Common Issues

When it comes to playing Scent Work, there are common issues that dogs, handlers and teams may encounter.

These resources will focus on these common issues and provide helpful solutions and suggestions to get your team back on track.

Common Issues
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Live Virtual Event
Grieving While Training Virtual Event Date December 17th at 4:30PM PT / 7:30PM ET (5:30PM MT / 6:30PM CT) Losing a member of your pack is hard in so many ways, especially when that dog was also a highly trained partner in the sport you love. Aleks and Natalie will share their own experiences with loss, grief, and finding the motivation to keep training and competing with their other dogs, while still making space to honor and grieve their best partners.
Live Webinar
Decoding and Understanding "The Look" Webinar Date September 30th at 4:30PM PT / 7:30PM ET (5:30PM MT / 6:30PM CT) Instructor Khara Schuetzner When you are training or trialing, does your dog ever give you “The Look”? What does this mean? A very subjective change of behavior that is individualized to the dog, handlers can struggle to properly interpret "The Look". Was it a question, a moment of thinking, an alert?! Learn how to decode and better understand "The Look" with this webinar!
Live Webinar
The Trial Starts in the Parking Lot Webinar Date October 7th at 4:30PM PT / 7:30PM ET (5:30PM MT / 6:30PM CT) Instructor Anita Ambani The parking lot is where trial day begins. In this webinar, we'll discuss on trial-day etiquette across NACSW, AKC, CPE, C-WAGS, and more. We'll go beyond the "don'ts" and focus on the training skills that create confident, considerate teams, from arrival to departure. Because the best competitors don't just train for the search, they train for the entire trial day.
Trial Prep Program
Single Hide Pattern Games for Reliability and Fun Webinar Instructor Holly Bushard Looking to develop better concentration and focus on immediately getting to work in search areas? Learn 10 single hide pattern games that will accomplish just that!
Common Issues
Squirrel! From Distracted to Committed: Reading, Training, and Recovering the Search Webinar Instructor Judith Guthrie Distractor behavior tells you what changed in the search. Learn how to how to read distractor interest, understand how distractors affect hunt, odor work, decision-making, and recovery, train stronger task commitment, and help the dog return to productive searching when competing reinforcement, environmental pressure, or handler choices change the dog’s search.
Trial Prep Program
Detoxifying Distractors! Webinar Instructor Holly Bushard Do intentional distractors have you down? Are you stressed out trying to distinguish between snack interest and an alert? Maybe you’re just looking for a few fresh and fun “gamified” drills! If so, consider joining us for a night of exploring multifaceted ways to detoxify the distractor downers!
Common Issues
Don't Fear the Outdoors Webinar Instructor Tony Gravley Exterior searches can feel unpredictable. Wind, wildlife, vegetation, wide open space, all influencing odor behavior and your dog’s mindset. Learn how to confidently build a dog that hunts with purpose outside, not one that gets lost in the environment.
Trial Prep Program
Boundaries: From Start Lines to Flags and Cones Webinar Instructor Dana Zinn Boundaries are a big part of a Nose Work search, but they are often undervalued and/or ignored. Learn how to more meaningfully tackle your start lines, cope with search area boundaries and more in this informative webinar.
Handler Skills
Know Your Role: The Handler’s Role in Training Webinar Instructor Tony Gravley Do we have a role when training Scent Work with our dogs? YES! If we step out of our lane, this can cause our dogs to become confused, frustrated or demotivated by the search. Learn how to better understand your role in this webinar.
Training On Your Own
Training on an Island: The Art of Working Solo in Canine Nose Work Webinar Instructor Tony Gravley Do you typically find yourself training on your own? This webinar is for you! Enjoy a deep dive into both sides of the leash, exploring not only the handler’s responsibilities when working without a coach or group but also the dog’s role in developing independence, confidence, and problem-solving skills.
Trial Prep Program
On or Off Leash: Deciding Which Option is Right for the Moment Webinar Instructor Kayla Dever and Samantha Winslow Picture it: you're at the start line, ready to cue your dog to search, and a decision lies before you - should you go on or off leash? Learn how to make the best decision based upon the scenario in this webinar.
Common Issues
Fringing: Causes and Solutions Webinar Instructor Tony Gravley Are you struggling with your dog fringing at trial? It is as if they say, "Is this close enough?" Learn what fringing is, the causes and how to address it in training with this webinar.
Trial Prep
Building Endurance in Container Searches Webinar Instructor Holly Bushard Reliable container performances are a cornerstone for success in competition. In this webinar, learn specific drills and exercises designed to enhance container endurance and accuracy.
Trial Prep Program
Best Practices for Trialing an Older Dog Webinar Instructor Holly Bushard Nosework sports are so good for our older partners! While the scent sports are older-dog friendly, there are many things we can do to help keep our partners in their best shape and frame of mind to work at the optimal performance levels. Learn how in this webinar!
Trial Prep Program
Trialing with Multiple Dogs and Making it Work Webinar Instructor Holly Bushard As addictive as scent sports are, it’s easy to find yourself trialing behind multiple canine partners! Whether this happens in the same weekend, the same day, or even the same hour, there are several things we can do as handlers to set ourselves up to best support our dogs.
Common Issues
Maintaining and Troubleshooting the Nose Poke Alert Webinar Instructor Holly Bushard Have you taken the Noke Poke Alert Webinar? Perhaps you have been practicing building a nose poke alert with your own dog. Are you looking for more tips on how to maintain this behavior and cope with any issues you may running into? This webinar is for you!
Trial Prep Program
Let's Make Thresholds Work Webinar Instructor Tony Gravley You've worked hard to develop the dog's desire to seek. But this may mean they are rocketing through their search area, rushing through those thresholds. Learn how to make those thresholds more productive with this webinar.
Trial Prep Program
Displacement Sniffing and Other Stress Behaviors Webinar Instructor Sue Sternberg Better understand displacement sniffing and other stress behaviors as they relate to Scent Work. Learn how to distinguish the various types of sniffing and how to better support your canine teammate throughout the search with this webinar.
Small Dogs
Nose Work for Small Dogs Webinar Instructor Michele Ellertson Small dogs are faced with additional challenges that large dogs aren’t when it comes to Nose Work. Learn about these challenges, how to tackle them and ways to handle small dogs in Nose Work searches in this webinar.
Common Issues
Is That Pooling or Something Else Webinar Instructor Michele Ellertson Do you have a hard time observing the difference between pooling/trapping odor verses source or inaccessible? In this webinar we will talk about clarifying the purpose of the dog, as well as how to avoid some common handling mistakes that can lead to your dog being confused!
Trial Prep Program
What to Do: Days After the Trial Webinar Instructor Dianna L. Santos Opportunities abound in the days immediately after attending a trial. We discuss what these are and how to identify what will work best for you and your dog in this webinar.
General Scent Work
Bringing Experience to the Nose Game: Starting Strong in Scent Work Webinar Instructor Ana Cilursu You already have that fascinating combination of instinct, training and trust between you and your dog. Starting Scent Work with prior experience in other dog sport venues can give you a serious edge. Learn how in this webinar!
Common Issues
Aggressive Alerts: Causes and Solutions Webinar Instructor Tony Gravley Does your dog love to smash boxes, scratch up vehicles, retrieve hides or practice other types of aggressive alerts? Learn the common causes and practical training solutions in this webinar.
Trial Prep Program
Failure is a Growth Opportunity Virtual Event Instructor Holly Bushard, Tony Gravley, Jill Kovacevich, Michael McManus, Nancy Reyes, Aleks Woodroffe Failure is a necessary feature of the learning process. Yet, we in the sniffing community seemingly shy away and treat failure as a "bad" or "scary" thing! Our speakers will share how we can more leverage failure to further grow as dog trainers, handlers and dog owners.
Trial Prep
Skills Supporting the Sniff Webinar Instructor Holly Bushard Training is all about building skills. Learn about all the various skills which exist outside of searching which allow for our dogs to be successful when they ARE searching!
Common Issues
Stopping the Potty: Tips for Exterior Searches Webinar Instructor Dianna L. Santos You see grass. You see trees. You see vertical spaces. All of this means your dog is going to potty during the search and your heart is racing! What to do?! Find out in this webinar.
Trial Prep Program
P for Pronounced or Pee? Webinar Instructor Sue Sternberg Have you ever been puzzled as to whether your dog was working a hide, was invested in dog odor or getting ready to potty? In this webinar, Sue will show the differences between a dog sniffing doggy odors vs a dog sniffing target odors.
Trial Prep Program
The Power of Pairing: Search Monster Webinar Instructor Tony Gravley Learn the power of pairing and Tony's unique system that has afforded his clients to enjoy epic results where dogs consistently drive to source, avoid fringing and are not tripped up by distractors.
Common Issues
My Head Hurts: Dealing with Frustration Threshold in Scent Work Webinar Instructor Dianna L. Santos Solving odor puzzles is hard! Many dogs will give up on challenging searches when they meet their frustration threshold. Learn how to help these dogs stick with the puzzle instead, even when their heads hurt.
Common Issues
You Can Do It Pup: Building Independence Webinar Instructor Dianna L. Santos Does your dog seemingly rely on you in their searches? Learn some techniques to help your dog be more independent, confident, resilient and tenacious in this webinar.
Common Issues
You Can Do It Pup: Building Efficiency Webinar Instructor Dianna L. Santos When it comes to searching, one of our goals is for our dogs to be as efficient and effective as possible. Learn some exercises and approaches in this webinar to weave into your training sessions.
Trial Prep Program
You Can Crush Pooling Odor! Webinar Instructor Tony Gravley The dreaded pooling odor has been the cause of many painful “NO”s ! Learn how to crush this odor puzzle in this webinar!
Common Issues
Wait...Did You Find a Hide?! Webinar Instructor Dianna L. Santos Does your dog buzz around the search area seemingly finding hides without telling you? Learn some solutions with this webinar.
Common Issues
Sexy Time: Dog Odor v. Target Odor Webinar Instructor Dianna L. Santos Does it seem as though your dog always has sexy time on the brain? They come upon dog odor and suddenly they are drooling, chattering and thinking of everything but finding their hide? This webinar is for you!
Common Issues
Dogs are Scary: Dog Odor v Target Odor Webinar Instructor Dianna L. Santos Do you have a sensitive dog who worries about other dogs? If they know other dogs are in the area, do they become obsessive about dog odor, even during their searches? If so, this webinar is for you!
Trial Prep Program
Trial Prep for Sensitive Dogs Webinar Instructor Dianna L. Santos Scent Work is a wonderful activity in that it can help sensitive dogs gain new confidence. Trialing may even be in these dog's future, however these events can be rather challenging environments for any dog to deal with, not to mention a sensitive dog!
Common Issues
What's the Issue: Exteriors Webinar Instructor Dianna L. Santos Are you and your dog struggling with Exterior searches and you do not know why?! In this webinar, we will outline ways you can assess the WHY and come up with the HOW in terms of a flexible training plan solution.
Common Issues
Keeping Scent Work FUN! Webinar Instructor Dianna L. Santos Scent Work should be your dog's FAVORITE activity! After all, it is celebrating their most impressive natural instinct. Yet, as we move up the levels, the game starts to morph into work and our dogs may find it to be less fun. Learn how you can keep this activity fun and engaging for them, no matter how challenging the searches become!
Trial Prep Program
Inaccessible Hides Webinar Instructor Tony Gravley Inaccessible hides can be tricky for many dog and handler teams. In this webinar, learn how to train for these hides, avoid common pitfalls and how handlers can better read their dogs.
Common Issues
You Can Do It Pup: Building Focus Webinar Instructor Dianna L. Santos When playing Scent Work with our dogs, we need them to be focused on the task at hand. But there are times, where they are seemingly distracted. "Butterfly!" Learn how to build your dog's focus in this webinar.
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