By Rosie Peacock- Jackson

 

I thought you all might like to have a quick insight into the world of scent training. I have bred and owned Vallhunds for over 40 years. I have always realized they have a strong working instinct, some more than
others.
When Trev – Ch Starvon Double Agent At Kirkholme arrived I realized that I had a Vallhund with strong working abilities!. I was lucky to find that we had a Scent work class in our village. We work with the scent of cloves but some work with the scent of red kong,gun oil or food. Dogs are taught to recognise the scent by letting them sniff the scent and then giving them a reward. The reward can be a treat, praise or a toy. Gradually the scent can be hidden in various objects, in vehicles and in bags etc. At first the dog is encouraged to find articles in simple open boxes or bags. Then you may progress to under tables and chairs. In the beginning the handler will know where the article is so they can encourage the dog to find and indicate where the article is. How the dog indicates to the handler is the key to the work. Some freeze and just point with their noses others are quite vocal. I have found that Trev is extremely quick and one judge kindly said that I must be aware of this as I missed one indication and this cost us a place.
As you progress you eventually start working in some very interesting places. Bomb Museums, Schools,Rugby,Football and Cricket Clubs and Air Museums to name a few!!

I would encourage any owner of any breed to have a go. It is a great brain stimulator, you will be surprised how tired they are after working.
You can compete and go through various levels. There are several organisations that give you guidance and trainers in your area. NNA National Nosework Association, Scentwork Uk and UKSniffer dogs and others.Most have websites with information on how to get started. Just remember that Vallhunds are extremely quick and really don’t like things being repeated too many times. I found in scent class Trev will be really keen at the beginning but on the third scent he looks a bit bored. When we competed doing 2 scents inside and 2
outside he loved it because we were in different situations. The sport as a whole is great. The people and competitors are lovely. So many different breeds compete and all are different in how they approach the tests. It’s a real team effort with you and your dog. You won’t get it right all the time but you will achieve everything together.
Trev is now working Enhanced level (NNA) and Level 5 Scentwork UK.

 

Rosie Peacock- Jackson & Trev

 

Video courtesy of Sharon Lee