Michael McManus Seminar
November 14th & November 15th
Working Spot $275 (10 teams each day)
Audit spot $100
Audit spot tails members $90
9 am to 4 pm (1 hour lunch break)
About Michael McManus:
Michael McManus has been working with dogs for 16 years, focusing on K9 Nose Work®, Treibball and Herding. His Siberian Husky, Lumi, did very well in Nose Work coming in 1st place in their NW1, 1st place in two of their NW3s, and 2nd place in the 3rd NW3, and earning numerous placements in elements. They achieved their NW3 Elite title and then focused on competitive obedience. Michael was among the first to title dogs not owned by himself in Nose Work.
He has titled a Basenji, a Flat Coated Retriever, a Border Collie, a Doberman, a Spanish Water Dog, a Bloodhound, a Golden Retriever, a German Shorthaired Pointer, a Labrador Retriever, a Basset Hound, an English Bulldog, and a Belgian Malinois in sanctioned trials. Currently, Michael is trialing his Lab in Elite (1st place overall and Pronounced overall in their first Elite trial) and his English Bulldog in NW2. He is also an NACSW Certifying Official, Camp Instructor (including the 2021 and 2022 virtual nose work camps) and teaches seminars around the country.
Learn more about Michael through his website here: https://www.readysitgo.com/
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Saturday 11/14/2026
Mastering Distractions
Distractions are everywhere in Nose Work: food, toys, movement, crittering, environmental novelty, and even the handler themselves. In this seminar, we’ll take a comprehensive look at distraction training and how to build dogs that can confidently work through the chaos without losing clarity, focus, or drive.
The seminar is divided into three focused modules:
Handler Distractions: how our movement, pressure, routines, and expectations influence the dog
Crittering & Novelty: building confidence and resilience around environmental challenges and unexpected stimuli
Food & Toy Distractions: creating thoughtful training progressions that strengthen odor commitment without conflict or avoidance
We’ll discuss how distractions develop, why dogs struggle with them, and how to introduce them systematically in ways that build understanding instead of confusion. This seminar is appropriate for all skill levels.
Whether your goal is cleaner trial performances, greater environmental confidence, or simply a dog that can think more clearly under pressure, this seminar will give you practical tools and training strategies you can apply immediately.
Distractions don’t have to derail your search, they can become part of the training.
Sunday 11/15/26
Games: Learning Under Pressure
Put your game face on, this seminar is all about learning through play. In Games, you and your dog will be challenged with creative, engaging searches designed to stretch your thinking, test your teamwork, and gently push you outside your comfort zone. Each game introduces a twist, a rule change, a constraint, or a surprise, encouraging adaptability, problem-solving, and resilience in the face of pressure.
Michael and Natalie McManus have spent over a decade using games to teach critical nosework concepts, and recently released a new book cataloging many of the games they use in training classes and game days. Research shows that learning through play dramatically reduces the number of repetitions needed to acquire new skills, and games provide a powerful way to introduce calibrated stress in a supportive, non-trial environment. Instead of focusing solely on outcomes, games allow handlers to concentrate on growth, strategy, and process.
In this seminar, we’ll explore how games can:
Build confidence and adaptability under pressure
Improve specific nosework skills through structured play
Strengthen handler decision-making and creativity
Change how you and your dog experience stress and challenge
Appropriate for all levels, this seminar will meet each team where they are and help them succeed, no matter the rules, the setup, or the curveballs thrown your way.
If you enjoy thinking outside the box, embracing challenge, and learning while having fun, this seminar is for you.
