nosework: using Birch!
I finally found four small metal containers with metal lids to put the soaked Q-tips in. They are a little larger than I wanted - candle sized - but they'll do until I find something I like better. I put holes in the top of one, put three of the half Q-tips in it, and this morning we tried birch essential oil paired with the Kong for the first time.
OMG, it was amazing! Yes, it was a very easy find, but Brinny looked in the spot I'd scented on the couch first for a couple seconds then his head whipped around and he went straight to the chair where the hide was and touched the container with his nose. He didn't even really want the Kong right away, so I praised him enormously and dropped the Kong at his feet. He was more than happy to empty it at that point.
He'd been in a crate three rooms away when I did the hide, so I know he couldn't have watched me place the two items and I know he was using his nose - there is a very specific kind of sniffing he does when he's searching. I have to go back to the boxes and work those pretty heavily to ingrain the search for the new scent first paired with the toy and then with the toy as the reward, but this was a really cool demonstration that he not only understands the game, but is able to figure out what he's searching for with very little help from me (I was standing in the doorway like a complete dummy :-)
OMG, it was amazing! Yes, it was a very easy find, but Brinny looked in the spot I'd scented on the couch first for a couple seconds then his head whipped around and he went straight to the chair where the hide was and touched the container with his nose. He didn't even really want the Kong right away, so I praised him enormously and dropped the Kong at his feet. He was more than happy to empty it at that point.
He'd been in a crate three rooms away when I did the hide, so I know he couldn't have watched me place the two items and I know he was using his nose - there is a very specific kind of sniffing he does when he's searching. I have to go back to the boxes and work those pretty heavily to ingrain the search for the new scent first paired with the toy and then with the toy as the reward, but this was a really cool demonstration that he not only understands the game, but is able to figure out what he's searching for with very little help from me (I was standing in the doorway like a complete dummy :-)