Martha Windisch's Biography
Martha Windisch's Biography
Martha Windisch CPDT-KA CNWI and owner of Personalized Dog Training
LLC has been involved in training dogs for over 20 years. Through her
in-home business, she teaches pet owners how to better communicate
with their dogs. She currently has four Golden Retrievers, Spring, Clue,
Sobey and Ghetty. She competes with/trains her Goldens in
obedience, rally, hunt tests, agility and tracking. Her various Goldens through
the years have earned hunt test titles up to MH, obedience titles
including UDX and 98 OTCH points, tracking titles including TDX, rally
titles up to RE, and agility titles up to AX and AXJ.
In 2010, soon after the “California-developed” sport of K9 Nose Work
(www.k9nosework.com) came to the east coast, Martha decided to
attend an Intro to K9 Nose Work seminar to check it out. She has since
then attended additional K9 Nose Work seminars and instructor training courses,
attended a Nose Work class with a Certified Nose Work Instructor (CNWI),
volunteered at Nose Work Trials including the first K9 Nose Work Trial held in
New Jersey, passed the ORT (Odor Recognition Test) for birch with two of her
Goldens, and attained the designation of Certified Nose Work Instructor (CNWI).
Two of Martha’s Goldens are ready to compete in NW1 trials – Sobey passed a mock
NW1 trial at the PA Nose Work camp.
Martha teaches the K9 Nose Work classes at Pinelands Dog Training Center.
She started teaching K9 Nose Work because she enjoys helping students
discover the new sport/activity with their dogs. She also enjoys helping
students learn to observe their dogs’ body language while finding hidden scent;
including body language that can be quite subtle.
From her childhood game of teaching her shepherd-collie mixes to
follow looping hotdog trails to a piece of hidden hotdog, to her AKC
tracking experience, plus working with a friend whose German Shepherd
was being trained for search and rescue, plus the find-the-hidden-toy
games her Goldens love to play at home, she knows that dogs tend to
love to play games using their amazing sense of smell. She likes that
Nose Work can be taught both inside and outside and unlike tracking
does not require large fields. She also likes that Nose Work requires no
prerequisite training, can be played either for fun or with the goal of
competing in trials, is good for old dogs (i.e. dogs that are retired from
other sports), young dogs (a great way to socialize a puppy and teach a
fun game that can be used for life), dogs that need to build confidence
(hunting games are great confidence builders) and for dogs that need
an energy outlet (Nose Work is a great energy outlet due to the problem-
solving the dog has to do).