Be the dark horse that wins not by winning,

…but by simply playing the game.—Suzanne Catalano

I say this to myself every time we go to a nose work trial for encouraging me to have a good time. Then I say it again after the trial to remind myself, if we may have struggled to keep up, that just being there is the win.

In the fast-growing sport of K9 detection, just doing it makes us winners. For the dogs, it presents an alternative to the high physical demands of other performance sports. It gives any dog, regardless of breed or physical ability, an opportunity to do something they love. Something that comes naturally.

Using her nose to find the dropped cookie on the floor is as natural to a dog as is breathing.

For the humans, having the sanctioned events in novel locations that allow us to play with our dogs is the ethereal gift. Spending time with friends who share the passion is better than therapy. And going home with the best dog ever is tonic for the heart and soul.

In nose work, there are teams at a trial who you know are gonna be on the podium, even if they have a bad day. They may not win it all, but they will most likely have a good search or two that puts them in the placement ribbon lineup. They have put time into training and dedicated themselves to learning. Their hard work results in them earning the honors.

“Champions do not become champions when they win the event, but in the hours, weeks, months and years they spend preparing for it.” — T. Alan Armstrong.

The initial purpose of K9 scent work as a sport was to bring detection-style training to companion animals. A noble endeavor indeed. I have often said; we do what the professional detection dogs do, only we do it for fun.

They may not look like the professional dogs on the outside, but what is happening on the inside of this dog is exactly the same.

Before nose work was even a sport, it was a small gathering of professional trainers and handlers, who wanted all dogs to do what comes naturally. For professional K9s who had since retired, these nose work game days were an opportunity to have fun. Nose work enriches the life of everyone.

From these gatherings, came a spark of an idea that this could benefit all dogs. Even pet dogs. The bonus was nose games gave us humans a direct connection to the world through a dog’s eye, or nose. We get a glimpse into what dogs perceive heaven on earth would be. Spending time with us; hunting, pursuing, then solving a puzzle using their senses; getting rewards and praise. All at the top of their list.

These ideas led to the National Association of Canine Scent Work. This group, started by a small team and supported by volunteers, has grown into an organization whose mission is “to create opportunities for dogs to develop their natural scenting abilities, and to conduct competition design and trial sanctioning, official instructor certification, and education in an ethical, enriching canine-centered environment.”

For two decades, professional trainers who devote a sizeable chunk of their broader training business only to nose work, alongside folks with that entrepreneurial spirit, have found business opportunities within the hobby.

Nose work has created many branches through which to funnel our energies. In-person seminars, online training, webinars and podcasts, not to mention equipment designers, have popped up across the country. These are not moneymaking businesses. The motivation is to support their hobby and to present opportunities for the rest of us. Now, that’s dedication.

Those who invest their time and expertise may put in more energy and, by appearance, more dedication than those of us who are just playing around. It may seem like they would have the upper hand. Immersing themselves in nose work, they breed dogs especially for this sport. They start them on training from the womb. These dogs are going to be great at their jobs. These teams are going to rise to the top.

By comparison, I am not that dedicated. I’m not a trainer, and I only volunteer at the basic level. We don’t train hard either. We do nose work for fun, for connection, for communication. For love. We don’t automatically rise to the top.

But teams that don’t make it to the top should never feel ‘less than’. There wouldn’t be a top if there were no teams below. Having the tenacity to come back trial after trial only to be at or near the bottom of the results sheet shows a different dedication. A recognizable accomplishment.

Even from its inception, nose work has blended the professionals with the pet owners, creating a delightful mix of energy. The same standards apply to both pros and amateurs. There is no stacking of the deck; nothing is guaranteed. Still, for Team Winnie, a pug-beagle mix and a handler who never even trained a dog to do tricks, in a parking lot full of super-qualified teams of well-bred, talented dogs and skilled handlers, it can be intimidating.

We can measure ourselves against our fellow competitors by many degrees, but don’t think for a minute that any of us is a shoo-in to win. Imagine, if you will, that you are the professional handler who joins the hobbyists on weekends. You want to stay sharp as a team and also have some fun. Building confidence in your team, you and your dog have spent hours honing your craft. Beside you in the parking lot are the pet owners. Both are equally deserving of a spot on the list of competitors, but one of you may have more at stake.

In nose work, the professionals have no advantage over the amateurs. In fact, they may put even more pressure on their team to do well. On any day, among the teams in the parking lot full of professionals and amateurs at every trial across the land, there is the potential for a dark horse to take the top spot.

Making light of the possibility, Team Winnie can laugh at what it might look like to be a winning team.

It was the 17th of October, 2020, and Team Winnie had just qualified for Elite after earning our NW3 Elite Champion title a month before. We traveled from the coast of California to Montrose, Colorado, for our first ever Elite level trial. Not understanding what to expect, I found it easy to just have fun. We had never won High In Trial at any trial, and I had never given it much thought. I didn’t even know they awarded the top team an NACSW tin with all the Q-tips. So naïve.

We won High in Trial that day with a score of 80.56 percent. Not because we are the best trained. Eighty percent is not that great of a score. We are not the most professional, and my handling skills are well below average. We are not the best team by far in comparison, but we were the best team that day. From out of the back of the parking lot, unknown to most of the other competitors, with a modest score, we were awarded the biggest ribbon and the tin of Q-tips. We were the dark-horse team.

This sport is and always will be about so much more than recognition or winning. Though it is in our nature to compare ourselves to others, don’t spend too much time there. Whether at the top of the results page or the bottom, any of us who do nose work are already getting all the benefits to our minds, bodies and hearts without a single ribbon or award. That is what we win. It is up to us to recognize it for ourselves.

Take these thoughts with you as you trial, train, and learn. With head held high, envision your joy. Our journey with each dog is fleeting but more valuable than can be measured.