A Dog's Fabulous Sense Of Smell

Step by Step Treat Search Tracking

by Anne Lill Kvam 

Unlock your dog's natural genius!

Your dog lives in a world you can't access: the world of smell.

While humans rely on sight, dogs are experiencing the world through an incredibly sophisticated sense of smell that most of us barely understand.

This book teaches you how to tap into that superpower.

Written by Anne Lill Kvam, a world-renowned expert in scent work (she trained detection dogs to find landmines in Africa), this is the definitive guide to teaching your dog to search, track, and use their nose to engage with the world in ways that profoundly enrich both their life and yours.

The incredible benefits of scent work

Scent tracking and search games aren't just fun; they're one of the most engaging enrichment activities you can offer a dog. A nose work session can tire a dog mentally as effectively as a walk. It satisfies their natural instincts to hunt, track, and problem-solve. And unlike physical exercise, it's accessible to every dog: puppies, seniors, dogs with mobility issues, anxious dogs, high-energy dogs. Everyone benefits.

What you'll find inside

• Clear, step-by-step instructions - from getting started to advanced tracking. Kvam breaks down each exercise so you can teach it progressively without frustration
• Success at every stage - instructions on how to avoid getting stuck, how to increase difficulty while keeping your dog engaged, how to recognise burnout before it happens
• Suitable for all dogs - extensive explanation of how to adapt scent work for puppies, seniors, dogs with limited mobility, high-energy dogs, anxious dogs. There's genuinely something for everyone
• Positive reinforcement focus - no aversive methods. Just rewarding your dog for using their nose
• Tracking progression - from short, simple tracks to longer, more complex ones. Clear guidance on when to increase difficulty based on age and experience
• Tips for helpers and handlers - if you're training with a partner, practical advice for both roles
• Real stories and photos - see scent work in action. Includes true stories of tracking dogs and what they've accomplished
• Author expertise - Kvam has decades of experience: landmine detection in Africa, international training courses, working with dogs all over the world

You should read this is you're ...

• A dog guardian looking for mental enrichment activities (especially in bad weather or when exercise is limited)
• A guardian of a dog with high prey drive who needs an outlet
• A guardian of an anxious or reactive dog who would benefit from focused, confidence-building activities
• A guardian of puppies, seniors, or dogs with mobility limitations who need exercise alternatives
• Wanting to deepen your connection with your dog through nose work
• A trainer looking to add scent work to your service offerings

Why scent work is the perfect enrichment activity

Mental stimulation is just as (if not more) tiring than physical exercise.

Scent work engages your dog's most sophisticated sense and taps into deeply natural instincts. Unlike obedience training, which often requires suppressing natural behaviours, scent work celebrates and channels them. It builds confidence, provides success experiences, and creates a unique way for you and your dog to communicate and play together.

About the author

Anne Lill Kvam brings unparalleled expertise to this book. She's worked with scent discrimination dogs across the globe, trained detection dogs to locate landmines in Africa, and now runs International Dog Trainer Education Courses. She writes from decades of real-world experience with dogs and their extraordinary noses.

Praise for the book

"Dogs live in a world of smell – one that most dog people aren't privy to. Anne Lill Kvam's book offers the contemporary dog person the means and method to interact with their dogs in that vitally important, yet oft overlooked area. Her dogs have smelled out water, found lost keys, and located wayward sheep by their odor alone. Kvam's experience and technique combine here to provide something that no other training book does. Dog folks: read this book!"

— Alexandra Horowitz, Senior Research Fellow, Dog Cognition Lab at Barnard College, author of Inside of a Dog: What Dogs See, Smell, and Know

Book details

• Author: Anne Lill Kvam
• Publisher: Dogwise Publishing
• Pages: 172
• ISBN: 9781617813153
• Published: 2022
• Format: Paperback

The bottom line

If you want to understand your dog at a deeper level, engage their brain in meaningful ways, and discover an enrichment activity that works for literally every dog - from couch potatoes to athletes - this book is essential reading.

Because your dog's sense of smell isn't just a trait. It's their superpower. And now you can learn how to help them use it.