Get excited about sniffing.
Have you ever considered how incredible a dog’s nose really is?
A dog’s nose contains 200 million sensory receptors compared to the 5 million that humans have. Dogs live through scent pictures. They can tell who was at the park, how long a go the squirrel was sitting there, and which way it went. Dogs’ noses have been used to detect lost people, crime scene evidence, illegal drugs, explosives, endangered species, invasive species, birds for hunting, antler sheds, medical changes in humans, as well as cell phones and other technology. Their ability to learn and identify even small amounts of a target odor is astounding. It is no wonder they want to drag us all over just to sniff the next thing.
Benefits of learning scent work
What is AKC scent work anyways?
Scent work or nose work is a sport that was created to highlight the ability of dogs to find the target odor and communicate the find to the handler. This can be a great sport for dogs and humans. Handlers get to learn how to recognize changes in body language and improve communication with their dog as well as seeing the dog do what comes naturally. The dog gets the opportunity to sniff and really learn how to use his nose and communicate what he knows with his human. It is a wonderful sport for both members of the team.
There are different environments or elements in which dogs compete including container, interior, exterior, and buried.
There are various titles that can be earned through AKC Scent Work trials. Novice, Advanced, Excellent, and Master can be earned in each type of search. There are 4 types of searches container, interior, exterior, and buried. For example, you can earn Container Novice and Interior Novice titles individually. If Novice is achieved in each element, the title of Scent Work Novice is achieved.
How to get started
Introducing the scent can be done in a few different ways or a combination of all of them. One of the most common is called imprinting. When using imprinting to train the scent, the target odor is presented to the dog followed by reinforcement (toy or treat). This method teaches the dog do associate the new smell reinforcement. The target odor then becomes a valuable predictor of coming reinforcement. Alternatively, a combination of shaping and capturing can be used to teach scent identification. Start in an enclosed space with minimal distractions. Place the target odor in a container where the scent can escape but the dog cannot reach and eat the cotton ball or swab that the is holding the scent. A jar with holes poked in it can work well. Mark and reinforce any movement in the direction of the jar. Continue to increase how close to the jar your dog must be in order to earn the reinforcement. Your dog can either come back to you for reinforcement or you can toss the treats or toy at the jar containing the scent. It is important to mark the behavior first or your dog may start to watch you for clues about where the scent is located. Using shaping and capturing teaches the dog right that the scent is not associated with you but is still an excellent predictor of reinforcement.
The next step is to start adding blank containers identical to the container holding the target odor. It is best to start by placing the containers a few feet apart. Eventually containers can be place one foot apart like they will be in a trial. Once your dog is good at identifying the odor, there are a few things that are important to incorporate into your training. First, start practicing with distractions and in new places. Second it is important to find a training buddy to make hides for you sometimes so you can be sure that your dog is not finding things because you know where the hide is located. Also, it is important that your training buddy not tell you how many hides there are. Once you are working on your Master title, you will not know how many there are for the trial search. Below are the requirements for each class for the container element.
For more information on rules and regulations visit the AKC website: https://www.akc.org/sports/akc-scent-work/