Brenda's Bio

Since childhood, I’ve been following animals around, trying to be invisible to them – so I can understand their daily lives without human interference. Dogs, cats and birds – domestically – but wild animals were a huge draw. I watched the daily flutters of small birds and sat for hours, waiting for a bobcat to give me a glimpse into his world. As an adult, I worked in wildlife rehabilitation of birds of prey. I became adept at setting up cages to predict where a screech owl would like to perch while recuperating, to knowing how to move in a cage with a skittish osprey without spooking them. I trained a bald eagle to come to my glove and learned to read her mercurial moods as if she was speaking to me. 

 

This has set me up to be a student of dogs and dog body language. When I discovered Nose Work, I found the perfect dog sport, the ultimate in reading dogs. My passion for the sport stems from it’s focus on us entering their world of scent, following them and reading their bits of language that give us clues on how odour affects them. In this sport, we don’t demand them to do unnatural things for our human agenda but instead to harness an ability already instinctual in them. It is a wild animal activity – following their nose – engaging hunting drives then getting to eat because they’re successful. And I’ve come full circle back to my own childhood need to understand creatures other than human.

 

I got involved in Nose Work because a friend told me it was excellent activity that improved the lives of nervous dogs. My dog took to it immediately. I started more dogs from my household in the sport. In 2015 Patrick and I passed our first try at NW1 at National Association of Canine Scent Work competition. In 2016 we passed our first try at NW2 level. We took a year off to learn new skills (me as much as him) and get ready for the next much more difficult level. In 2018, on our 4^th try, we passed our first NW3 trial. We passed our next two NW3 trials in a row after that to earn our NW3 Elite title. Patrick and I have gone on to compete in Elite level and currently have an Elite 1 title with many points accrued towards ELT2. In 2019, my other dog Marlow got her NW3 Elite and has also since gained her ELT 1 title.  I have two other dogs in my house with Odor Recognition test passes, one with her ORT title. (as of 2020, you need an ORT title to enter NACSW trials). Patrick and I have the first CKC Scent title in Excellent for our breed.  Other scent work organizations are on our to-do list for the future. 

I’ve taken working spot seminars/classes with the founders of NACSW Ron Gaunt, Amy Herot and Jill Marie O’Brien. We’ve attended multiple Christina Bunn and Jean Richardson seminars as well. In 2016 Patrick and I attended the NACSW K9 Nose Work Camp in OR, (highly recommended) where we did Nose Work for many hours each day for a solid week under many top instructors and thinkers in the sport. 

 

I find myself waxing ‘evangelical’ about the sport to anyone who’ll listen. I started Nose Work Passion in 2018 to allow me to pass on my passion and have fun watching dogs and their human partners get bitten by the ‘Nose Work bug.’ I have since gone on to become certified through the NACSW and I’m now a full fledged Certified Nose Work Instructor. 

 

Favourite quote “You do not know who you are until you catch your reflection in an eye other than human” Loren Eisely