38 Saber Tails Winter 2016

Petit Basset Griffon Vendéen Club of America

only made him enjoy the game that much more.  Every 

Monday, Pinot knows, that it is time for class, and walking 

out the door after 5pm without him is next to impossible.  

He knows the route to class and gives out a loud “Arhooo!” 

once we get close.  The excitement and joy he experienc-

es doing Nose Work is impossible to contain.  

T

he next challenge Pinot faced was distractors (food 

and toys) hidden in container searches.  Try explain-

ing to your PBGV that ripping apart a box that smells like 

cheese (and eating the above-mentioned cheese) is a bad 

idea!  But he got through that.  However, the hardest thing 

to teach our hound is the fact that hides can be higher off 

the ground (up to 4 feet high).   But watching him face a 

challenging hide, be it in the middle of the floor or on a 

mirror, or hanging on a string in the middle of the room, 

and work it out is incredibly rewarding.  This is where the 

tables start to turn, and the handlers are forced to trust 

their canine companion’s superior scenting capabilities 

and simply guide them in doing what dogs do best.  

H

aving successfully passed ORTs for Anise and Clove, as 

well as earning an NW2 title, Pinot is currently work-

ing on NW3.  At this level, all dogs know the game inside 

and out and it is all about your relationship with your dog. 

The motto of “Trust your Dog” is key because, unlike NW1 

and NW2, NW3 has an unknown number of hides (but 

with a maximum of 3) in each search area.  Additionally, 

in NW3, there are now three interior search areas, where 

one of the rooms can be “blank,” containing no hides at all!  

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