Scent work takes a skill that all dogs are great at, sniffing and turns it into a challenging and competitive sport! AKC Scent Work mimics the jobs that detection dogs do to locate hidden scents and communicate the location to their handler.
Dogs have a keen sense of smell estimated to be 10,000 to 100,000 times better than people. In the real world, dogs are trained to search and find lost people, human remains, explosives, drugs, and more. The sport of scent work is a civilian version of these important jobs, where dogs alert their handlers to the location of scents that a judge has hidden. Dogs of all ages and sizes can be successful with this AKC Scent Work, which utilizes a dog’s natural sense of smell.
History of AKC Scent Work
People have used dogs’ amazing senses of smell since they were first domesticated. The first AKC Scent Work competition took place in 2017 in Wilmington, Ohio. The competition had 97 dogs entered from 20 different states, plus Canada. In the years since, AKC Scent Work has become a fast-growing and popular sport across the country.
AKC Scent work is a popular sport in which dogs use their nose to find the hidden location of hidden scents. In AKC Scent Work, Q-tips scented with oils are placed in hides for dogs to find, then alert their handler to the scent’s location. The handler must then notify the judge where the scent is hidden. Because the handler doesn’t know where the scents are hidden, they must trust their dog to notify them where the hidden scent is.
Elements of AKC Scent Work
AKC Scent Work trials or competitions are divided into different categories, known in the sport as “elements.” Each element involves a dog conducting a different type of search or searching a different environment. There are four different scent work elements in AKC competitions: container, interior, exterior, and buried.
- Container: an odor is hidden inside of a container, such as a cardboard box or briefcase. Dogs are faced with a variety of boxes and must alert their handler to which box the scent is hidden within.
- Interior: an odor is hidden in an inside search location. However, unlike with the container element, the odor can be hidden anywhere within a defined indoor area.
- Exterior: an odor is hidden on or in an object within a defined outdoor area. These searches can be more complicated for dogs because they must consider factors such as changing airflow and weather conditions, as well other changing natural or environmental distractions.
- Buried: an odor is hidden within a container, which is then buried in sand or water. The dog must sniff out the presence of the hidden scent, and alert their handler to which container it’s buried in.
Each element has four different classes, or levels of difficulty. These are Novice, Advanced, Excellent and Master. For each element, dogs start competing at the Novice level, then work their way up. This means that a dog could be at different competition levels in different categories.
AKC Scent Work Divisions
The AKC Scent Work program has two different divisions. The first search division is Odor, where dogs are searching for hidden essential oils. In this division, dogs search for four essential scent odors: birch, anise, clove, and cypress essential oils. Dogs search for different scents at different levels of completion:
- Novice level: birch
- Advanced level: birch and/or anise
- Excellent level: birch, anise, and/or clove
- Master level: birch, anise, clove, and/or cypress
The second division is the handler discrimination division. In this search division, the dog is searching for and alerting to the scent of their handler, which has been hidden within the search area.
Virtual Scent Work Test
In addition to the standard Scent Work competition levels, the AKC now also offers the Virtual Scent Work Test (VSWT). With the VSWT, dogs and their handlers can utilize their natural scent abilities from the comfort of their home. In this test, dogs search hidden treats, toys, and balls in areas inside and outside their home.
The VSWT has three levels: Beginner, Intermediate, and Experienced. When dogs meet the test criteria they earn the associated Virtual Scent Work title:
- Virtual Scent Work Beginner (VSWB)
- Virtual Scent Work Intermediate (VSWI)
- Virtual Scent Work Experienced (VSWE)
Alerts in AKC Scent Work
In AKC Scent Work competitions, dogs must sniff out the location of a hidden scent, then alert their handler to where the scent is hidden. Dogs can alert their handler to the location of the scent by barking, pointing, sitting, pawing, or any other behavior that indicates to the dog’s owner where the scent is hidden.
Handlers must trust their dog’s instinct and skill to know where the scent is. A key component of AKC Scent Work is the handler learning to read their dog to call alert at the right time. This is done through practice and reinforcing a dog’s alerts in practice to make them as clear as possible, so you’ll know when your dog finds the hidden scent in competition.
How Do You Win an AKC Scent Work Competition?
In scent work competitions, dogs are judged by their ability to find a hidden scent, as well as the handler’s ability to read their dog’s signals and indicate where the hidden scents are.
Dog-handler teams can earn a qualifying or non-qualifying score. To earn a qualifying score, the dog must find all the hides in a search area and the handler must indicate to the judge the presence of each of those hides. The dog and handler team need to find the hidden scents within the allocated time, without incurring non-qualifying faults. Of the dog-handler teams who qualify, 1st through 4th place is determined by the fewest faults, then by search speed.
What Dogs Are Best Suited for AKC Scent Work?
Compared to other sports where the handler is directing the dog around a course like in agility or AKC Rally, with AKC Scent Work the dog is in charge. In AKC Scent Work, dogs and handlers must work together as teammates and the handler must trust their dog to direct them to the location of the hides.
Because Scent Work gives our dogs the opportunity to utilize their natural skills, the sport can also improve a dog’s confidence. This can lead to a more confident dog in daily life, and even positively impact your dog’s performance in other sports. Along with providing a mental challenge for dogs, AKC Scent work is also a low-impact sport that’s less strenuous on a dog’s body, making it a great fit for senior dogs or dogs with mobility issues.
How to Get Involved With AKC Scent Work
AKC Scent Work is a sport that comes naturally to many dogs and doesn’t require a lot of equipment. With that in mind, it’s easy to start teaching your dog the skills needed for scent work. You can teach your dog scent work games at home, or you can take a scent work class at a training club in your local area. Scent work classes are a great way to introduce your dog to the essential oils. Plus, they can help you learn how to read your dog’s signals, so you know when your dog has found a hidden scent. Soon, both you and your dog will be competition ready!