-
The Benefits of Sniffing for Dogs – Part 1 -Article.
We’ve been talking a lot about sniffing, lately. ???? For dogs, sniffing is intrinsically motivating – that is, it’s something they naturally want to do, and can seek out on their own. We can provide great sniffing opportunities and connect them to training behaviors we like ala’ Premack Principle.
✔We can also enhance our relationships with dogs, by letting them have the choice to go sniff for sniffing’s sake. Sniffing can be even more than that, though.
An article written by CATCH Workshop Instructor Ferdie Yau, CPDT-KA, details some of the other benefits of sniffing. I’ll share it in two posts this week, along with some questions to get us thinking.
Sniffing and its Effect on Emotional States - Part 1 Intentionally adding new and different scents to a dog’s kennel in an animal shelter has the potential to increase or decrease stress levels in dogs. Researchers found that exposure to peppermint and rosemary increased movement and barking in kenneled dogs (Graham et al. 2005). However, scents such as ginger, coconut, vanilla, and valerian were associated with decreased movement and barking (Binks et al. 2018). In addition, coconut and ginger increased sleeping behavior in kenneled dogs (Binks et al. 2018). Since excessive activity and barking are often indicators of stress in shelter dogs, the researchers suggested that olfactory-based enrichment using vanilla, valerian, ginger and coconut for dogs in rescue shelters may help reduce stress in shelter dogs.
Besides reducing stress in shelter dogs, allowing dogs to sniff and “forage” may induce more optimistic emotional states in dogs. Duranton and Horowitz (2019) tested the effects of nose work on an experimental group of pet dogs and compared them to a control group that practiced heelwork (walking closely by the handler’s side). Prior to starting any training with the experimental group, dogs from both the experimental and control groups were tested and found to have no significant difference in how long it took them to approach a novel object, an empty bowl. The dogs were then subjected to two weeks of either: nose work or heelwork.
Afterward, the dogs were observed again approaching the bowl. Dogs from the nose work group approached the bowl significantly faster while the heelwork dogs did not change. The results indicated that dogs who practiced nose work were more optimistic that there would be something of interest or value (food) in the bowl. The researchers suggested that increasing time for nose work or scent-related activity, such as allowing dogs to sniff naturally on walks or forage for food through food dispenser toys, may increase optimism. Another way of saying this is that giving dogs more chances to sniff can help build confidence and comfort when approaching new objects or situations.
In further support of this, we know that sniffing is an activity that gives dogs more autonomy, meaning their behavior is more based on free choice (to pursue what interests them). Free choice is a concept that is positively associated with animal welfare and stress reduction. The dogs in this study who were in the nosework group enjoyed more self-directed behavior during their training than the dogs in the heelwork group who were being led by their owners.
Binks, J., Sienna, T., Wills, A., Montrose, V.T. (2018). The behavioural effects of olfactory stimulation on dogs at a rescue shelter. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 202, 69-76. Duranton, C., Horowitz, A. (2019). Let me sniff! Nosework induces positive judgment bias in pet dogs. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 211, 61-66. Graham, L., Wells, D.L., Hepper, P.G. (2005). The influence of olfactory stimulation on the behaviour of dogs housed in a rescue shelter. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 91, 143-153.
Have you considered using various scents for motivation or enrichment for your dogs? If so, what have you tried?
What scents might have an opposite effect, that is, bring stress or concern to a dog?
-
18 Replies
-
I love this article! So fascinating! I’ve always find scents and nose work fascinating. I’m looking forward to reading the second post.
I’ve used scents before for enrichment purposes before. Since Tuff is a hunting dog, I’ve used bird scent (in liquid form, from a store, super nasty stuff but it works). I’ve put it on retrieving bumpers and sticks and then hid them for him to find. We’ve also been to R+ only gun dog workshops and the trainers have had bird wings or feathers to use, so we’ve done that before as well. Tuff loves to sniff where anything wild has been and there’s scent leftover. He’ll intently sniff the ground until he gets enough.
Also, when my dad comes back from riding horses, Tuff goes absolutely crazy and sniffs his jeans forever. It’s near impossible to get him to leave them alone haha. I find it quite funny! 🙂
One thing that I think can stress Tuff out is the scent of new people that are at the house. I am not sure what else, but there’s probably something. I’m interested to see what other people have put down.
-
I love how you are noticing the details, Zane, of not just what is exciting and interesting to Tuff, but also the scents that stress him out in certain situations. You are definitely tuning into body language on this.
Hazel has the same reaction to “new scents on her territory”. That can be new people, new dogs, or fox that come through our yard. Those scents will get her over aroused and agitated, searching frantically for the source, especially the latter two.-
@David Thank you so much for the positive words! I really appreciate it.
When you mentioned the new scents on Hazel’s territory, that made me think of when the deer venture through the field behind our house, or a coyote decides to pay a visit (luckily there is a fence in between us and them). Tuff has gotten a lot better at “air scenting” and catching smells on the wind since we began doing nose work for fun, even from inside the house. He will often bark like a maniac as if something is there, but I won’t see anything. Then of course a few minutes the deer herd will show up. He’ll catch animal scents before they even come into visual range. It’s fascinating.
-
@ZaneB and fellow members, yes, I’ve seen this exact same thing happen when you make an extra effort to “light up” the scenting powers in a dog! My Lab, Lido, was introduced to scents by his breeder as a very young pup. They did a number of things for what is commonly called early neurological stimulation. The “scent strengthening” (early scent introduction) was done with Avidog’s process I believe, which is simply introducing a wide variety of scents and watching the dog’s reactions, while he is still in the neonate period (first two or three weeks!). https://www.avidog.com/early-scent-introduction-for-neonate-puppies/
Fast forward to now… my shelter adopted Hazel does not air scent from the house, but Lido will air scent even if there’s a cracked window or door to the outside and he will absolutely erupt into barking on air scenting. Presumably this is the scent of the foxes that mostly come out at night because that is the animal my dogs get most agitated by. Possibly coyote at times, too. The coyotes are much more hidden from human view, but I’m sure Lido’s nose detects when they are around and he gets very territorial despite nothing visible to the human eye.-
That’s very interesting @David!! Whenever this happens with Tuff and I never see anything, or it’s night, I’m like it’s probably a zombie heh heh.
-
This is a really, really good reminder to not scold or correct our dogs for alerting to things we cannot perceive. As my very wise (working SAR dog trainer) mom used to say, “Believe your dog.” Instead of scolding for an alert bark, I generally ask Joy to either “Check it out” (go to the window and have a look – or in some cases, I open the door to let her explore the yard) or I’ll ask her to “Tell me all about it” which means to put her front paws on my lap and I comfort her and scratch her neck and back while she enjoys a settling stretch.
-
-
-
-
-
The second part of this article is posted here, if you want to take a look. It’s fascinating to consider all that the dogs have to teach us about their world of scent. We have a lot to learn!
-
-
I enjoyed this article; I often like asking dogs I walk, “Oh, is that a good scent?” or, “Mmm, wonder what that could be?”…I am fascinated by their noses! I would almost certainly NEVER accomplish anything, if I had their sense of smell!
One thing used to crack me up, when I would reapply sunblock in the middle of the afternoon before walking my student dog, Maddon; I had trained him to Wait at the door before I came into his house, he would be sitting so sweetly on the entryway rug and then, he smelled the sunblock…I don’t know what was so irresistible about it but he simply burst at the seams and broke his await to greet me, before catching himself and sitting again. Really, SUNBLOCK! What’s THAT all about? Did he link/associate that smell on me to our going on a wonderful midday walk (experience)?
@ZaneB -I love what you said about your dog with the horse scent on your dad’s pants. My dogs used to do the same with my teenage daughter, who worked as a stable hand. She’d come home after a good day of saddling and brushing (sometimes getting them from the fields) and my two dogs were totally glued to her side until she showered.
Interesting idea- The trainer that I hired years ago had this idea for solving the puppy dilemma of what to chew on/what is mine/yours. She recommended using a baking extract that you never use, ie we used raspberry extract (a few drops in a spray bottle of water) and “scenting” the puppy’s toys and chews with that scent. Anything that was “mine” or my family’s stayed its regular scent. Then he knew, as he grew, what he was allowed to put in his mouth and chew. I swear, it worked. After awhile, when he got older, he figured out what was his naturally, so we no longer scented his stuff. Have any of you used this method? What do you think of that idea?
-
Great stories, @Bernerlabreclectus Paula. Thanks so much for sharing. I agree that the world of scent is mysterious and fascinating. There’s no question that our dogs tune into scent as antecedents – predictors of particular outcomes. I think my dog gets as excited by the smell of coffee in the morning as I do… because as it’s brewing, I feed her breakfast. ????
Have you seen this great little video on how dogs smell? It’s so good – and again, we are only starting to learn the breadth and depth of their ability to scent.
-
-
I love the replies and stories folks – thanks so much for sharing! This is a fantastic article and something I think will really help enrich the lives of dogs if we can get this information out there to dog owners.
I had a client who worked at a zoo and her 7 month old Lab (who unfortunately had some severe anxiety issues) would avoid her and even growl at her when wearing any clothing with “Zoo Smell” on it; when out of work clothes he was sweet as can be. @ZaneB your point about scents that stress dogs out made that memory come to mind so thank you!
-
You’re very welcome @Cait ! I’m loving all these responses from everyone. I’ve always been fascinated by dogs scenting. If you have dogs long enough, I feel like you’re bound to start picking up on stuff (especially when you dive into training and behavior courses). I read an article a few years back, when I was just getting into dog training, that talked about the differences between how dogs smell and how humans perceive smell. It’s always stuck with me. It said that when we walk into a room, and say there is spaghetti cooking, our brains just register the smell as spaghetti sauce. But if that’s happening around a dog, they’re going to be able to smell each separate ingredient! Fascinating stuff!
-
-
I’ve always found that super fascinating too @ZaneB – odorous layering is the term I believe! Explaining to my clients how a dog could identify each ingredient in stew compared to our ability to smell just “stew” really gave them an appreciation for the abilities of their dogs.
I began a discussion regarding the abilities of dogs to smell and unique applications here – I’d love to hear some of your thoughts!
-
@Cait I really like that term! Odorous layering! Super cool.
-
alright I just had to add this in real quick because it relates to scent. Tuff and I were just outside. He was laying down on the lawn chewing a stick with a large retaining wall blocking his view of the woods above the house. The wind kicks up all around us and he immediately gets up and runs full speed to the fence. According to his body language, something was definitely close. So, I start looking around and sure enough, I caught sight (just in time) of a deer in the upper wooded area. It was barely visible but Tuff caught its scent on the wind! Such a good boy! haha!
-
What a great story to share @ZaneB and an excellent illustration of how dogs can “see” with their noses!
-
-
-
I started Nosework with my dogs about 4 years ago. (they are trained to find Birch, Anise and Clove) My younger dog Tuck was always a bit tentative with new things in his environment, and Nosework has helped build his confidence tremendously. At the first class we attended, he would not even put his head in a box, as he was scared of it. He now goes to trials all over, and searches in all different environments! He still gets startled by new sounds or things at times, but his recovery from that stimulus is much faster, he no longer just runs away from it. It is amazing to watch the dogs search for odor while sniffing, the expression on their face when they find the odor is priceless!
-
Nosework has helped build his confidence tremendously. -Melissa Z.
This is so good, @Melissa ! What fun, to build confidence in your dog by having them do something they are naturally good at doing! Thanks for sharing this.
-
-
Bringing this one back up because of the recent conversations involving sniffing for fun, engagement, training and even as a behavior modification technique.
Are you observing your dog when they sniff?
Log in to reply.