Scent Work
Scent Work, AKA Nose Work, is a stimulating activity that engages your dog’s natural sense of smell. As a game your dog will use his nose to search for a favorite toy, food, or other item. As a competition sport, your dog will search for hides containing specific odors, such as Birch, or Cypress.
This mentally stimulating activity builds your dog’s confidence as it reduces stress and anxiety, and strengthens the bond between you and your dog. Scent work is a fun searching activity for virtually all dogs and people. It can be performed by dogs and people that are older or have some physical limitations. This activity builds confidence in shy or timid dogs, and helps high energy dogs learn how to focus.
Scent work is different from other dog sports in that the dog doesn’t require commands from the handler to know what to do. A team is built between the dog and handler: the dog must communicate to the handler when he has found a hide, and the handler must learn to detect what the dog is communicating.
Scent work is a game where the dog is immediately rewarded with a treat when he finds the hide. This reinforces his knowledge of the game and increases his desire to play some more.
Introduction to Scent Work
In this class you will learn the concepts of Scent Work and how to get your dog excited about searching by using food. This will help build dog’s confidence, teach it how to problem solve, and show how the game is played. In addition, the students will learn how to load scent vessels with essential oils in preparation for the next level of training.
The dog must wear a flat collar, martingale collar, or harness while searching. Bring a 6 to 8 ft. leash for searching and a 12 to 15 ft. leash for leash handling exercises. Your dog must be crated while not in the ring searching. Please bring a crate to class along with some yummy non-crumbling treats for rewards.
The only requirements for attending class is that the dog must be at least 6 months old and be able to be crated.
AKC Scent Work Novice and Advanced
This class prepares teams to trial in the Novice and Advanced levels of AKC Scent Work. Students will learn how to train their dog to search for the four essential odors (Birch, Anise, Clove, and Cypress). Teams will search odor in all four elements (Containers, Interiors, Buried, and Exteriors). One or more classes may be held off site in order to provide a required environment.
Prerequisite for this class is a successful completion of the Introduction to Scent Work class.
Bring a crate for your dog and lots of small, non crumbling, high-quality treats.
AKC Scent Work Excellent and Masters
This class prepares teams to trial in the Excellent and Master levels of AKC Scent Work. Teams will search odor in all four elements (Containers, Interiors, Buried, and Exteriors). One or more classes may be held off site in order to provide a required environment.
The prerequisite for this class is a successful completion of the AKC Scent Work Novice and Advanced class.
Bring a crate for your dog and lots of small, non-crumbling, high-quality treats.
Competitive Scent Work
The Competition Scent Work class is for teams that are preparing to, or already trialing. Teams will refine their searching skills in all four elements at all four AKC levels using any of the essential odors. Students will also be introduced to the Detective Level which is the top title in AKC Scent Work. This is an ongoing class offering challenging practices and insights into successful trailing. One or more classes may be held off site in order to provide a required environment.
Students may participate in this class only at the invitation of the instructor.
Bring a crate for your dog and lots of small, non-crumbling, high-quality treats.
Handler Discrimination
Handler Discrimination (HD) is a division of AKC Scent Work, separate from the Odor Division. In HD the dog searches for their handler’s scent, rather than essential oils. The scented items include white cotton gloves or socks, cotton balls, and cotton swabs. The items are hidden in containers in Novice, in interiors for Advanced and exteriors for Excellent. In all levels the dog must ignore distractions, such as the judge’s or steward’s scent, and food or non-food items among other things. When the dog finds the scented item, they communicate the location of the item to the handler. The handler will recognize the communication and call alert (and finish in the higher levels) to successfully complete the search. The handler is allowed and encouraged to reward the dog at the hide location.
For class each student will need to bring one scented cotton glove or sock, three cotton balls, a 6 or 8 foot leash and a crate. For practice each student will need four to six cotton gloves, cotton balls, blue painter’s tape, and cardboard containers (See Ch. 5, Sec 11 in the AKC Rulebook for container requirements).
In addition to competing and earning titles, HD has fun and practical uses. Your dog can learn to find the keys you dropped in a field, gloves that fell out of your pocket or a ring that you lost in the yard.
Introduction to Odor
The teams will continue building their searching skills with the Container and Interior elements. This class introduces two essential oils, Birch and Cypress. Students will learn how to prepare odor vessels and train their dogs to search for the odors.
Prerequisite for this class is a successfully completed ‘Introduction to Scent Work’ class. Bring crates for your dog and lots of small, non crumbling, high-quality treats.
Registration Opens February 2, 2026 at NOON
Facility Club Location
Mailing Address:
Forest City Dog Training Club P.O. Box 2576 Rockford, IL 61132
Facility Club Location
Address:
6203 Material Ave. Loves Park, IL 61111