Introduction to K9 Nose Work® is the beginning of a wonderful sniffing journey as your dog learns to get back in touch with its nose.
Dogs naturally sniff out scents but with busy lives, congested suburbs and time poor lifestyles, they often just don’t get the opportunity to use their tool.
We tend to rush them around on our walks, head for the dog park or just keep them at home and now we have a course that can slow things down and allow them to just work their nose with no haste, no noise, no pressure from other dogs, no instructions!
There are no special training requirements necessary. Your dog will not be instructed to do anything other than its natural job and the handler is there to offer encouragement when needed and to reinforce the find when the job is done.
To start dogs off, we use their favourite food or treat and place them in boxes so the dogs catch on. We then start to hide the food in the boxes and let the noses take over. After a few practice runs, the amount of food decreases and the level of difficulty increases until we get down to a speck of food in a pile of boxes.
Dogs learn to think outside the square as they search for food in boxes that are stacked up or we hide them behind novel objects so a little climbing or crawling under may also be required. Gradually the boxes disappear and all searches are in, on or under objects. This is all in aid to build confidence in your dog and to learn to focus, explore and to trust its nose!