Meet Jackie

In 2006 my life was changed when my husband and I decided to take a trip to the local SPCA Shelter. We were only going to take a look and ask about the adoption process, but of course, I took a walk through the dog kennels.  I stopped at the last kennel and there he was. I walked up and touched his nose, touched his toes, his eyes said rescue me, it was LOVE at first sight! Louie was three years old when we adopted him, and it was the start of a very special bond that lasted for thirteen years. In the year that followed his adoption we took our time introducing Louie to hiking, camping, beach walks, taught him to play ball and learn to swim and then we did a basic obedience class. He was so eager to learn and have fun: he trusted us. After a year, Louie and I embarked on another journey of learning together, signing up for agility classes, and we were both hooked. We trained, competed and attended many workshops together for six years. We won many ribbons and titles, qualified for the Canadian National Championships four times and finished his agility career earning his ATCHC Title (Agility Trial Champion of Canada). Louie had this innate ability to comfort any dog that showed signs of stress or signs of aggression. He had a quiet, strong confidence about him, he was known as the Dog Whisperer and nicknamed LOVIE. Louie passed away in May 2019 at the age of sixteen. He had an incredible life with us, and he is greatly missed!

In 2013, we added a new member to our family, an eight-week-old Border Collie named Ben. My journey with Ben has been challenging, exciting and very rewarding. I can honestly say I have met my match with him, he is me on four legs. He’s intense, smart, enthusiastic, cheeky, full of love and has the typical border collie strong work ethic. I have become a better dog handler through all the different experiences and activities we have shared and worked through. These activities include puppy classes, rally obedience, agility, five years of sheep herding, disc and fritz agility.

I became interested in Nosework when I recognized that Ben needed an activity that would be mentally challenging and not too hard on his body. The rest is history– we both fell in love with nosework! I love that this sport is dog-led; they have the superpower, their nose, and they wear the cape in this working relationship. Ben is quite comfortable in this role! He loves this game and is always excited to sniff and explore new environments. Ben and I are currently competing in CDSA trials successfully and are becoming a great team. It’s also been exciting to see my students compete successfully in these trials!

I look forward to more training with Ben and seeing where our nosework journey will take us.