There’s a new Detective in town and Olivia is her name! The day after I turned four, I earned my final Q and now hold the SWD Title in Scent Work. It’s super exciting since Detective searches require perfection.
What Is A Detective Search
Detective is the highest level of AKC Scent Work. The search area is between two and five thousand feet including inside and outside areas. There are five to ten hides, the exact number is unknown to the handler. Teams have between seven and fifteen minutes to find all the hides. The judge will decide on the time limit and share it with the team prior to starting the search.
Detective searches are supposed to emulate as close as possible, the work of true detection dogs. With the large search spaces, short time limit, and complex odor puzzles, pass rates tend to be low. It is a pass/fail search. To earn a Detective Title, the team must pass a total of ten searches.
How I Earned My SWD Title
It took me about one year to earn my Detective Title. My first Q was April 9th, 2022. My total of ten Q’s occurred at six different venues under eight different judges. With so much variety, Mom feels that we did really earn our title. Every venue has different challenges and each judge sets up different types of puzzles. My last Q was earned in the large storage area under the dining hall at Camp Phillippo Boy Scout Camp. The exterior portion of my search area was small and simple, but as you see around me in the above photo, the rest of the space is packed full of things. Hides can be high up, on the ground, or in between. They can be in things on things, behind things, pretty much anywhere.
For handlers, such a space is intimidating. How can we cover all the areas in just seven minutes? Mom trusts me so much, she doesn’t worry about it anymore. I take off and my nose knows just where to go.
A Video Of My Final Search – Becoming A New Detective
This is our GoPro video of my title search where I became a new Detective. Mom and I had so much fun in this space looking for all the things. Finally Mom called finish and we had found everything, a total of nine hides in six minutes, fifteen seconds. Only three dogs Q’d out of twenty and we placed third with our time.
What An End To A Great Weekend
Ten Q’s, two third and two fourth places in those ten searches. Mom and I are so happy to have our new Detective Title! It is a big accomplishment.
Nelson and I both had a great weekend doing Scent Work. Who knows, maybe the little fellow will follow in my sniffing paw prints. He is a different searcher than I am, but he has already done things no one else in our family has while sniffing.
My GBGV Life is joining Brian’s Home Blog in the Thankful Thursday Blog Hop!
Congratulations, Olivia! You are an amazing girl! We loved watching you and your mom work on your video and boy does she ever have to run to keep up with you! We were cheering loudly for you at the end. I hope you heard us!
Thank you! Mom and I have so much fun and people love to watch me work. Sniffing is truly my favorite thing to do in life 🙂 I’m lucky I found a home that can support me and my love of sports.
Oh our goodness!!!! We loooove the video. You are soo happy when you find the scent! We love watching your tail wag so much!! And then when your mom got so excited at the end was awesome. Do we call you Detective Olivia now!! Congratulations. You know — my big sister Lilly remembers when your big sisters Emma and Bailie started scentwork. Emma wrote a post called “we got uniforms!” and had the best pictures of them in their halters and leashes. Seeing your orange halter and leash made mom and Lilly smile thinking about Emma and how proud she would be of your mom and you! Your family has worked hard and shown such commitment! Bravo!!! (long reply! sorry!! lots of thoughts this morning!! ) your friends Chester and Lilly
Thank you, and long is fine, there is plenty of room. Emma and Bailie started nose work on Jan. 6th 2014. When asked at class what Mom’s goals were, she said, “searching for treats, no competition, no need to learn odor.” Two weeks later she was buying the uniforms and was hooked. Handling has changed a lot in the past nine years. Mom starts us now as puppies and home schools us most of the time and it is working really well. I am really into sniffing, and Mom says it may just be something I have special talent for. We both just love working together and could do it all day every day. My Detective Title search was such a fun one, we are super lucky. Thank you for being friends for so long 🙂
congrats!! we always had the suspect that sherlock holmes was a girl… and now we see, we were right ;O)
Maybe I will change my name to Shirley Holmes?
I had a smile on my face watching the search. It was so much fun to go along with you. Congratulations you are a super star detective.
Thank you. It was a super fun search area and so many hides to find. Mom and I had a blast.
Congratulations, Olivia (and your mom)! You even got a cool detective badge you can wear now.
I’m a real detective and super proud of myself and Mom too.
Congratulations Olivia ~ you are one special doggie and love your breed ~ Xo
Wishing you good health, laughter and love in your days,
A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)
Thank you. Scent hounds are awesome!
Wow, congratulations. You and Nelson are a dynamic nose duo!
Actually, this is me, Olivia. Nelson is still just getting started, but he will be a good sniffer.
Congratulations Olivia!!!!
xoxo,
Rosy & Sunny
Thank you.
Well, Shirley Olivia Holmes, You rock!!! Love the hat! and everyone seems to be very happy!!!
Super happy. Now we have to find some new goals to set.
WOW, we are most impressed Olivia and that video sure made us smile. Congratulations to both you and Nelson from all of us. Thanks for joining our Thankful Thursday Blog Hop!
Thank you. Nelson and I both had such a fun time sniffing and so much success to go along with the fun.
Yippee and Yahoo, Congratulations to You!!!
Thank you. We are super happy!
Congratulations! That’s an amazing accomplishment!
It is a big one and we are super happy to have done it.
Woo-hoo. Congratulations!
I’m super proud to be a Detective now. Look out criminals!