Field Guide · Glossary
Agency
EnrichmentA dog's ability to make a choice that changes what happens next.
How it works
Most of a pet dog's day is decided for them: when they go outside, which way they walk, who they meet. Handing some of those decisions back matters because a choice with a real consequence is different from a choice with none. In practice it shows up as letting a dog set the pace, pick the direction, or decline an interaction. Research on scentwork credits the choice involved as much as the sniffing itself for the effect on mood, which is why agency tends to come up wherever enrichment does.
What it looks like
On a walk, rather than steering a dog past a lamp post to keep moving, the handler stops and lets them sniff it for as long as they want, then follows whichever way the dog turns at the corner. Nothing is being trained. The dog's decisions are changing the walk.
Commonly confused with
- Sniffari
- A sniffari is one activity built around letting a dog choose where to go and what to investigate. Agency is the wider idea, and it applies just as much to letting a dog decline a stranger's outstretched hand.
Related terms
Where this comes up
In the reading list