09/28/2026
Congratulations 🎊 to Team Uschi 🎊🤩🥰🎉🥳🌟🐾🍾
"On our first ever go at Detective on Saturday, we finished 1st out of 21 teams! Detective is the highest level of AKC Scent Work, combining interior and exterior searches from 2000 to 5000 sf, with 5-10 unknown hides and a 7-15 minute time limit.
Silke Satzinger is one of my favorite judges, so getting to run our very first Detective search under her made the day even more special for me. Uschi said, “Watch this, Mom,” as she worked the entire interior section off leash. Seeing her confidently work through a complex odor puzzle of two suspended mirrored hides was such a proud moment for me!
On Sunday, we focused on earning more legs toward Master Elite and qualified in 7 of 8 runs. Uschi placed 2nd out of 19 in both Interior Trial 1 and Trial 2.
Exteriors was where I had a couple of hiccups. In Trial 1, Uschi did her part and found the only hide very quickly. I, on the other hand, called alert on a non-existent hide and we NQ’d. In Trial 2, she found all the hides with a time that would have earned us 1st place, had I not dropped a treat in the search area. That fault deduction moved us to 12th place in that class. Otherwise, her overall trial time would have been good enough for High in Trial.
Those bloopers gave me some things to think about, but they did not overshadow what Uschi accomplished. She found all 23 hides on Sunday! Despite me!
This weekend felt like another step forward for us.
She keeps reminding me that the goal is always the partnership. I’m learning to be more aware of how I communicate with her through my movement and to make that movement subtle and intentional. Speaking dog is still a work in progress.
Thank you to Hampton Roads Obedience Training Club, our judges Silke, Lisa Bell, and Beverly McGhghy, for giving us such fun searches to work through, and to all the volunteers who worked hard to make everything perfect."
