Instinct and Intelligence Canine

06/23/2026

Well I had the dumb. The conformation drop in never opened for tonight. We'd love to have you 7pm tonight!

https://www.instinctandintelligencecanine.com/store/p/conformation-handling-drop-ins

06/15/2026

Here is the prelim July schedule! The summer gets so busy, I'll be leaning more into pop ups until we get through August. If there is enough interest, I would be willing to start a new intro to scent work class on Sunday mornings in early August.

06/14/2026

If you've been looking for a FastCAT opportunity near by, you're in luck! Sn**ch a spot now before the cool times are taken. Did I mention dock diving is back too?!

https://www.speeddogcoursing.com/mountain-valley-cluster---salem-va.php?fbclid=IwY2xjawSa0PpleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeC4NA3ss2b7XTP2C5NDlOkegzhqwWakeWGXCnuuVhOOgIoL65WsCI2RUOoe0_aem_77HCdR_nIptJSw8mF-Bw0w

06/13/2026

And that is a wrap! Dock Diving Seminar with One Fit K9's Bonnie. Everyone made big strides today and this rockstar decided to grace us with his presence 😍

We'd love to have Bonnie back but if you need her before we do, you can find her here: https://onefitk9.com/dock-diving-pool-lessons-rentals/

06/04/2026

Update: Classes today are cancelled! I'll be in touch with make up options.

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.