Nose Work Class Inquiry 

N.E.W K9 Scent Work Program 

If you are interested in taking classes with N.E.W K9 Scent Work, we think it’s important that you understand our philosophy and program.

* “As NACSW (Nat’l Assoc. of Canine Scent Work) certified instructors, we use the K9 Nose Work method which celebrates the innate scenting and hunting capability of the dog and allows us to appreciate and learn from THEM By allowing them to hunt for and find their PRIMARY reinforcer (food for most and preferably high value food, or toy for a few), we are utilizing the highest motivation that is already inherently there to exercise these abilities. Because of this, the dog has control over the outcome of his experience (hunts for the food and is immediately able to access the reinforcer himself) which is in and of ITSELF a primary reinforcer. NOTHING is more powerful than that.

 We believe in building strong foundational skills.  If that is the dog’s foundation - independent, motivated, and joyful searching for and arriving at source and rewarding himself, that is what will support and underlie all of the dog’s learning from there. This joy and confidence building that comes with hunting for primary is critical for every dog and even MORE so for any dog that struggles with environmental sensitivities. Adding the target odor to the picture too early for those dogs brings with it the risk that the dog, if spooked during a search, could develop an unwanted and inadvertent negative association with the target odor that could carry with it some permanence.

 Allowing the dog to do what he does best offers the handler the opportunity to hone observation skills. The dog shows us what odor is doing and demonstrates for us how he solves scent problems. Every search is a living, breathing creature where odor behaves in a myriad of different and often unpredictable ways. “ (*Credit Leah Gangelhoff, CPDT-KA, CVCC-KA, CNWI, Senior Faculty Member NACSW)

We concentrate on skill building with food or a toy in a vast array of environments for the first 8 weeks, and then the target odor is really super easy to insert in the process for the next session of classes.

 We have students that enjoy taking classes at all levels just for the fun of it and some that decide to compete.  We train for competition following the NACSW guidelines and use the NACSW scents of birch, anise, & clove.   We have students training at all levels of competition (see our Congratulations page).  If you aren’t interested in competing in NACSW events, but are interested in competing at venues such as AKC, UKC, etc. the principle foundations remain the same.  Adding/changing your dog over to different scents and scent strengths used in these venues is easily done.

 Please let us know if you are interested in starting Nose Work and would like more information on beginning an “Intro to Nose Work” class. Currently we are only able to offer 1 Introduction to Nose Work class per year. This is so we can provide support and instruction to our continuing students as they move through their Nose Work journey.

 For those of you who have started nose work somewhere else, we’d ask to have a conversation to find out more about your nose work experience and to decide if we have a class that might be a fit for you and your dog.

 Thanks for your interest in our nose work program. We are located in Green Bay WI

Please note that due to liability issues, we cannot accept human aggressive dogs.