Nose Work/Ratting Class
We offer both Ratting and general Nosework for fun classes.
RATTING - In this class your dog will try their nose out finding a real rat in a tube. The rat maybe hidden in a bale of hay or boxes and other items in a room. This is a great way to challenge your dog and their instincts with a real rat. The rats are not harmed because they are in a regulation tube like housing. The dogs simply use their nose to locate the rat. There are many sports surrounding dogs finding rats. Earth Dog, Barn Hunt and Happy Ratters are the most popular. In Earthdog, small and short legged dogs search for rats hidden in tunnels in the ground. Then Barn Hunt was developed to accommodate dogs of all sizes where dogs find rats hidden in bales of hay. Next a new spin off to the ratting world, Happy Ratters was developed. Happy Ratters can take place in any indoor or outside environment. Here the tunnels and hay bales are skipped. Rats in tubes are hidden in trash, boxes or other obstacles much like a messy abandoned house or alley way. In our class we will give your dog a start in the sport of Ratting by hiding the rats and teaching your dog to seek them out.. If your dog takes an interest and you would like to further their skills, we will send you in the right direction for any one of these sports.
Nose Work - Fascinating fact: Dogs have a sense of smell that’s between 10,000 and 100,000 times more acute than ours! The sport of Nose Work celebrates the joy of sniffing, and asks a dog to sniff to their heart’s content; turning your dog’s favorite activity into a rewarding game. It is a terrific activity for all kinds of dogs, and is a wonderful way to build confidence in a shy dog.
In so many dog sports the handler is in control but this isn’t true in Nose Work. Neither the dog nor handler knows where the target odor is hidden. The handler has to rely on the dog, and follow the dog’s nose to success.
The sport of Nose Work is based on the work of professional detection dogs (such as drug dogs), employed by humans to detect a wide variety of scents and substances. In AKC Scent Work, dogs search for cotton swabs saturated with the essential oils of Birch, Anise, Clove, and Cypress. The cotton swabs are hidden out of sight in a pre-determined search area, and the dog has to find them. Teamwork is necessary: when the dog finds the scent, he has to communicate the find to the handler, who calls it out to the judge.
In the first session of Nose Work for Fun we will be teaching the dog to find a treat that is hidden. Soon you will pair that treat with a scent. Eventually you wean out the treat and only have the scent available for the dog to find. This class is lots of fun and great for dogs who like to use their noses. This class is not a competition class but more for the average owner and dog to just have fun. You can set your dog up to play these search games in your house or when you are out in public.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION IF YOU ARE UNABLE TO ATTEND CLASS(s):
You have some options if you miss class, they are listed below
1. You can drop in to a future class we are holding IF IT DOES NOT BECOME FULL, for a $25 drop in fee per drop in.
2. If you are missing class due to your dog being ill or having a surgery where they need to miss a week, You should come without your dog so you can learn the lessons from that week and then practice with your dog when feeling better.
Note: Please be aware of your schedule and the dates that class is held. We do skip dates if there is a holiday or another event. Please allow a few extra weeks in your schedule to finish your class. Meaning a 5 week class may take 7 weeks to complete.
If your dog needs to skip class because they are sick, spay/neuter or for any other reason, you can attend without the dog to get a lesson, join in zoom if available, or just follow that weeks homework at home. We cannot transfer you to another class or refund your class fee. If you have to miss a large amount of your class you may join a future class that does not fill by the start date. The fee will be $25 for each day that you drop into that class.
RATTING - In this class your dog will try their nose out finding a real rat in a tube. The rat maybe hidden in a bale of hay or boxes and other items in a room. This is a great way to challenge your dog and their instincts with a real rat. The rats are not harmed because they are in a regulation tube like housing. The dogs simply use their nose to locate the rat. There are many sports surrounding dogs finding rats. Earth Dog, Barn Hunt and Happy Ratters are the most popular. In Earthdog, small and short legged dogs search for rats hidden in tunnels in the ground. Then Barn Hunt was developed to accommodate dogs of all sizes where dogs find rats hidden in bales of hay. Next a new spin off to the ratting world, Happy Ratters was developed. Happy Ratters can take place in any indoor or outside environment. Here the tunnels and hay bales are skipped. Rats in tubes are hidden in trash, boxes or other obstacles much like a messy abandoned house or alley way. In our class we will give your dog a start in the sport of Ratting by hiding the rats and teaching your dog to seek them out.. If your dog takes an interest and you would like to further their skills, we will send you in the right direction for any one of these sports.
Nose Work - Fascinating fact: Dogs have a sense of smell that’s between 10,000 and 100,000 times more acute than ours! The sport of Nose Work celebrates the joy of sniffing, and asks a dog to sniff to their heart’s content; turning your dog’s favorite activity into a rewarding game. It is a terrific activity for all kinds of dogs, and is a wonderful way to build confidence in a shy dog.
In so many dog sports the handler is in control but this isn’t true in Nose Work. Neither the dog nor handler knows where the target odor is hidden. The handler has to rely on the dog, and follow the dog’s nose to success.
The sport of Nose Work is based on the work of professional detection dogs (such as drug dogs), employed by humans to detect a wide variety of scents and substances. In AKC Scent Work, dogs search for cotton swabs saturated with the essential oils of Birch, Anise, Clove, and Cypress. The cotton swabs are hidden out of sight in a pre-determined search area, and the dog has to find them. Teamwork is necessary: when the dog finds the scent, he has to communicate the find to the handler, who calls it out to the judge.
In the first session of Nose Work for Fun we will be teaching the dog to find a treat that is hidden. Soon you will pair that treat with a scent. Eventually you wean out the treat and only have the scent available for the dog to find. This class is lots of fun and great for dogs who like to use their noses. This class is not a competition class but more for the average owner and dog to just have fun. You can set your dog up to play these search games in your house or when you are out in public.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION IF YOU ARE UNABLE TO ATTEND CLASS(s):
You have some options if you miss class, they are listed below
1. You can drop in to a future class we are holding IF IT DOES NOT BECOME FULL, for a $25 drop in fee per drop in.
2. If you are missing class due to your dog being ill or having a surgery where they need to miss a week, You should come without your dog so you can learn the lessons from that week and then practice with your dog when feeling better.
Note: Please be aware of your schedule and the dates that class is held. We do skip dates if there is a holiday or another event. Please allow a few extra weeks in your schedule to finish your class. Meaning a 5 week class may take 7 weeks to complete.
If your dog needs to skip class because they are sick, spay/neuter or for any other reason, you can attend without the dog to get a lesson, join in zoom if available, or just follow that weeks homework at home. We cannot transfer you to another class or refund your class fee. If you have to miss a large amount of your class you may join a future class that does not fill by the start date. The fee will be $25 for each day that you drop into that class.