K9 Nose Work® is the new, exciting, dog sport created to develop dogs’ natural scenting abilities by using their curiosity, desire to hunt, and their love of food, and/or toys. It’s a great way for any dog to have fun, build confidence, and burn lots of mental and physical energy. The founders’ techniques make this one of the most accessible activities for the widest variety of dogs and owners regardless of previous training experience.

In April 2011 I attended a 4.5 day K9 Nose Work® Camp as well as Day 1, of the required seven, for instructor certification and it was amazing!! Had I not seen it with my own eyes I don’t know that I could have appreciated the amazingly huge difference realized by shy, environmentally sensitive and reactive dogs in just 4.5 days!! I am totally hooked!!

 

What is K9 Nose Work®?

Have you ever seen search & rescue or drug/bomb sniffing canines work and been in awe of their skill at following & detecting odor? Did you know that dogs have hundreds of millions of odor receptors (40 times more than humans!)? All dogs are born with the natural prey instinct to search and follow scent. It is their strongest survival instinct. K9 Nose Work® simply allows dogs to use those impressive skills & shape them into a low impact sport we can share with them.

The founders of K9 Nose Work® are Ron Gaunt, Amy Herot, & Jill Marie O’Brien. They all have extensive backgrounds in training dogs. They have all trained & worked certified detection dogs. Four years ago they began developing K9 Nose Work® sport for family dogs using motivational, non-aversive techniques. The priority of K9 Nose Work® activities and events is fun & the well-being of the dog. Their philosophy matches my own.

 

Why participate in K9 Nose Work®?

This sport is a low impact activity that builds confidence & burns lots of mental & physical energy in 10 minute exercises. It can be done anywhere or anytime! No expensive equipment is required! The training begins with simple searches in cardboard boxes & gradually progresses to challenging searches in & around buildings & vehicles. The dog has a new puzzle to solve on each search & the dog wins EVERY time! Dogs get to be dogs! What could be more fun for your dog?!?

 

What dogs are best suited for this sport?

The short answer is ANY DOG with a working nose!

Each dog & handler team will work individually in the class. Exercises can be done on leash & only one dog is training area at a time. This allows each team the optimum training opportunity with minimal distractions & allows dogs who don’t do well in the typical multi-dog class environment to participate in class, such as dogs anxious or reactive to people or other dogs.

Taking advantage of the dog’s natural skills, newly adopted, foster dogs, shy or timid dogs can learn become more confident in new environments. This helps reactive dogs build confidence & learn to focus on task while learning to ignore the things that puts them over the top. Visually or hearing impaired dogs can use their nose to have a job & have fun. Older dogs, retired performance dogs, or dogs with minor physical problems can also participate because this is a low impact sport.

Learn more about the sport with common questions and answers here: http://k9nosework.com/questions.html

I can’t wait to share this new sport with you & your dog!  Click here to learn about classes at Rock Solid Dogs.