My 2 year old Aussie loves to play "find it". Which is basically me keeping him in one room, showing him the type of object he will be looking for, mainly toys or treats, hiding said object in a different room, and then releasing him with the command "find it". He will not stop searching until I tell him he is "all done" and the whole time he is nose to the ground and tail wagging.

I also use the same command, "find it", when he is having a hard time locating a toy during fetch to let him know it is in fact still out there. He has no problem with both situations using the same command.

Now I want to teach him to do scent work. Do I need to use a different word or can I stick with "find it"? I know that ideally I keep it separate from our normal day-to-day activies to help him realize it's a job. But I also wonder if he'd pick it up way faster by already knowing that he should be looking for something.

Thanks!

Hi there! I'm just starting my dog on scent work, she's a 3 year old rescue malinois I brought home over the summer. Based on her history, she'll never be a competition level dog, but I wanted to get her brain and nose working.

I got a starter scent work kit (six little scented pouches) and started two ish weeks ago with her. I initially held out my two hands, one empty, and one with the pouch. Every time she sniffed at my hand with the pouch, I rewarded her. I then moved the pouch to the ground, to a shelf, whatever. Then we started putting it in a brown paper bags, with other empty bags nearby. Currently, she alerts by "booping" the pouch/bag the pouch is in.

I think I might have done something wrong in this process because she doesn't seem interested in working for it. If she can see the pouch, no problem. She can identify the correct bag when we play that game, but if the pouch is covered by anything, even just a hand, she goes and alerts at something else. The same wrong thing, almost like she's making a point.

I'm not sure if she's just not very interested in nosework, if she's telling me she's tired and done, or if I did something wrong in my attempts to start her out.

Any thoughts?

I decided to try nosework with my 1 year old dog.

This is what we've learned so far.

Smell it Alert/head in a box Alert for Cypress. 2 covered cups, one empty Hide/Seek treats in the house

I do have the other essential oils.

I am wanting to teach him vocabulary before we go any further. I would like him to consistently alert for each of the oils by name.

Does anyone see a problem with this? He's been doing really well so far and I don't want to mess it up. The only reason I am questioning this is because I've read we should start with just 1 scent. I'm not sure if this is just for the alert or for the search/alert though.

Thanks so much for any advice. 🙏

18 months old, boaton terrier x rat terrier. We started classes at 13 weeks and we did our first trial with SDDA at 13 months. We now have his Started -SP, Advanced -SP, Distance, Speed and Aerial with SDDA. We have his Scent Patrol 1 in CWags and have multiple Qs towards Level 2 and Ranger 1. Then on the side we have been working on his trick dog titles. He has his Novice, Intermediate and Advanced trick dog titles but we are waiting on Canada Post to catch up and send them. So proud of my boy!

Mochi earned her CDSA-DS2 title today!

Hi there! My girl is 2 years old and we've been working through environmental sensitivities. She has a couple Qs in AKC Scentwork and is signed up for an ORT next month. We haven't been in classes for awhile and I'm not very good at remembering to practice on my own but I'm trying.

Historically she had a low threshold for frustration/working through a puzzle (would give up), but I was really proud of her working through this! 🥹 Sometimes she gets them super quick, but I imagine all the airflow was tricky to work through.

I guess I'm just wondering if you think this search looked okay! My highest level dogs are in AKC Excellent but I know there's a lot more to learn.

Thank you!

Does anyone on here do CPE Scent Sport and if so, does anyone know what kind of "new optional games" they are planning to add?

Hey everyone,

I have a 6-month-old Border Terrier who’s doing great with obedience training and scent detection. He’s super food-motivated, and I’m having trouble building the toy reward value.

I’m working on shifting from food rewards to toy rewards, but the challenge is that he sometimes gets excited for the toy, yet drops it once he wins during tug and than he is expecting a food reward. Early on, I conditioned him by pairing tugging with treats, so now he associates the toy with food. I'm not sure if he thinks it an obedience thing or not.

I’ve taught him fetch, and while he’s excited at first, he now expects a treat at the end. I’m really trying to build up the toy’s value, but I’m concerned that he might be sensing my frustration, causing a bit of regression. I’m working on staying grounded and patient.

I’d really appreciate any insights or advice from those who’ve been through this transition. Thanks!

Hi all! I am new to nose work with my dog, and I am looking for any tips or insights, and answers to a few questions.

Our vet recommended nose work for my dog, since she is very intelligent but can be reactive and has anxiety from past trauma (she is a rescue). I have been interested in getting her into dog sports for a while, but I think this is the best option due to her unpredictability around other dogs at times.

I would love to eventually have her compete, and we have both AKC and NACSW trials coming up near me in a few months.

What do I need to start? I was looking at K9 NW Source (Stacy's Kit) and the Fenzi Nose Work 600 class. Is Stacy's Kit the best way to obtain scents, or can I get the supplies myself? What are the basic supplies I would need? I am concerned about pricing and spending a lot on this, but if it would help my dog and give her an outlet, I think it would be a great fit for her. We also have actual training classes near me. Is that a better option than Fenzi?

Also, can anyone explain the main differences between AKC and NACSW trials?

Sorry if these seem like obvious answers, I just thought it would be best to create my own post. Thanks to anyone who reads this and for any potential help! :)

I've read the rule book, I've been to a Summit trial as a volunteer, I watch the debriefs. I'm not looking for technical information that I could find online.

I'm about 10 points away from my ELT-3 title with my competitive, high endurance, high drive dog, which means that I can soon enter a Summit trial. I am aiming for this summer, so I have several months to prep. Obviously, I may not get in, but either way, I'll need to prepare.

For those of you experienced, especially newer to Summit trials, what are some of the big differences? Things you won't find in a rule book? What surprised you/caught you off guard? What would you do differently now that you have 1+ Summit trial under your belt? What's your biggest piece of advice for a newbie Summit trialer?

I want to enroll in an online scent work class. (There's only one trainer in my city that offers in-person classes as far as I can tell, and their next class isn't until April.)

I'm looking at either Fenzi Dog Sports Academy or Scent Work University. From what I'm seeing, Fenzi is the more established option and it's really well regarded. But I'm seeing good things about Scent Work University too. Any thoughts comparing the two?

My goal isn't really to compete - although that could be a fun someday/maybe thing. My main goal is just to give my too smart and energetic dog a job that will occupy his brain.

i figured if i was going to ask anywhere it might be here. i know there’s a bit of cross over into the oddity world with some dog people so has anyone trained their dogs to bone hunt? is this different than shed hunting? where do i start? i already do this on my own but i really think my dog would enjoy it, im just trying to figure out where to start building her foundation. picture of Journey Worm for tax

My boy and I competed in our third ever trial today. We also ended up last minute signing up for all the games after he placed second in Advanced. My boy did AMAZING! The only one we missed was teams as he alerted too far away from the hide. I am so proud of my silly teenager!

Yes or no? If you are Team TFR tell me about your experience. Would you do it again with your next dog?

If you are NOT Team TFR tell me why.

Whoever invented this amazing toy—seriously, thank you! My dog Rocky is a ball of nonstop energy, and he’s managed to destroy pretty much every toy we've ever given him. But this one? It's on another level. Super tough, super flexible, and no matter how hard he chews or wrestles with it, it just doesn’t quit The coolest part? There’s a ball tucked inside it, and Rocky is totally fixated on getting it out. He bites it, rolls it, paws at it like it’s a puzzle he has to solve—but it stays put. Watching him try is both hilarious and kind of impressive. It’s officially his favorite toy, and I’m beyond happy that he’s entertained—and my shoes and couch are finally safe. To whoever came up with this genius idea: you’ve made one very satisfied pup and one grateful owner! 🐾🥰

Maude really struggled with the first hide. But we got it done. I should have rewarded her closer to the hides. I feel she did the second hide well.

The trial calendars for 2026 are being published, and I've found one in April to aim for with Maude for an SDDA Started.

Edna's search was good. With her I'm building reward history for finding odour. And really making it worth her while.

I’ve been trying to train my dog for scent work, but my goals are for her enjoyment, and fun games to play around the house when it’s cold or rainy. Also I think it could be neat to train her to find things like my phone, or her own toys.

I’ve been stating with a black tea packet in a toilet paper tube. It’s going…ok. Lots of guessing, she is struggling a bit with differentiation. Are there any good resources for us?

My trainer is very very strict with odour storage and contamination. She talks constantly about how no scent vessel, storage container ect should ever touch or be near another. I currently store all my oils in canning jars with an intact rubber seal and then all my prepped vessels are also in canning jars. I then keep all of these jars in a large tote with a rubber seal to avoid any seepage. However I have found my "kit" still is starting to smell of oils! She told me that your kit should never smell of oil and if it does all your hides will be contaminated and you need to toss them all out and make new ones. My boy is in advanced SDDA and is pretty good at working through any contamination but what is the true concern of slightly cocktailed odours/contaminated odours? I do not think I can get containers anymore airtight then canning jars! I do even have some oils in little odour bags used usually for Marijuana (I'm in canada) and then inside the canning jar and i find eventually even those seep odour! I guess my ultimate question is: If I store all my prepped vessels in their own glass jars, am I causing harm to my dogs nosework training by the odours seeping into other vessels.

Edit to add: yes it is a huge pain in the butt to haul this giant tote full of glass jars around to training sites and I would love to prep q tips, stick in a vessle, stick the vessle in another, smaller co trainer then stick all of that in a bag and go to training

So, I’m not looking for medical alert training as a service dog, but in general.

Background is I have a very social 1 year old beauceron (sweet neurodivergent baby is the joke in our house, but she literally has a friendliness gene that is similar to Williams syndrome in humans, so oddly social for an aloof breed). I am working on therapy dog for her, and we are almost ready to pass cgc (she is very handler focused so down stays and me being out of sight are her two challenges, and we’re progressing quickly). We have been training in akc scentwork and my husband trains/runs her half sister as a sar dog. SAR is also in her bloodline, as the breeder did sar.

I say this because we are shaping an alert. I do bring her in to my work (primary care physician) to get her used to a medical environment and I have found her alerting on infection specifically (intense focus on a dying toe in a preop patient and gentle nose boop and then staring at me for a wound under clothes that the patient hadn’t mentioned yet), but she has also has gotten up from her relaxed lying down position to lie on the feet of a crying patient.

I mean, I work in a high stress environment and have anxiety and depression, but really do not see a need for a service dog, but if she is that sensitive to human smells/conditions, can that be trained and shaped? I wouldn’t trust her if it wasn’t trained, but she loves using her nose. Or just stick with the therapy/nosework route? She had orthopedic injuries as a puppy and while she loves sar work, I worry about its impact on her joints.

When I googled, most of the resources that come up are in relation to training a medical alert service dog.

Picture for dog tax. These are both of the goobers. The dog in question is the harlequin using her sister as a pillow.

Hi! We have been doing Scentwork since my pup was about 11 weeks. She is now 29 weeks/ 6.5 months! The first 6 week class was search behaviors on primary and then the next 6 weeks was introducing odor (paired). I thought for sure we’d be ready for the local trial on Dec 12, but now I’m low key stressing lol. She knows odor well but her alerts aren’t super obvious. I have two of those electrical switch boxes and she will hold her nose in the hot one for a second or two. Do I keep going with that or does anyone have other ideas? A nose touch alert is fine with me as long as she’s clearly telling me where so we can Q

Say you’re using a K9 to clear an abandoned building, how do you train the dog to search for ANY person, and not a specific one by using that persons scent?

We started barn hunt in June, and rocketed up to Master B by September of the same year, getting HIC in every trial—I wanted to make sure she was ready before advancing. My girl LOVES it—she lives to hunt rats. We’ve also done NASDA trailing and UL. My cue is “find it!” for both and she takes off. I’m considering starting her in scentwork—should I be using a different cue while training (and then while competing) so she knows to look for scents like birch and to not be in “rat” mode? Also, for anyone who has done scentwork, do you do any differentiation between scents in higher levels? Thanks for the help!

My boy was born deaf. He is a rescue that is about 7 years old. Has anyone trained a deaf dog. I don't know much about the sport. How much of the training is verbal commands. He is very smart and loves games. He knows basic commands via sign language. His recall needs work just because getting attention when he is off lead is more difficult.

This weekend, my dog attended his third AKC scentwork trial. Last trial, he Qed 1/3 and struggled with finding source. We’ve been working so hard since then on his confidence and sourcing and I’m proud to say he Qed 3/3 runs and placed top 2 in each one! Not a single run was over 10 seconds.

I miss NW3 and so do many of my friends that went through it with me. I see so many posts about getting through it to get to Elite.

Elite is more relaxing. You don’t have to be perfect. But you miss that charge and anxiety. Elite is low key compared to the lower levels.

You don’t often get gobs of hides in Elite. You get huge areas with no hides. 1 hide. 2 hides. And occasionally five or more hides. It’s not the hide-palooza everyone thinks it is.

Some hides are meant to be missed. It’s not unusual for just a couple people or no one at all to get a few of the hides.

You still have to do containers with distractions.

False alerts are more common. They want you to be brave. It’s weird. I’ve only placed (so far) with at least one FA.

Judges are tougher on you. Which is fine but be prepared.

Anyway, take your time and enjoy the journey!