NACSW NW3 - Elkton, Florida

Julia tried for another NACSW NW3 Title in Elkton, Florida on November 9th. Unfortunately, no NW3 Title this time around. She did get her NW3 Element Title for containers though. That was pretty cool.

She found 10 of 10 hides (pronounced in exterior) on the day and did an excellent job. Me on the other hand, not so much. During the vehicle search, I froze after a head turn and crowded her a bit which caused a false alert. With that bonehead move, it eliminated us from contention. One more blank vehicle and we would have had it. There’s no woulda, coulda, shoulda though. This truly is a team sport. She gave it her all and I couldn't have asked for more.

We had a blast and it was great to spend a special long weekend with my dog, see old friends, and meet new ones. Huge shout-out to the hosting club, judges, volunteers and other competitors.

Below are videos of each search of this trial. After watching the videos, I know that I should have trusted Julia more. She caught everything on the first pass but yet I was compelled to go back and double-check. I feel videos of searches whether in practice or in competition are important. I learn so much as hard as some are to watch in hindsight. (BTW, exterior video is cropped tight on the right and doesn’t show Julia alert on the hide after the start but she got it).

julia-nacsw-nosework-trials-elkton-florida.jpg

Julia Goes For Her NW3

Been awhile since I've checked in. Since Logan passed away last year, I've stepped back a tad from photography and engaged with my other dog Julia. During Logan's illness, she kind of took a backseat. 

Prior to moving to Florida, Julia and I were involved in the sport of canine nose work, also known as scent work. We have competed with the National Association of Canine Scent Work (NACSW). Julia has her NW1 and NW2 titles. Before leaving California, we tried for her NW3 title but weren't ready. We came up way short.

Just last month we competed in the NACSW NW3 down in Tequesta, Florida. Again, we fell short but improved tremendously. We found 6 of 9 hides for 72.92 on the day. Not enough to title (100.00 needed) but a fun day none the less. We were successful in the containers and vehicles. We missed 1 hide on the interiors and 2 hides on the exteriors. Always a learning experience. We'll get em' next time. Very proud of my girl.

Below are video's of our searches that day. Interiors were not filmed. We'll be competing in the AKC Scent Work Trials in Daytona Beach, Florida next month.