Pinpointing source (Nosework)

Brito and I have been playing with Nosework, taught at Fenzi Dog Sports Academy. So fun for everyone, especially my hunting Brito!

Today we’re playing a game to help him learn to get as close as possible to the source of the odor.

This unedited video shows what I’m up to. In short….get the right container, cut exactly one small hole approximately the size of the dog’s nose, and teach your dog that it’s not about the container at all; it’s about where the odor is emerging. (Note: Make sure the edges are smooth so that your dog finds it pleasant!)

Brito’s been playing at Nosework for a couple of weeks; he loves it! I have a couple of other games in mind when he masters this one:

Training is training is training. What happens when you look at a sport as an outsider rather than as a person with a history of tradition, “shoulds” and “this is how we do it’s?” You won’t know until you try. As long as you’re kind, the worst thing that happens is you have to back out of the hole you dug and head in a new direction; a small price to pay for the chance to explore and learn! Heck, if you think about it for a moment, maybe you’ll think up ways to apply this idea to scent articles for your obedience dog or tracking articles for your tracking dog. Or maybe the whole activity will be so fun that you can use it to reward other skills that you’re trying to develop – one activity as a reward for another!

If you want to learn more, either from the beginning in our Introduction to Nosework class (NW101) all the way up to Reading the Nosework Dog for competition readiness (NW380), check out the Fenzi Dog Sports Academy’s Nosework program. This term we’re offering five different Nosework classes; something for everyone at pretty much every level. The combined knowledge of our Nosework team (Stacy Barnett, Julie Symons and Melissa Chandler) is really exceptional! Go ahead and join the fun!