Scentwork UK levels of progression

Scentwork UK offers 16 Levels of progression split into three Tiers.

Tier 1 – Levels 1-4
Tier 2 – Levels 5-10
Tier 3 – Levels 11-16

Progression is to pass an individual level at any trial organised by Scentwork UK (SWUK) against a consistent national standard.

Everyone starts at Level 1 and qualification at an approved trial earns points which allows individual Teams to:

• Progress to the next Level.
• Stay in current Level gaining experience

Or:

• Remain in a Level until 20 points are accrued thus achieving their Excellent Title.

Once 20 points have been reached, Teams achieve their Excellent Title and then must progress to the next Level.

Objectives in each level become incrementally more challenging as Teams progress on their Scentwork journey. The aim of SWUK is to motivate participants to have fun and work with their teammate (their dog) to thrive and overcome such challenges one step at a time.

Impressive skills will be achieved and the wonderful bond between handler and pet dog will be strengthened.

Level 1

Overview :

The dog and handler team to find any 4 out of a possible 6 scented articles within four search areas, two of which will be interior areas and two of which will be exterior areas.

Handlers should be able to read the body language of the dog and call an alert informing the judge that a scented article has been located.

Interior searches:
‘Tables & chairs’ (’T&C’): 1x scented article (3 minutes permitted)
‘Bags, boxes and containers’ (‘BBC’): 2x scented articles (5 minutes permitted)

Exterior searches:
‘Exterior items’ (‘ExIt’): 2x scented articles (5 minutes permitted)
‘Vehicle or wall’ (‘VW’): 1x scented article (3 minutes permitted)

Notes:

• The target odour is ‘cloves’
• The judge must be satisfied that the handler has called the correct ‘Alert/Find’.
• The dog & handler team need to find any combination of 4 out of the 6 possible scented articles throughout the four search areas.
• During the ’T&C’ search the scented article will be hidden:
• 1. On one of 8 chairs arranged around 2-4 tables.
• During the ‘BBC’ search the two scented articles will be hidden:
• 2. One in a bag or piece of luggage and
• 3. One in a cardboard box or container.
• During the ‘VW’ search the scented article will be hidden:
• 1. On the exterior of a vehicle, or a wall of 10m in length.
• During the ‘ExIt’ search the two scented articles will be hidden:
• 1. On any of the items that are placed within the search area, and
• 2. On any other item that is placed within the search area but not on items that are adjacent to each other.
• In search areas with only one hide: Handlers who give a wrong alert will be asked to ‘stop’ and will not be allowed to continue in that particular search area.
• In search areas with two hides: Handlers have two opportunities to call an alert. Handlers who give a first wrong alert will continue the search until either one hide has been found or another wrong alert has been called. The team will be asked to ‘stop’ when a second alert is called whether this is correct or not.
• In search areas with two hides: The clock will only be stopped when a correct alert has been called. The dog & handler must leave the search area to reward their dog and the located item will be removed from the search area. Teams will then return to the original start position and restart when ready. Time will resume when the dogs nose passes through the start cones.
• If the dog and handler only find one or do not find any scented articles in one of the areas they will still pass if they find a total of 4 scented articles throughout all four search areas.

See full version – Guidelines for Level 1 Trials.

Level 2

Overview:

The dog and handler team to find any 6 out of a possible 8 scented articles within four search areas, two of which will be interior areas and two of which will be exterior areas.

Handlers should be able to read the body language of the dog and call an alert informing the judge that a scented article has been located.

Interior searches:
‘Bags, boxes and containers’ (‘BBC’): 2x scented articles (5 minutes permitted)
‘Tables, chairs and perimeter items’ (‘TCPI’): 2x scented article (5 minutes permitted)

Exterior searches:
‘Exterior items’ (‘ExIt’): 2x scented articles (5 minutes permitted)
‘Vehicle or wall’ (‘VW’): 2x scented articles (5 minutes permitted)

Notes:

• The target odour is ‘cloves’
• The judge must be satisfied that the handler has called the correct ‘Alert/Find’.
• The dog & handler team need to find any combination of 6 out of the 8 possible scented articles throughout the four search areas.
• The clock will only be stopped when a correct alert has been called. The dog & handler must leave the search area whether they wish to reward their dog or not and the located item will be removed from the search area. Teams will then return to the original start position and restart when ready. Time will resume when the dogs nose passes through the start cones.
• If the dog and handler only find one, or do not find any scented articles in one of the areas they will still pass if they find a total of 6 scented articles throughout all of the four search areas.
• During the ‘TCPI’ search the scented articles will be hidden:
• 1. One on a chair and
• 2. One on one of the items that are placed around the perimeter of the search area.
• During the ‘BBC’ search the two scented articles will be hidden:
• 1. One in a bag or piece of luggage and
• 2. One in a cardboard box or container.
• During the ‘ExIt’ search the two scented articles will be hidden:
• 1. On any of the items that are placed within the search area, and
• 2. On any other item that is placed within the search area but not on items that are adjacent to each other.
• During the ‘VW’ search the two scented articles will be hidden:
• 1. Two on different vehicles or
• 2. One on a wall and one on a vehicle or
• 3. Both on a wall.
  If two vehicles, wall should be 10m in length
  If one vehicle, wall should be 15m in length
  If no vehicles, wall should be 20m in length
  (If both hides are on a wall they must not be closer than 3m to each other)
• If the dog and handler only find one, or do not find any scented articles in one of the areas they will still pass if they find a total of 6 scented articles throughout all of the 4 search areas.

See full version – Guidelines for Level 2 Trials.

Level 3

Overview:

The dog and handler team to find any 6 out of a possible 8 scented articles within four search areas, two of which will be interior areas and two of which will be exterior areas.

Handlers should be able to read the body language of the dog and call an alert informing the judge that a scented article has been located.

Interior searches:
‘Bags, boxes and containers’ (‘BBC’): 2x scented articles (5 mins permitted)
‘Tables, chairs and perimeter’ (TC&P): 2x scented article (5 mins permitted)

Exterior searches:
‘Exterior items’ (‘ExIt’): 2x scented articles (5 minutes permitted)
‘Vehicle or wall’ (‘VW’): 2x scented articles (5 minutes permitted)

Notes:

• The target odours are ‘cloves’ and ‘gun oil’.
• The judge must be satisfied that the handler has called the correct ‘Alert/Find’.
• The dog & handler team need to find any combination of 6 out of the 8 possible scented articles throughout the 4 search areas.
• Handlers have only two opportunities to call an alert. Handlers who give a first wrong alert will continue the search but will be asked to ‘stop’ when a second alert is called whether the call is correct or incorrect.
• The clock will not be stopped if a correct alert has been called first. The located item will not be removed from the search area and the dog & handler will continue to search for the second scented article. The handler and dog may leave the search area to reward if they wish to do so but time will run continuously until the second alert has been called (whether correctly or not) or when full time has been reached.
• During the ‘BBC’ search the scented articles will be hidden:
• 1. Both on different bags or piece of luggage or
• 2. Both on different cardboard boxes/containers, or
• 3. One on each of the above two options.
• During the ‘Exit’ search the scented articles will be hidden:
• 1. On any of the items that are placed within the search area, and
• 2. On any other item that is placed within the search area but not on items that areadjacent to each other
• During the ‘TC&P’ search the scented articles will be hidden:
• 1. One on a table or chair and
• 2. One around the perimeter either on an item that has been placed there by the judge or ideally in the fixtures and fittings. The judge will confirm which fixtures and fittings are included.
• During the ‘VW’ search the two scented articles will be hidden:
• 1. Two on different vehicles or
• 2. One on a wall and one on a vehicle or
• 3. Both on a wall.
• If two vehicles, wall should be 10m in length
  If one vehicle, wall should be 15m in length
  If no vehicles, wall should be 20m in length
  (If both hides are on a wall they must not be closer than 3m to each other)
• If the dog and handler only find one, or do not find any scented articles in one of the areas they will still pass if they find a total of 6 scented articles throughout all of the four search areas.

 

See full version – Guidelines for Level 3 Trials.

Level 4

Overview:

The dog and handler team to find any 6 out of a possible 8 scented articles within four search areas, two of which will be interior areas and two of which will be exterior areas.

Handlers should be able to read the body language of the dog and call an alert informing the judge that a scented article has been located.

Interior searches:
‘Bags, boxes, containers and perimeter’ (‘BBC&P’): 2x scented articles (5 mins permitted)
‘Tables, chairs and perimeter items’ (‘TCPI’): 2x scented articles (5 mins permitted)

Exterior searches:
‘Exterior items’ ‘ExIt’: 2x scented articles (5 mins permitted)
‘Vehicle or wall’ ‘VW’: 2x scented articles (5 mins permitted)

Notes:

• The target odours are ‘cloves’ and ‘gun oil’.
• Two different distraction scents will be hidden in each area except the VW search.
  (See list in definition notes below)
• The judge must be satisfied that the handler has called the correct ‘Alert/Find’.
• The dog & handler team need to find any combination of 6 out of the 8 possible scented articles throughout the 4 search areas.
• Handlers have only two opportunities to call an alert. Handlers who give a first wrong alert will continue the search but will be asked to ‘stop’ when a second alert is called whether the call is correct or incorrect.
• The clock will not be stopped if a correct alert has been called first. The located item will not be removed from the search area and the dog & handler will continue to search for the second scented article. The handler and dog may leave the search area to reward if they wish to do so but time will run continuously until the second alert has been called (whether correctly or not) or when full time has been reached.
• During the ‘TCPI’ search the scented articles will be hidden:
• 1. Both on different tables, or
• 2. Both on different chairs, or
• 3. Both on two separate items that are placed around the perimeter, or
• 4. One on each of any two of the above three options.
  NB.
  Scented articles will NOT be hidden in fixtures and fittings of the ‘TCPI’ search.
  The ‘TCPI’ search MUST take place before the ‘BBC&P’ search at level 4.
• During the ‘BBC&P’ search the scented articles will be hidden:
• 1. One on a bag or piece of luggage/cardboard box/container and
• 2. One in any fixtures and fittings of the perimeter.
  NB.
  The ‘BBC&P’ search MUST take place after the ‘TCPI’ search at this level.
• During the ‘ExIt’ search the scented articles will be hidden:
• 1. On any of the items that are placed within the search area, and
• 2. On any other item that is placed within the search area but not on items that are adjacent to each other
• During the ‘VW’ search the two scented articles will be hidden:
• 1. Two on vehicles or
• 2. One on a wall and one on a vehicle or
• 3. Both on a wall.
  If two vehicles, wall should be 10m in length
  If one vehicle, wall should be 15m in length
  If no vehicles, wall should be 20m in length
  (Both hides could be on the same vehicle. If both hides are on the same vehicle or a wall they must not be closer than 1m 20cm to each other)
• Two different distraction scents will be hidden anywhere that scented articles could be, in all areas except the “VW’ search area. There will be NO distraction scents in the VW search area.
• If the dog and handler only find one, or do not find any scented articles in one of the areas they will still pass if they find a total of 6 scented articles throughout all of the four search areas.

See full version – Guidelines for Level 4 Trials.

Level 5

Overview

For the dog and handler team to find 9 out of a possible 12 scented articles within 3 search areas, two of which will be interior and one exterior.
The judge will decide how many scented articles are hidden in each search area and the time allowed for each search will be determined by the size of area to be searched.

At the start of each search the judge will tell the competitor how many scented articles are hidden in the particular search area and how much time they have.

An ‘All Found’ bonus of an extra 10 points per search area will be awarded to those teams who find all the scented articles within time.
Target odours will be ‘Cloves’ and ‘Gun Oil’.

Deductions:
Handling marks can be deducted by the judge from a list of permitted deductions

Qualifications:
In order to qualify, competitors must:

• • • Find a minimum of 9 articles and
    • Have a minimum of 90 marks after bonuses added and any points have been deducted.

Disqualifications:
Teams will be disqualified for more than 3 wrong alerts throughout the 3 search areas.

Rewards:
The handler can reward their dog as many times as they wish within permitted ‘Reward
Zones’ but the clock will not be stopped.

Progression:
Competitors need to qualify only once at Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3 & Tier 4 trials before
progressing to the next level. Excellence will be achieved at 20pts. Teams must progress
to the next level once Excellence has been achieved (20 points accrued) unless they wish
to enter this level as NFC.

See full version – Guidelines for Level 5 Trials.

Level 6

Overview

For the dog and handler team to find 9 out of a possible 12 scented articles within 3 search areas, two of which will be interior and one exterior.

The judge will decide how many scented articles are hidden in each search area and the time allowed for each search will be determined by the size of area to be searched.

At the start of each search the judge will tell the competitor how many scented articles are hidden in the particular search area and how much time they have.

An ‘All Found’ bonus of an extra 10 points per search area will be awarded to those teams who find all the scented articles within time.
Target odours will be ‘Cloves’, ’Gun Oil’ and ‘Truffle Oil’.

Deductions:
Handling marks can be deducted by the judge from a list of permitted deductions.

Qualifications:
In order to qualify, competitors must:

• • • Find a minimum of 9 articles and
    • Have a minimum of 90 marks after bonuses added and any points have been deducted.

Disqualifications:
Teams will be disqualified for more than 3 wrong alerts throughout the 3 search areas.

Rewards:
The handler can reward their dog as many times as they wish within permitted ‘Reward Zones’ but the clock will not be stopped.

Progression:
Competitors need to qualify only once at Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3 & Tier 4 trials before progressing to the next level. Excellence will be achieved at 20pts. Teams must progress to the next level once Excellence has been achieved (20 points accrued) unless they wish
to enter this level as NFC.

See full version – Guidelines for Level 6 Trials.

Level 7

Overview

For the dog and handler team to find 9 out of a possible 12 scented articles within 3 search areas, two of which will be interior and one exterior.

The judge will decide how many scented articles are hidden in each search area and the time allowed for each search will be determined by the size of area to be searched.

An ‘All Found’ or ‘All Clear’ bonus of an extra 10 points per search area will be awarded to those teams who find all or declare they have found all the scented articles within time.

The judge will confirm at the end of the trial if ‘All Clear’ call is correct.

Target odours will be ‘Cloves’, ’Gun Oil’ and ‘Truffle Oil’ and each area will contain one unscented decoy article.

Deductions:
Handling marks can be deducted by the judge from a list of permitted deductions.

Qualifications:
In order to qualify, competitors must:

• • • Find a minimum of 9 articles and
    • Have a minimum of 90 marks after bonuses added and any points have been deducted.

Disqualifications:
Teams will be disqualified for more than 3 wrong alerts throughout the 3 search areas.

Rewards:
The handler can reward their dog as many times as they wish within permitted ‘Reward Zones’ but the clock will not be stopped.

Progression:
Competitors need to qualify only once at Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3 & Tier 4 trials before progressing to the next level. Excellence will be achieved at 20pts. Teams must progress to the next level once Excellence has been achieved (20 points accrued) unless they wish to enter this level as NFC.

See full version – Guidelines for Level 7 Trials.

Level 8

Overview

For the dog and handler team to find 9 out of a possible 12 scented articles within 3 search areas, two of which will be interior and one exterior.

The judge will decide how many scented articles are hidden in each search area and the time allowed for each search will be determined by the size of area to be searched.

Interior 1 will contain a NO-GO ZONE.

An ‘All Clear’ bonus of an extra 10 points per search area will be awarded to those teams who declare they have found all the scented articles within time. The judge will confirm at the end of the trial if ‘All Clear’ call is correct.

Target odours will be ‘Cloves’, ’Gun Oil’ and ‘Truffle Oil’ and each area will contain one unscented decoy article.

Deductions:
Handling marks can be deducted by the judge from a list of permitted deductions.

Qualifications:
In order to qualify, competitors must:

• • • Find a minimum of 9 articles and
    • Have a minimum of 90 marks after bonuses added and any points have been deducted.

Disqualifications:
Teams will be disqualified for more than 3 wrong alerts throughout the 3 search areas.

Rewards:
The handler can reward their dog as many times as they wish within permitted ‘Reward Zones’ but the clock will not be stopped.

Progression:
Competitors need to qualify only once at Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3 & Tier 4 trials before progressing to the next level. Excellence will be achieved at 20pts. Teams must progress to the next level once Excellence has been achieved (20 points accrued) unless they wish to enter this level as NFC.

See full version – Guidelines for Level 8 Trials.

Level 9

Overview

For the dog and handler team to find 9 out of a possible 12 scented articles within 3 search areas, two of which will be interior and one exterior.

The judge will decide how many scented articles are hidden in each search area and the time allowed for each search will be determined by the size of area to be searched.

An ‘All Clear’ bonus of an extra 10 points per search area will be awarded to those teams who declare they have found all the scented articles within time. The judge will confirm at the end of the trial if ‘All Clear’ call is correct.

Target odours will be ‘Cloves’, ’Gun Oil’ and ‘Truffle Oil’ and each area will contain one unscented decoy article.

Deductions:
Handling marks can be deducted by the judge from a list of permitted deductions.

Qualifications:
In order to qualify, competitors must:

• • • Find a minimum of 9 articles and
    • Have a minimum of 90 marks after bonuses added and any points have been deducted.

Disqualifications:
Teams will be disqualified for more than 3 wrong alerts throughout the 3 search areas.

Rewards:
The handler can reward their dog as many times as they wish within permitted ‘Reward Zones’ but the clock will not be stopped.

Progression:
Competitors need to qualify only once at Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3 & Tier 4 trials before progressing to the next level. Excellence will be achieved at 20pts. Teams must progress to the next level once Excellence has been achieved (20 points accrued) unless they wish to enter this level as NFC.

See full version – Guidelines for Level 9 Trials.

Level 10

Overview

The judge to hide 10, 12, or 15 scented articles throughout three search areas.

Eg. 10 hidden = 12 pts per find / 12 hidden = 10 pts per find / 15 hidden = 8 pts per find.

An ‘All Clear’/‘All Found’ bonus of an extra 10 points per search area will be awarded to those teams who declare they have found or find all the scented articles within time. The judge will confirm at the end of the trial if ‘All Clear’ call is correct.

Target odours will be ‘Cloves’, ’Gun Oil’ and ‘Truffle Oil’ and each area will contain one unscented decoy article.

Deductions:
Handling marks can be deducted by the judge from a list of permitted deductions.

Qualifications:
In order to qualify, competitors must:

• • • Achieve the ‘pass mark’ of 90 points through a combination of correct finds and bonus points after deductions have been applied.

Disqualifications:
Teams will be disqualified for more than 3 wrong alerts throughout the 3 search areas.

Rewards:
The handler can reward their dog as many times as they wish within permitted ‘Reward Zones’ but the clock will not be stopped.

Progression:
Competitors need to qualify only once at Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3 & Tier 4 trials before progressing to the next level. Excellence will be achieved at 20pts. Teams must progress to the next level once Excellence has been achieved (20 points accrued) unless they wish to enter this level as NFC

See full version – Guidelines for Level 10 Trials.