For as long as I can remember, animals have been at the centre of my life. For many years I was immersed in the horse world — training, coaching and helping others develop their own partnerships with their horses. It was a career that taught me patience, consistency, communication and the importance of building trust with an animal. While I still have my own performance horse, my journey has taken a different direction. These days my focus has shifted away from training and coaching other people’s horses and towards a new challenge — building a detection dog team with my German Shorthaired Pointer, Dixie. Detection work is something I have wanted to pursue for the past four years. I’ve always been fascinated by working dogs, their ability to use their natural instincts, and the incredible partnership that forms between handler and dog. A few years ago, I had a beautiful Springer Spaniel who I dreamed of training for this kind of work. She was a special dog and I loved her dearly, but during a difficult financial period in my life I made the heartbreaking decision to rehome her. It was one of the hardest choices I have ever had to make. The dream, however, never left. When Dixie came into my life, I saw an opportunity to finally chase that dream again. Her drive, intelligence and enthusiasm made me excited to start this journey and see where we could go together. Right now, we are still in the early stages. We have many months of foundations, training and learning ahead before we step into any real-world work. Detection is not just about teaching a dog to find a scent — it’s about building a reliable team, understanding each other, developing skills and creating a strong working relationship. This journey is about enjoying the process, celebrating the small wins and learning along the way. In the future, I also hope to add a Springer Spaniel back into the team, bringing another working dog into our adventures and continuing to grow this passion. This section of Packin Paws will document our journey — the training sessions, challenges, lessons and eventually our experiences out in the field. Because every working dog starts somewhere… and this is where Dixie and I begin.