this post was just to provide some insights for others and help folks grasp what it takes to get started.

Let me finish with a word on farmers training their own dogs. This is absolutely a great idea if you have the time, interest, and resources. For most of the truffieres, having an extra dog around will be a huge help. A scent dog is constantly working, and the mental energy that it consumes far outweighs the physical effort. We found that our best dog can cover about 2 acres over a couple of hours. It comes down to how productive the orchard is and how long we have a proper weather window. But there are truffieres in California that are many times that size. Once they hit production, one dog won’t be enough to keep up, so having a partner like us and our friends at TDC, should still be part of your harvesting program. And in some cases, the truffle orchard is only a tiny part of a much larger winery operations, so you have to decide if it makes sense to put your time into training dogs (because it will take a lot of time), or if you’re better off only doing what only you can do 🙂

Please feel free to share thoughts, ideas or questions in the comments…

Happy Hunting!

Brice @ WCTD