In The 'Nose' (latest news)

Leah Gangelhoff Coaching Day & Snerdaholics

Lakewood Park Christian School in Auburn was the place to be for some awesome Nose Work March 25-27! The Snerdaholics worked with Leah on Tuesday and Thursday, while we sandwiched in an Elite/Summit group for coaching on Wednesday. It was the first time we had been to the school and they were so friendly and welcoming. We had to be buzzed in the front entrance and the gals always had a smile for us. They enjoyed the dogs and learning about Nose Work - it was definitely not their 'usual' Spring Break! Many thanks to Venita Lawyer for making contact and to Jeff Plank (Resource Officer) for all his help as liaison. We even had a 10 bus Vehicle search. Our groups made a good impression and they are open to the idea of a trial next summer - it would be a fabulous trial site!

We all filled out surveys for where we wanted Leah's help and over it all was the importance of having our dogs search autonomously. The hardest part for me is to keep quiet! LOL - anyone who knows me at all is not surprised by that. I decided to take Brigadier (aka "Briggs" or Tigger!) because he needs more experience in novel environments. He's doing a nice job of working out more complex converging odor problems and Leah gave me some good 'homework' to help him stay at source longer. He was hilarious when he saw himself in the mirror in one of the classrooms - he thought that was one good looking Doberman!

I won't speak for the others, but I hope they all got some good info and take-aways - it was pretty amazing when you could see how little needed to be changed with our body language to make significant changes for the dog to be able to work the puzzle! Reviewing the videos and coaching is invaluable, as I can't always remember everything in the moment.

We look forward to seeing Leah again, and hope to give people the chance to work with her - there's never enough working spots!

😄 BREAKING NEWS 🥳

Brigadier had a fabulous trial day at Traverse City, MI April 27! He achieved his NW2 title and won first place overall (High In Trial). I could not stop saying, "Wow!" 😄🥳 I was already so proud of him before we knew we titled - he is handling the parking lot and other dogs very well and is learning to rest in the car between searches. He was definitely raring to go when I took him out. He also is taking the long car rides and staying overnight confidently. I know for most folks, they travel with their dogs a lot, from a young age, so these things can be taken for granted. My dogs are rarely crated and are used to running on 25 acres for walks, so it's a big deal they handle change and can still do their 'job'. It was a great day, to say the least, and he was happy to get his bacon cheeseburger (Cooper T told him to expect that😉). Now on to NW3!

🐾🐾 Indiana Nose Work Jamboree 🐾🐾

Join us October 25-26, 2025 at Joseph Decuis and Fox Rest Farms for a Nose Work Mini-Camp!

More information will be posted on the Events Page - we're excited for this great in-person learning opportunity!