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Continue reading →: The Partnership
A few days ago I ran some practice exteriors with Astra. We need to practice because I am putting her back into competition this summer, and we have changed her alert behavior. Astra has generally had a very reliable sit indication, but she is now 14, and sitting has become…
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Continue reading →: Containers (part one): Odor and the Box
I have been meaning to write about containers, well, um, for a very long time. And somehow have never gotten around to it. Part of this is because I have been struggling with Yeti and containers…and the whole topic somehow just got way too complicated in my head. Tangled up…
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Continue reading →: The Culture Clash
It’s a warm spring evening, and my class is working exterior hides. I am trying to give the class all the exterior practice I can before the heat starts. The little Lakeland terrier has been working well, sniffing his way to the first hide without problems, but he was having…
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Continue reading →: Tape and the Handler Discrimation Cotton Ball
Oh the tiny details that go into scent work training!! This week’s topic is how to properly tape your Handler Discrimination cotton ball to an object. That’s right, you heard me, there is a right and a wrong way to use the tape. Ok, let me restate: an optimal way…
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Continue reading →: How to Get Over the NQ Blues
I went to a trial recently. It was a big trial, one I had prepared for, planned for, trained for. I had hopes. I had expectations. And then when the trial actually arrived, and it was time to perform, I had disappointments. It is often hard to get over these…
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Continue reading →: Working on Master Handler Discrimination
In general, I have been pretty proud of Yeti’s Handler Discrimination work. I started him early in his scent work career, and he has not had the problem that most dogs have, which is alerting on the distraction cotton ball. And his progression through the levels was very consistent. Until…
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Continue reading →: If You are Having Trouble with Buried
In 2022, I posted a blog about an easier way to train for the buried element. Back then, there was a lot of complaining about not being able to train because it was too hard to set up bins with water and sand and grates, everything was too heavy. Which…
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Continue reading →: Honing the Search Accuracy: Working with Arousal
Two weeks ago was another trial in my winter circuit, this time, it was a UKC trial. I had hopes for a relaxed, easy trial, with plenty of time to visit with friends and students. And in many ways, it was that. But of course, there was also the lesson…
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Continue reading →: More About the Swinging Handler Pendulum
I took Yeti to our traditional New Year’s scent work a few weeks ago, a three day event that is always filled with fun and drama. I usually am busy judging, but this year I took off to run Yeti and help out as a volunteer. This year was also…
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Continue reading →: Thoughts and Predictions about the Future of Scent Work
In past years, I have posted books reviews at the end of the year. This year, I thought I would do something a bit different: predictions about future developments in Scent Work. These are not things that I see coming in the next year, they are random musings about the…
Hello,
I’m Ellen
A Scent Work trainer, instructor, competitor, student, and judge. Welcome to Sniffing Around Scent Work, a blog where I write about my experiences, thoughts and musings on my favorite past time.
Sniffing Around Scent Work 