Nose work should not be equipment-focused activity – instead we should want our dogs to feel secure enough in themselves that they can focus solely on doing their job without being distracted by anything extraneous like dog collars for scent work. It’s equally essential for them not to give away scent locations with body language or even sounds from you if necessary! During a game of scent work you need your canine’s trust that they won’t reveal where a scent location may lie through body language or spoken words from you or even you speaking out loud!
On social media we frequently see photos and videos of dogs Scent Detecting with their collar lines running down between their legs or around their necks. This is often caused by poor handling skills combined with too-long lines causing discomfort to their owners or being caught around their necks by running across ground or becoming tangled up around their body.
Nose work trials require that a lead be attached to your dog’s collar or harness at all times except when in their car or crate in the staging area. It should only be used to manage them if they wander off leash within their search area, not as an aid towards an odor source or for correction purposes.
Handlers who use headcollars in their search are an increasingly common sight, though not technically illegal practice. A headcollar can make the dog uncomfortable by pulling its head downward and sideways during search sessions; its discomfort also pulls their nose away from investigating their target scent; it completely undermines the Scent Detecting process and becomes counterproductive to its purpose.