At the Wingate Hotel in Gillette, WY, dogs of all ages took part in a scent training seminar, reported The Sheridan Press.
Inside a room at the hotel, there were three rows of five cardboard boxes. In two of those boxes, somebody set an essential oil target. Dogs like Shasta, an eight-year-old Beagle, worked with their parents, snaking through the rows and hunting for a smell.
Jeremy Mclaughlin, a retired K9 handler, put on the seminar over three days. For handlers, scent training is a blossoming specialty and one that stimulates dogs mentally and physically. In fact, scent training has been linked to all sorts of positive changes, even making your dog more optimistic. Add the benefits of structured training to that, and seminars like Mclaughlin’s are a sure match for any dog.
Scent training is an underestimated outlet for dogs
Significantly, scent training is also a more accessible enrichment activity for dogs. One attendee, Tiffany Sylvester, told The Sheridan Press, “It’s neat because dogs with disabilities that are deaf or blind or have one leg, they can also be trained and it’s enriching for them.” Lastly, it’s important to consider that dogs use their noses in a vastly more complex way than humans. One study even showed that a dog’s sense of smell is intertwined with their vision.
Altogether, the weekend seminar consisted of two scent trials. One was the containers, and the other was buried scents. Notably, the scents were buried in two mediums: sand, and a water tub that almost completely evaporated the scent. However, the dogs successfully found both targets. Through trusting their noses and working with their parents, dogs young and old showed off their talents.
Altogether, 20 people gathered to gain knowledge about scent training. Their house-bound dogs had the chance to run drills similar to the ones police detection dogs use. By Sunday, both dogs and parents went home with a new set of skills to grow upon.
Crystal Allison, another participant, said, “Anything you can do to keep your dog active and interested, it’s worth it.”
