Instinct and Intelligence Canine

05/31/2026

I get asked about alerts a lot. This is a great way of framing it.

When does a Trained Final Response make sense for a nosework dog?

Does it make decision-making more confident? Does it cap and contain the dog’s drive? Does it happen in drive and support motivation? Does it reduce ambiguity for the handler?

If a trained final response (TFR) is doing those things for a dog, that can be a wonderful fit. But if it is adding pressure, making the dog slower or more cautious, or making it difficult for the dog to make a decision without fringe or false alerting, then it may not be working.

That is why I think function is such an important lens here. Not ideology. Not what other teams do. Not what sounds nice in theory.

TFR’s are very easy to train poorly and hard to maintain correctly.

So if you have chosen to train a TFR on your nosework dog, is it working as intended? If not, why not?

That is usually the more interesting question.



https://scentsabilitiesnw.com/

05/30/2026

What is going on in June you ask? Here is a rough outline of everything going on!

05/29/2026

We're excited to have Bonnie joining us June 13th for a dock diving seminar! Spots are limited so if you're interested probably best to sign up promptly.

https://www.instinctandintelligencecanine.com/store/p/dock-diving-seminar-june-13th

Do you have a puppy not quite ready for diving? Check out our Puppy Swim Class June 27th
https://www.instinctandintelligencecanine.com/store/p/puppy-pool-intros

05/22/2026

Its shaping up to be a wet weekend. We will be setting up some indoor activity options on Saturday and Monday!

For Agility: A small space course will be set with maps for beginner and more advanced ways to run the course. You will have 30min to practice skills and run the course as you see fit.
Book Agility Here: https://www.instinctandintelligencecanine.com/store/p/rainy-day-agility

For Rally: A virtual advanced course will be set. You will have 30min to practice skills and run the course as you see fit. It is selected from the options available for virtual AKC titles so if you want to video and submit you could.
Book Rally Here: https://www.instinctandintelligencecanine.com/store/p/rainy-day-agility-2xbl9
**These are meant for teams that are already comfortable training these sports and just need space and courses, there will be no instruction.**

A visual barrier will be set between rings however, the agility ring will not be 100% secure from the other ring. Please collaborate with any other individuals in the building for everyone’s comfort and safety. If you must have an empty building please book both the agility ring and rally ring for the same time slot and email me. If you bring multiple dogs for your slot, crates are available in the building.

05/19/2026

Last chance! Plenty of audit spots and one or two working sports left.

https://www.instinctandintelligencecanine.com/store/p/control-unleashed-sports-workshop

05/15/2026

I finally got myself together 😂 The pool is opening this weekend!

Booking is through a google calendar (linked in payment portal) and payment here: https://www.instinctandintelligencecanine.com/store/p/space-rental

For now we'll have hourly rentals available and continue to build out programs from there. We have a dock diving seminar in the works as well as some intro to swimming classes. I'm also ordering some stuff for aqua agility so hopefully that will come online this summer as well.

We will be upgrading the heating on it in the future as well as the dock surface.

*Caveat: this is NOT a dock diving regulation pool! It is ideal for learning to jump from a dock, swimming for fun/fitness and generally swimming activities.*

05/13/2026

Its Back!

Reactivity is one of the most common struggles for dog owners. This course is designed to cover all the skills you need to navigate life with a reactive dog and make meaningful progress in reducing those big feelings. This course uses BAT, Control Unleashed and relationship centered skills to help build up you and your dog so that you can handle challenges with confidence.

Class Start: May 28th, 7:30pm
8 week session

https://www.instinctandintelligencecanine.com/store/p/big-feelings-anonymous-may-28th-thursdays-730pm

05/11/2026

Who's ready to train?! New classes going on the schedule!

Tricks for life: Tuesdays 6:30pm Starting June 16th https://www.instinctandintelligencecanine.com/store/p/tricks-for-life-tuesdays-630-pm-june-16th

Family Dog: Tuesdays 7:30pm Starting June 2nd https://www.instinctandintelligencecanine.com/store/p/family-dog-tuesdays-730pm-june-2nd

Drop In at Fishburn: Saturday May 23rd 10 am (additional dates coming in June) https://www.instinctandintelligencecanine.com/store/p/training-at-the-park-drop-in-may-23rd-10am

Big Feelings Anonymous: Thursdays 7:30pm May 28th
https://www.instinctandintelligencecanine.com/store/p/big-feelings-anonymous-may-28th-thursdays-730pm

05/04/2026

Dog Sports are exciting! But what do you do when they are….too exciting? You’ve been to all of the classes. You’ve read the books, watched the videos, listened to the podcasts, but now you’ve found yourself about to go into the ring. Your heart is pounding. Your nerves are jangling. And is your dog even aware that you exist?

This is all normal! But that stress and excitement can derail even the best prepared team. Meagan Skelton CCUI and Merissa Dubraque-Kreidler KPA CTP CCUI have been active in the dog sports world for years and have been through it. Merissa actively competes in agility, barn hunt, flyball, and more. Meagan actively competes in agility, herding, and obedience. But use Control Unleashed skills along with their own training methods and understanding of arousal to help their own dogs and others through this. And they can help you too!

Sign Up Here:
https://www.instinctandintelligencecanine.com/store/p/control-unleashed-sports-workshop

Working and audit spots available!