Dogs have an incredible sense of smell. They have the ability to smell a treat hidden around the house or detect specific objects. This amazing skill is what makes dogs reliable scent trackers. In fact, many dogs work as trackers because of their acute sense of smell. But scent tracking is not just for serious work, it’s also a fun activity you can do with your dog. Is your dog suited for the sport of scent work? If your dog loves to sniff around, you bet he is! We present the 15 best dog breeds for scent work.
What is Scent Tracking for Dogs?
While scent tracking is just one of many tasks your dog may be trained to do, it turns out that there are several careers for dogs with great noses. Dogs are specially trained to help law enforcement agencies find missing people, even when they have been underground for days or weeks. Nose work helps police track down criminals as well. Dogs are able to sniff out drugs, bombs, and even cancer cells.
What is Scent Work?
Scent work is a type of dog sports that’s based on professional detection work done by working dogs. It involves training your dog to identify the smells found in everyday objects. Dogs are able to detect these scents more quickly than humans, with an ability that is at least 10,000 times better. Scent work can be used in many different applications, such as drug detection for law enforcement, cadaver recovery for search and rescue, or even in missing persons cases.
Scent Work Competition for Dogs
The fun part is that your dog can enter a scent work competition. Scent work became a competitive event in the American Kennel Club (AKC) in 2017. Scent work requires a trained dog to find a hidden object through scent. Dogs use their noses to identify specific scents. They then alert handlers with a signal that can be anything from scratching or pawing at an object, pointing with their nose, or sitting down with the scent pointed out so the handler can find it. There’s even a scent detection category in America’s Top Dog dubbed as the ultimate scenting challenge.
15 Best Dog Breeds for Scent Work
The best dog breeds for scent work have a natural instinct to track scents and their intelligence makes them ideal for the sport. A dog that excels in scent work is a boon to a handler because there is no need to use a leash or other restraining device on the animal. The dog’s marvelous sniffing ability is a valuable asset in this sport.
However, some breeds are the best dogs for scent training. Here are the 15 best dog breeds for scent work.
- Bloodhound
- Beagle
- Basset Hound
- German Shepherd
- Labrador Retriever
- Pointer
- Belgian Malinois
- Coonhound
- English Springer Spaniel
- German Shorthaired Pointer
- Scottish Terrier
- Harrier
- Dachshund
- English Foxhound
- Border Collie
Training Your Dog for Scent Work
Scent work is an excellent way to keep your dog stimulated both mentally and physically. It also offers an outlet for their natural desire to hunt. For these reasons, most professional dog trainers recommend teaching your dog scent work as a fun and beneficial activity.
How do you know the best dogs for scent training? The first step of teaching your dog scent work is finding the right classes or private trainer that works with you and your dog’s specific skill level.
Many dogs have a natural sense of smell that is usually only associated with hunting and tracking. This ability to use their nose and to distinguish different scents can be used for a variety of jobs. Training a dog for scent work requires patience and time, but many people find this rewarding because it’s such a unique way to connect with their pet.
Scent work is a great activity for your dog to have fun with you and your family while strengthening the bond between human and pup. It also helps relieve mental stress for dogs. For many dogs, scent work is a form of exercise that they can really enjoy!
So if your furry friend is one of the best dogs for scent training, get them started right away and join some fun or competitive scent work activities.
