# Will running through water "lose one's scent" when being tracked by dogs? - Tags: dogs, forensics - Score: 16 - Views: 12,591 - Answers: 1 - Asked by: Hendy (21,855 rep) - Asked on: Dec 9, 2011 - Last active: Nov 9, 2015 - License: CC BY-SA 3.0 --- ## Question It's a fairly common movie trope that when someone is being chased by dogs they will run through water to "lose their scent" and the dogs will no longer be able to follow the trail of the one pursued. If this is true to a degree, a sub question would be if it's possible to "re-pickup the scent" by tracing the perimeter of the body of water. In other words, is it just the connectivity of the trail that's broken, or is the scent lost for good during this particular pursuit? --- ## Answer 1 — Score: 5 - By: Ephraim (1,836 rep) - Answered on: Apr 1, 2012 **No** This was actually tested in [MythBusters](http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/mythbusters/db/animals/trick-bloodhounds-sense-of-smell.html) (episode 74, which is in Season 8). > In fact, that personal perfume is strong enough that none of Jamie's bloodhound-busting tactics worked. He zigzagged and doubled back on his trail, ran through a river, washed and change