Hey all!

Today’s post is a quick update on how we have gotten Jake to come out of his shell. We did beginning obedience with Nose 2 Tail Dog Training when we first brought him home. First, let me just say that the dog trainer—Brenda—is absolutely amazing!! Not only did she do a class with us for beginning obedience, but she did a demo and trial of nosework during that class. Goldy was not even slightly interested but Jake loved it! Nose 2 Tail does a lot of nosework training classes, and we have been keeping Jake in training.

I bet most of you haven’t heard of Nosework training or competing, so I’ll do my best (which is not great at all) at describing it. Nosework is a game for dogs that can be just for fun or can be done in a competition setting. There are three scents used in nosework— anise, birch, and clove. These scents are essential oil on a Q-tip end, with different strengths for different types of competitions. You put the Q-tips in straws or in little tins with wholes in them. It could be one or all three of these scents depending on where you are in training. These are called hides, which then get placed in the search area. They are usually hidden, but to start out they aren’t really. There are also multiple types of searches: normal, boxes, plastic containers, and buried (which can be water or sand).

Jake really just took to nosework instantly. It is so fun to watch him doing something he loves! As we progressed through different nosework classes (from beginners to multiple sessions of intermediate), Jake warmed up not only to the game but to us and became a MUCH more courageous dog. He went from a pup who was scared to be out of his kennel or be around other people (including Brenda, our trainer) to a dog who was full of confidence, out of his kennel, and loving life. It has helped him be around other people and feel more comfortable even in new places. Jake is a very different dog than when he first came home with us, and Andrew and I know it is in huge part due to Brenda and her nosework classes!!

Building Our Nest readers, just think about how much care and effort and time will go into our future child if this is just one of the ways we spoil and enrich our pups. What else do you guys want to read about our family? I’m looking for ideas on future blog posts!

~Natalie