The Scholarly ScentZ, LLC

10/06/2025

It another weekend round up and it was a special one! When the folks from Steel City NW posted about 7 open spots for a NW2 I started firing off messages to my students to enter.

There were 7 TSS dogs running on Saturday, 5 for title and 2 ran as FEO.

I am beyond pleased to say a huge congratulations to TSS student team Margie and Gracie for not only being one of only 5 titling teams (out of 42 teams) earning their NW2 but also coming in OVERALL 3rd place!!! They also earned pronounces in 2 of the 5 searches.

This team took a big chunk of time off from trialing to focus on training for their issues. We worked on the entire team. In trying to convince Margie to try again, I assured her both her and Gracie were a very different team from their last NW2 attempt (their first) and they were ready.

They worked super hard and made it across the finish line and the dedication to training over trialing showed off.

I really loved competing along side of my student teams, it was a lovely social day with students who are very much friends... we spend time in class and beyond class and we are a really close group who supports each other through the wins and the not quite there yets. That to me is meaningful.

10/03/2025

Mark your calendars: AKC Scent Work trial - April 25-26 in Loveland, Ohio, opens March 11, 2026!

10/03/2025

Good luck to everyone stepping to the line this weekend especially all of my TSS teams heading to the Smithton NACSW trials! I can't wait to host a zoom watch party as I step my students through the walk thrus (I offer this for every student for NACSW trials) and caravan over to the trial together tomorrow!

10/02/2025

Yes this 1000%... I see a lot of waiting for the sit or down and failing to recognize COBs!

10/02/2025

This is why silence is golden when it comes to NW... talk less and let the dogs shine!

FUN FACT #11 – TURNING A DEAF EAR

Do you recognize that moment when you turn down your car radio so you can see better? Especially when we think we might have gotten lost, and we want to focus on reading street names, a radio can be very distracting. Thinking about this rationally it might not make sense, after all you wouldn’t think that a radio affects your vision, or does it...?

Another common example is where you completely ignored someone who started speaking to you while you were just enjoying your favorite movie. Research refers to this phenomenon as “inattentional deafness”. Studies on humans revealed that concentration on visual tasks will render you temporarily deaf to normal-volume sounds. Brain scans showed that people were not ignoring or filtering out the sounds, but that they were not hearing them in the first place! The findings support a shared audio-visual centre, which, when depleted under load, leads to failures of sensory perception and awareness.

Now let’s look at dogs. There is an area in the brain called the thalamus. The thalamus is responsible for relaying sensory information such as hearing, sight, touch and pain. It also enables the dog to concentrate on one (!) thing at a time.

Hence, when your dog is sniffing intently (*reading his favorite book*), he will very likely not hear you! Be patient, wait for your dog to finish his “book” and then call him over. Never assume your dog is ignoring you on purpose.

10/01/2025

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Happy Training!

09/30/2025

The good news keeps rolling in! Another congrats to TSS student team Ross and Ginger who competed at the TKC AKC Scent Work trial and have become the first TSS student team to earn their Scent Work Detective title!

This team has had an incredible trajectory and seeing Ginger grow in her skills has been so incredible to see.

I am excited to see what path this team chooses next!

09/29/2025

It's another weekend round up full of sniffing goodness!

I had the wonderful opportunity to judge for an AKC Scent Work trial with the Sonoran Desert Scent Work Club and it was 3 wonderful days up on Mount Lemmon judging at over 8K feet. We were above the clouds and I really enjoyed getting to see some new to me teams! I appreciate the trial chair bringing me to AZ!

Meanwhile in Ohio, some teams were at the AKC Scent Work trial hosted by Toledo Kennel Club. Big congrats to TSS student team Alicia with her boys Roy and Jamie! Team Roy earned their SIE and SBE title and team Jamie earned their SIN, SEN, and SCN titles!

Very proud of Alicia handling 2 dogs successfully in an AKC trial weekend!

09/23/2025

You replay your runs in your head and can’t stop thinking about what went wrong.

Tip: After each run, write down one thing that went right before analyzing mistakes. This shifts your mindset toward progress.

Get weekly mindset tips + encouragement inside The Competitive Edge Community.

Join free here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/competitiveedgefork9sports

09/22/2025

𝗗𝗼𝗴𝘀 𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗖𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘁 — 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗪𝗲 𝗧𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗺

When a detection dog gives the “wrong” response, it isn’t because they’re lazy, stubborn, or trying to cut corners. Dogs don’t cheat. They simply follow the lessons we’ve shown them.

If we always present odour in tins, bags, or boxes, then the tin, bag, or box becomes part of the target picture. In the field, when those props aren’t there, the dog may hesitate or misfire. That isn’t the dog’s fault — it’s a training design flaw.

👉 𝗢𝗱𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗺𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁
👉 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗲𝗹𝘀𝗲 — 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗿, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗺𝗲, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗲𝗻𝘃𝗶𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 — 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲

The responsibility is ours as trainers and handlers. Dogs are honest learners. If they’re “wrong,” it’s usually because of what we have taught them.

𝗗𝗼𝗴𝘀 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗮𝘁. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺.