K9 Detection Collaborative

Stacy Barnett, Robin Greubel

Candid conversations about the reality of training, deploying, or competing with a canine partner. Each episode is a cross pollination from the professional and sport canine camps, exploring how we all want the same thing: A great relationship with our dog.With humor, and a big dose of theory, we talk practical training advice and includes interviews with top trainers and scientists. We keep it fun, honest, and rated PG 13ish.

  1. 1D AGO

    K9 First Aid and the Heat Exertion Curve with Joy Brenner from K9 Medic (pt 1)

    What to listen for: “At the end of the day, taking care of our dogs is everyone’s job.” Our hosts, Robin Greubel and Stacy Barnett, talk with Joy Brenner of K9 Medic about looking at canine first aid not just from the perspective of flashy trauma response, but that of the quiet, daily work of truly knowing your dog. Joy, who began in human wilderness and tactical medicine, built K9 Medic to teach handlers, medics, and even surgeons pre-hospital care tailored to real field conditions. High-fidelity mannequins like K9 Hero and Diesel train teams on military-identified killers such as tension pneumothorax, but Joy repeatedly returns to the bigger truth: heat, not bullets or dramatic wounds, is the top preventable cause of death for every dog, whether tactical, SAR, sport, or pet. Her Handler 2.0 program trains handlers in “dog speak”: reading baselines, scaling panting, tracking work/rest cycles, and spotting when a dog is no longer compensating. They bust old myths (alcohol pads, ice-pack vasoconstriction fears, over-cooling shock) and stress rapid cooling to skin level while stopping just above normal, so temperature momentum carries the dog safely home. Structured observation prevents emergencies, improves performance, and turns both handlers and medics into better advocates, because taking care of our dogs is everyone’s job! Tune in to the next episode for part two of this important conversation!   Key Topics: ●     Joy’s Path from Arctic Wilderness Medicine to K9 Medic (02:14) ●     K9 Medic Programs, Kits & Online Academy (08:55) ●     High-Fidelity Mannequins Hero & Diesel for Trauma (11:38) ●     Heat: #1 Leading Cause of Preventable Death (12:51) ●     Handler 2.0 & the Heat Exertion Curve (15:52) ●     Myth-Busting Cooling (Alcohol, Ice Packs, Immersion) (19:35) ●     Cool Fast, Stop Just Above Normal (21:17) ●     Work Cycles, Baselines & Dog Speak (30:04) ●     Medics Learn Dog Eyes, Handlers Learn Medical Eyes (39:22)   Resources: ·      K9 Medic: https://www.k9medic.com/ ·      First Aid Kit: https://www.k9medic.com/gear/ ·      K9 Medic Academy: https://www.k9medic.com/#login We want to hear from you: Check out the K9 Detection Collaborative FB page and comment on the episode post!K9Sensus Detection Dog Trainer AcademyK9Sensus Foundation can be found on Facebook and Instagram. We have a Trainer’s Group on Facebook!Scentsabilities Nosework is also on Facebook. Here is a Facebook group you should join!You can follow us for notifications of upcoming episodes, find us at k9detectioncollaborative.com to enjoy the freebies, and tell your friends so you can keep the conversations going.And don’t forget to check out the YouTube Channel!

    41 min

  2. APR 21

    Dealing with Dog Training Beer Goggles

    What to listen for: Our hosts, Robin Greubel and Stacy Barnett, chat about a peculiar kind of self-deception. The kind that costs years of training, thousands of dollars, and sometimes the well-being of both dog and handler. They call it beer goggles: the tendency to see the dog we want rather than the dog standing in front of us. Robin talks about Flash, her Lab who simply doesn't bark. Selectively bred for quiet patience in a hunting blind, Flash is temperamentally ill-suited for the alert-dependent demands of FEMA disaster work. It's a genetic reality rather than a training gap, and knowing the difference is the whole game. Beer goggles run in every direction. A handler can overestimate a dog's capacity, grinding for years toward a certification the animal was never built to earn. But the distortion runs the other way too. It’s easy to mistake a sensitive dog who has gained real confidence for one who still needs to be handled with kid gloves, and failing to update that mental image. Robin's young Raven is a sharp example. written off as food-averse and agility-reluctant, she turned explosive once Robin stopped pushing food and started throwing toys for her to hunt. Stacy’s current dog was acquired in 2020 as a sport prospect, redirected to wilderness search and rescue, and is now being painstakingly rebuilt for urban USAR work. The genetics were always there, but the USAR-specific foundations needed filling in. As a trainer, you need to be asking, honestly, whether you're doing this for the dog or for yourself, and whether the gap you're looking at is closeable. A starter dog, like a starter home, is nothing to be ashamed of!   Key Topics: Beer Goggles Defined (06:20)Genetic Holes vs. Training Holes (07:29)Dash Hiding Under the Livestock Trough for 12 Hours (08:47)Raven and the Wrong Drive: Food vs. Toy Hunt (20:03)Stacy Repurposing Her USAR Dog from Sport Dog to Wilderness to Urban (25:18)Trainer Beer Goggles: When Critical Thinking Disappears (29:30)Does Your System Work Across Breeds and Dogs? (35:42)The Starter Dog: Knowing When to Recalibrate (45:47)  Resources: Upcoming Events!: https://www.k9detectioncollaborative.com/eventsK9 Sensus Training and Courses: https://www.k9sensus.org/training-coursesLiz Joyce: https://caninehandlerfitness.com/meet-liz/ We want to hear from you: Check out the K9 Detection Collaborative FB page and comment on the episode post!K9Sensus Detection Dog Trainer AcademyK9Sensus Foundation can be found on Facebook and Instagram. We have a Trainer’s Group on Facebook!Scentsabilities Nosework is also on Facebook. Here is a Facebook group you should join!You can follow us for notifications of upcoming episodes, find us at k9detectioncollaborative.com to enjoy the freebies, and tell your friends so you can keep the conversations going.And don’t forget to check out the YouTube Channel!

    48 min

  3. APR 7

    Chickens are the Great Equalizer: Chicken Workshop Hotwash with Bob Deeds

    What to listen for: Our hosts, Robin Greubel and Stacy Barnett, welcome Bob Deeds back to debrief the first-ever chicken workshop hosted at Robin's farm. Bob, drawing on the legacy of Keller and Marian Breland and Bob Bailey, the operant conditioning pioneers behind Animal Behavior Enterprises and the IQ Zoo, explains that the chicken workshop isn't really about chickens at all! White Leghorns, selected for their speed and reactivity, are a crucible for the trainer, forcing observational precision, mechanical timing, and real-time decision-making that slower species simply can't demand. The group that gathered at Robin's farm was a genuinely mixed bag: a horse trainer, professional detection handlers, a pet dog trainer who also teaches others, and a sport dog handler who arrived feeling self-conscious about her credentials. By the end, that trainer was unrecognizable in the best way. Her confidence transformed, her mechanics sharpened, her sense of belonging earned. What the hosts return to again and again is the downstream effect of students reaching out weeks later, saying they finally had the words to explain a dog's behavior to a client, or that they rewrote a puppy class mid-workshop. That's the whole point.   Key Topics: Chicken Workshops: Purpose and The Breland-Bailey Legacy (01:11)White Leghorns as the Training Tool of Choice (04:22)Diverse Trainers, One Great Equalizer (07:33)Frodo: The Making of a Serial Peck-Machine (08:57)Upcoming October Workshop and Future Plans (23:31)Staying on the Farm: Community and Communal Dinners (23:39)Training Is a Perishable Skill (32:53)What's Next: Bob's Scent Wall, Robin's Travels, Stacy's NW Classes (36:05)Takeaways (42:06)  Resources: Register for Distraction Camp & IHHS https://www.k9detectioncollaborative.com/eventsRegister for MUTC https://www.k9sensus.org/event-details/k9sensus-mutc-2026Register for MYC: Chicken Workshop in October https://www.k9sensus.org/event-details/mastering-your-mechanics-oct-2026Register for Stacy's classes! https://www.fenzidogsportsacademy.com/schedule-and-syllabus We want to hear from you: Check out the K9 Detection Collaborative FB page and comment on the episode post!K9Sensus Detection Dog Trainer AcademyK9Sensus Foundation can be found on Facebook and Instagram. We have a Trainer’s Group on Facebook!Scentsabilities Nosework is also on Facebook. Here is a Facebook group you should join!You can follow us for notifications of upcoming episodes, find us at k9detectioncollaborative.com to enjoy the freebies, and tell your friends so you can keep the conversations going.And don’t forget to check out the YouTube Channel!

    46 min

  4. MAR 24

    Using Engagement, Relationship, and Arousal to Combat Distractions

    What to listen for: "Unless you have a dog who is engaged with you, you can't build that relationship. And you can't get through distractions. It's impossible.” Today, our hosts, Robin Greubel and Stacy Barnett, are talking relationships. Specifically, what it actually means to have one with your dog when the pressure is on. They argue that a real relationship isn't Kumbaya, it's the thing that keeps a dog still on a medic's table and calm on a tailgate in Texas! Robin describes bringing her working dogs, the Labs Flash and Flare, and her Malinois, Nico, to a USAR medic training where the team practiced catheter placement and restraint under veterinary supervision. Flash and Flare wrestled the medics into a genuine upper-body workout. Nico simply lay still, held by a raised finger and three years of earned trust. Meanwhile, Stacy recounts her wilderness air scent SAR dog, Prize, enduring an improvised dewclaw removal on a truck tailgate during a study at Texas Tech, stoic because the years of shared work had already made Stacy's presence genuinely reassuring. Relationship and engagement are not soft concepts but functional prerequisites. Without engagement, a dog cannot regulate arousal. Without regulated arousal, a dog cannot sustain focus through distraction. Without focus, a search develops holes, and holes erode the handler's ability to call an area clear with confidence, whether in competition or in the field. Stacy and Robin are careful to frame searching not as a single behavior but as a layered chain requiring relationship, engagement, arousal, focus, and what Stacy calls the reinforcement event. That means a full celebratory interaction, not just a cookie, that imprints the preceding behavior far more deeply. Reading a learner, distinguishing processing from disengagement, hunting from scavenging: these are the observation skills that underlie everything else.   Key Topics: Nico at Medic Training: Trust Under Restraint (02:32)Prize's Field Dewclaw Removal at Texas Tech (06:04)Reframing Relationship as Engagement (07:38)Directionals as a Tool for Reading Disengagement (09:21)Reading Body Language at Distance: Prize and the Cinder Blocks (14:33)Reinforcement Events vs. Simple Rewards (19:48)Arousal Cycles in Dogs… and Chickens (28:30)Focused Searchers and Clearing Areas With Confidence (35:20)  Resources: Distraction Camp and Upcoming Events: https://www.k9detectioncollaborative.com/events We want to hear from you: Check out the K9 Detection Collaborative FB page and comment on the episode post!K9Sensus Detection Dog Trainer AcademyK9Sensus Foundation can be found on Facebook and Instagram. We have a Trainer’s Group on Facebook!Scentsabilities Nosework is also on Facebook. Here is a Facebook group you should join!You can follow us for notifications of upcoming episodes, find us at k9detectioncollaborative.com to enjoy the freebies, and tell your friends so you can keep the conversations going.And don’t forget to check out the YouTube Channel!

    43 min

  5. MAR 10

    Beyond the Buzzword: Deconstructing Opt-In/Opt-Out in Training

    What to listen for: Our hosts, Robin Greubel and Stacy Barnett, break down why "opting out" has become a buzzword that may obscure more than it reveals. While the term sounds empowering (giving dogs agency and choice), they argue it can become a self-congratulatory label that prevents handlers from addressing underlying training gaps. Stacy shares the story of 15-year-old Ray, who "opted out" of FEMA disaster work but later excelled at narcotics detection on a short lead. Ray didn't dislike detection work. Rather, she disliked working independently, far from her handler. Had Stacy recognized this earlier, she could have placed Ray in close-proximity disciplines like historic human remains detection instead of washing her out entirely. Robin recounts how one of her own dogs initially refused to search even three boxes in his front yard due to environmental overwhelm. But rather than accepting "he's opting out," she methodically built confidence through smaller areas, easier hides, and massive reinforcement. She eventually produced an elite champion! The key was asking why and adjusting the training plan, not accepting a vague opt-out label. They warn against the variable-reinforcement trap, in which dogs train handlers by occasionally succeeding, keeping handlers stuck in ineffective patterns. Stacy describes Dash's trained "collar-itch" behavior: a displacement signal she accidentally reinforced by making hides easier each time he scratched. Robin and Stacy do believe that legitimate opt-outs exist. Pain, slick floors, and overwhelming environments are just some of them. But these require specific diagnosis, not broad constructs. They advocate observable behavior analysis over anthropomorphic interpretations. This means that handlers need to teach opt-in through thoughtful progression rather than celebrating opt-out as a virtue. Key Topics: Defining Opt-Out vs. Observable Behavior (00:49)Ray's Independence Issue in FEMA vs. Narcotics Work (04:18)Environmental Confidence Building to Elite Level (07:35)Dash's Trained Collar-Itch Displacement Behavior (11:30)Variable Reinforcement and "Maybe Dogs" (15:29)Constructs vs. Specific Behavior Questions (18:40)Legitimate Opt-Outs: Pain, Slick Floors, Environmental Pressure (27:44)Teaching Opt-In from Day One with Puppies (34:31)Clever Hans Effect and Handler Cues (38:54)  Resources: Dogs distinguish human intentional and unintentional action (study)  We want to hear from you: Check out the K9 Detection Collaborative FB page and comment on the episode post!K9Sensus Detection Dog Trainer AcademyK9Sensus Foundation can be found on Facebook and Instagram. We have a Trainer’s Group on Facebook!Scentsabilities Nosework is also on Facebook. Here is a Facebook group you should join!You can follow us for notifications of upcoming episodes, find us at k9detectioncollaborative.com to enjoy the freebies, and tell your friends so you can keep the conversations going.And don’t forget to check out the YouTube Channel!

    47 min

  6. FEB 24

    Dr. Jenny Essler: Goby Fish and Spotted Lantern Fly Detection (Pt. 2)

    What to listen for: In the second half of the conversation with Dr. Jennifer Essler, our hosts, Robin Greubel and Stacy Barnett, discuss her current research and future goals bridging academic science with real-world handler expertise! At SUNY Cobleskill, Dr. Essler's conservation work demonstrates how detection dogs fill practical niches. Her Round Goby project (tracking invasive fish from the Black and Caspian Seas) uses dogs for water sampling rather than locating individual fish. This mirrors eDNA methodology but delivers immediate field results instead of days of laboratory processing. Dogs trade some sensitivity for real-time assessment, making them viable alternatives when speed matters. The project's success has attracted government conservation agencies interested in applying dogs to other invasive species like hydrilla plants and certain crawfish. Her Penn Vet ovarian cancer research revealed the limitations of lab-based detection. While dogs successfully identified cancer in blood plasma, clinical deployment was never the goal. Instead, the objective was helping develop electronic detection systems. The fundamental problem is that even superstar dogs have off days without visible behavioral indicators explaining poor performance. Unlike field work, where handlers notice changes, lab settings offer no safety net for medical diagnosis. Repetitive scent wheel searches also eventually bored excellent performers into retirement. That shows all the difference between detection work and examination work. Dr. Essler's future priorities center on quantifying practitioner expertise. That’s documenting how experienced trainers accurately assess young dogs through seemingly instinctive judgments.   Key Topics: Conservation Detection Research Projects (01:11)Round Goby Invasive Species Work (02:20)eDNA vs. Dogs: Trade-offs and Applications (11:32)Ovarian Cancer Detection Research Insights (20:51)Why Dogs Can't Replace Medical Testing (24:02)Future Research on Quantifying Handler Expertise (29:15)Puppy Selection Science and Practitioner Knowledge (35:07)Quarterly Research Review Plans (42:44)Understanding Research Sample Size Constraints (44:04)  Resources: Dr. Essler's WebsiteSUNY Cobleskill Canine Science Program  We want to hear from you: Check out the K9 Detection Collaborative FB page and comment on the episode post!K9Sensus Detection Dog Trainer AcademyK9Sensus Foundation can be found on Facebook and Instagram. We have a Trainer’s Group on Facebook!Scentsabilities Nosework is also on Facebook. Here is a Facebook group you should join!You can follow us for notifications of upcoming episodes, find us at k9detectioncollaborative.com to enjoy the freebies, and tell your friends so you can keep the conversations going.And don’t forget to check out the YouTube Channel!

    49 min

  7. FEB 10

    Dr. Jenny Essler: Talking Monkeys, Dogs, and Wolves and Their Understanding of Inequity (Pt. 1)

    What to listen for: Our hosts, Robin Greubel and Stacy Barnett, sit down with canine cognition researcher Dr. Jennifer Essler. She unpacks her journey from coding Capuchin monkey videos in a windowless lab to studying fairness in wolves and dogs. Starting with music studies before discovering comparative psychology, Essler's academic trajectory took her from Georgia State's primate labs to hand-raised wolf packs in Vienna's Wolf Science Center. It’s a unique research environment that controls for lifestyle differences between wolves and dogs by raising both species identically in packs. As a result, you can isolate domestication effects from environmental variables. The wolves, however, proved far more challenging subjects than primates, requiring complete experimental apparatus redesigns after initial safety failures. Her inequity aversion research uncovered pretty interesting species differences: wolves, like primates, showed quality sensitivity by refusing to work when partners received superior rewards. Dogs, conversely, accepted any reward as long as they received something, possibly reflecting their domestication-driven tolerance for human-directed work, or their reduced attention to partner outcomes. Robin, Stacy, and Dr. Essler discuss the practical implications this finding has for multi-dog training scenarios and reinforcement strategies. Essler's transition to Penn Vet Working Dog Center brought her expertise to practical applications: ovarian cancer detection, COVID-19 screening, and spotted lanternfly detection. All while developing behavioral assessment batteries.   Key Topics: Academic Journey from Primates to Canines (03:04)Wolf Science Center Research Design (05:45)Pack Living Challenges: Dogs vs. Wolves (08:12)Impossible Task Apparatus and Behavioral Flexibility (16:14)SUNY Cobleskill Teaching and Detection Class (19:33)Glow Germ Contamination Training Exercise (27:13)3D Printed Vessels and Odor Considerations (31:18)Inequity Aversion: Dogs vs. Wolves vs. Primates (41:39)  Resources: Dr. Essler's WebsiteSUNY Cobleskill Canine Science Program  We want to hear from you: Check out the K9 Detection Collaborative FB page and comment on the episode post!K9Sensus Detection Dog Trainer AcademyK9Sensus Foundation can be found on Facebook and Instagram. We have a Trainer’s Group on Facebook!Scentsabilities Nosework is also on Facebook. Here is a Facebook group you should join!You can follow us for notifications of upcoming episodes, find us at k9detectioncollaborative.com to enjoy the freebies, and tell your friends so you can keep the conversations going.And don’t forget to check out the YouTube Channel!

    53 min

  8. JAN 27

    What Sport and Professional Detection Teams Can Learn from Each Other with Bob Deeds

    What to listen for: “Trust your dog, but trust your training first.” Our hosts, Robin Greubel and Stacy Barnett, welcome back veteran USAR handler Bob Deeds to talk about the artificial divide between working dog and sport detection communities, and why both sides desperately need each other! Bob shares his journey from FEMA disaster work into nose work, leading into his innovative "geo-scenting" protocol. This hybrid sport combines geocaching with scent detection using clove oil, specifically chosen to avoid the venue-hopping confusion he observed in sport handlers who switched between organizations. Sport handlers often remain clique-ish, loyal to single venues (K9 Nose Work vs. NACSW) despite identical underlying science. Bob advocates aggressively for cross-training, noting how watching elite sport handlers transformed his leash skills after a Belgian trainer bluntly told him they "sucked." Meanwhile, working dog handlers can learn environmental assessment and body language reading from sport competitors operating under time pressure. Bob describes sport handlers' eyes "scanning like machines" upon room entry. He also considers puzzle work as the great equalizer. He recounts how a struggling student's reactive Standard Poodle transformed after two weeks of pure puzzle training. All this and more in this episode of K9 Detection Collaborative!   Key Topics: Geo-Scenting Origins and Clove Oil Selection (08:04)Building Confidence Through Scent Work in Reactive Dogs (16:00)Environmental Assessment Skills in Sport vs. Working Dogs (17:56)Leash Handling Skills and Learning from Sport Handlers (19:34)Final Response Debate and Reading Body Language (21:02)The Clique Problem in Sport Detection Communities (26:13)Puzzle Training Philosophy and Adapting on the Fly (35:58)Takeaways (41:15)  Resources: Dog Scouts of America: GeoScentingCanine ConnectionK9 Sensus: Using Chickens to Train TrainersFenzi Dog Sports Academy: Schedule  We want to hear from you: Check out the K9 Detection Collaborative FB page and comment on the episode post!K9Sensus Detection Dog Trainer AcademyK9Sensus Foundation can be found on Facebook and Instagram. We have a Trainer’s Group on Facebook!Scentsabilities Nosework is also on Facebook. Here is a Facebook group you should join!You can follow us for notifications of upcoming episodes, find us at k9detectioncollaborative.com to enjoy the freebies, and tell your friends so you can keep the conversations going.And don’t forget to check out the YouTube Channel!

    48 min
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Trailer

4.8
out of 5
46 Ratings

About

Candid conversations about the reality of training, deploying, or competing with a canine partner. Each episode is a cross pollination from the professional and sport canine camps, exploring how we all want the same thing: A great relationship with our dog.With humor, and a big dose of theory, we talk practical training advice and includes interviews with top trainers and scientists. We keep it fun, honest, and rated PG 13ish.

Information

  • Creator
    Stacy Barnett, Robin Greubel
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2026
  • Episodes
    164
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © 2026 ©℗ K9 Detection Collaborative
  • Show Website
    K9 Detection Collaborative

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