ABOUT SUNSHINE K9s
Sunshine K9s is devoted to helping your dog. Head trainer, Rosana Dropkin, has focused her talents on Nose Work / Scent Work to give you the best training possible in the sport.
Sunshine K9s is devoted to helping your dog. Head trainer, Rosana Dropkin, has focused her talents on Nose Work / Scent Work to give you the best training possible in the sport.
More than just training dogs- I want to show them a new life.
I first read about K9 Nose Work® in an article published in a dog journal I subscribe to. I immediately knew that I wanted to learn more about this new sport and that this may just be what I wanted to focus my dog training business on. When the first K9 Nose Work® workshop was held in the east coast in 2010, I was there! It was presented by the founders of the sport and I was immediately hooked.
My colleagues and I proudly graduated NACSW’s first class of Certified Nose Work Instructors in June of 2011. That was also the year I headed NACSW’s score room department as their National Score Room Director. I officiated and judged many ORTs throughout the north east. I helped out as a Trial Coordinator and later trained as a Certifying Official for trials. When I moved to East Tennessee in December of 2014, I introduced K9 Nose Work® to the area, starting my first classes in January of 2015. By 2016, I resigned as staff for NACSW, wanting to focus on growing the sport locally. I am still a Certifying Official and Judge for NACSW sanctioned ORTs as well as a judge for PSD sanctioned trials.
I have been working with dogs since 2000. I am a Certified Professional Dog Trainer Knowledge Assessed (CPDT-KA), certified through the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers. CCPDT was established in 2001 and is the leading independent certifying organization for the dog training profession. I am also a Canine Good Citizen Evaluator through AKC and have been a professional member of the Association of Professional Dog Trainers (APDT) since 2001. In 2016 I was certified through the In Situ Foundation as a Bio-Dog Certified Trainer. I am also a Fear Free Certified Trainer.
I compete in competitions sanctioned by different organizations, namely NACSW and K9 Scent Games (KSG).
My team consists of 3 rescue dogs which have rescued me.
Moo and I began learning about nose work and training as a team in 2010. She excelled at it, and there was not much that she wanted to do more- except maybe eat pumpkin pie!
I owe my nose, nose work career to this fantastic dog!
Moo is an All-American mixed breed who, as a newborn puppy, along with her mom and littermates, were left abandoned in a locked shed. Luckily neighbors heard their cries. Another Chance Ranch in Conesus, NY took in all the dogs and did a wonderful job of raising them until they were ready to be adopted out. But who ended up being the luckiest was us, since we adopted this amazing dog who has brought so much to our lives.
Moo is an All-American mixed breed who, as a newborn puppy, along with her mom and littermates, were left abandoned in a locked shed. Luckily neighbors heard their cries. Another Chance Ranch in Conesus, NY took in all the dogs and did a wonderful job of raising them until they were ready to be adopted out. But who ended up being the luckiest was us, since we adopted this amazing dog who has brought so much to our lives.
Moo was among the first small group of NY dogs who passed their ORT for Birch in September of 2010. She also participated in the first ORT held in New York State and was among the first few dogs to pass her test for Anise.
We competed in NY’s first NW1 Trial, held at Cornwall, NY. She didn’t get her title (handler errors!) but she was awarded the Harry Award, which was worth more to us than the title! Moo passed her ORT for Clove in September of 2011 and became the first New York State dog to pass the ORTs for all three odors.
She entered her second NW1 Trial in Dighton, MA on October 22, 2011. Not only did she earn her NW1 title, but she was High in Trial coming in First Place overall! We are very proud of her!
Moo had made 3 attempts for her NW2 title. The first one was lost due to me. But the next two were due to injuries she had on her leg- she was just not herself. At her 3rd trial, the hide was high up behind a bleacher and she was trying to jump up to source it and I stopped the search so she wouldn't hurt her leg. But since then we found out she was getting microtears to her ACL. She had surgery, healed very well, and after an almost 3 year hiatus from trialing at a NW level trial, we made out 4th attempt at her NW2 title on Oct 23, 2015. What a comeback she made! She came in 2nd place in Exteriors, 4th place Overall, and had 3 out of 4 elements Pronounced. She was awesome!
Moo went on to compete in her first NW3 trial on April 1, 2017. It was a very difficult competition, with only 2 out of 30 dogs titling. We weren't one of them. But we tried again on November 12, 2017. This time, Moo did great! She worked hard, getting her well-earned NW3 title and with a Pronounced designation at that!
Baron started nose work class when he was 11 weeks old. His natural talent, drive and love for this game became quickly apparent. As his became more experienced, he grew into my most accomplished scent work dog. Baron earned his Scent Games Excellent title with KSG. He also earned his Elite 1 title with a First Place Overall and High in Trial just 3 weeks before suddenly and unexpectedly passing away. He was my Rock Star and will be terribly missed.
Baron came into our lives when he was 10 weeks old. He was transported to the Northeast from Arkansas. Like Moo, he is an All-American mixed breed. He started doing Nose Work at 11 weeks old and he is a natural! Baron passed his Canine Good Citizen test and he earned his CGC certification on December 22, 2011.
Baron came into our lives when he was 10 weeks old. He was transported to the Northeast from Arkansas. Like Moo, he is an All-American mixed breed. He started doing Nose Work at 11 weeks old and he is a natural! Baron passed his Canine Good Citizen test and he earned his CGC certification on December 22, 2011.
Baron entered his first Nose Work 1 competition on January 1st of 2012. He missed the container search element by calling the wrong box, but we were determined to try again! He entered his second competition on July 6, 2012 in Annandale NJ. This time, we were ready! Baron went in sure of himself and full of pep and vinegar, and of course some sugar as he charmed all the volunteers along the routes to the searches. And he did it!! He got his title and, keeping up with his big sister, Moo, also came in First Place Overall and High in Trial! I couldn’t be more proud!
Baron entered his first NW2 trial on May 11, 2013. It was a great trial- it was even temporarily stopped due to the lightning and down pouring rain. But through it all, Baron was relaxed and having a great time, even falling asleep on my lap. What a surprise when we were called to come up and get our ribbon for Second Place Overall! Now on to NW3….
Baron & I entered our first NW3 trial on Dec 16, 2013 held in Lebanon NJ. I entered the trial mainly as a practice for me to learn how a NW3 trial works, not worrying about time, but focusing on reading Baron. Not knowing how many hides are in each search area can be very nerve wracking! We didn't get our title, but that was not our intention anyway. The learning experience was invaluable.
We moved to TN and with some more practice, we entered our 2nd NW3 trial on April 23, 2016 in Somerville AL - almost 2.5 years after our last trial! We went with an attitude of having fun and enjoying the experience. As it turned out, Baron was awesome and he earned his title that day as well as coming in 2nd place overall! He just loves nose work!
We tried our hand at a 3rd NW3 trial in Jonesville NC on March 30, 2018, another 2 years in between trials. Baron did great once more coming in 2nd place overall and Pronounced! He also earned his element titles in Vehicles and Exteriors.
Baron’s 4th NW3 trial was in Oak Ridge NC on December 28, 2018. It rained all day and we were soaked through and miserable, but Baron was a trooper and still gave his best for the game he loves so much. He came in 4th place overall earning his NW3-ELITE title!
Quincy is our sweet and shy Australian Cattle Dog which we rescued in 2015. Highly driven and focused, when she searches she is on a mission! This sport has given her the confidence to slowly work through her fear of strange places. It is heartwarming to watch her succeed and flourish.
Quincy, an Australian Cattle Dog, was adopted into our family in March of 2016. We think she was around 6-9 months old at the time. A very intelligent and energetic dog, she also has a great sense of humor and a unique character. Shortly after adopting her, we realized she was deaf, but this has just made her sense of smell sharper and she is a lot of fun to watch as she intensely searches for her ball, her toys and the odors we’ve taught her to find in nose work.
Quincy, an Australian Cattle Dog, was adopted into our family in March of 2016. We think she was around 6-9 months old at the time. A very intelligent and energetic dog, she also has a great sense of humor and a unique character. Shortly after adopting her, we realized she was deaf, but this has just made her sense of smell sharper and she is a lot of fun to watch as she intensely searches for her ball, her toys and the odors we've taught her to find in nose work.
She passed all 3 NACSW ORTs and competed at her first PSD trial in December 2017. She qualified in all 6 classes entered, placing 3rd in one and 2nd in another, missing 1st place by 10/100th of a second. This little trooper is loving this sport and helping her overcome her shyness in new places.
We entered our first NACSW NW1 trial on October, 2018. We learned at our first search of the trial that Quincy does NOT like the photographer's zoom lens! She basically shut down and stopped searching. But as the day wore on, she got more comfortable and passed the remaining 3 searches.
Our 2nd attempt at a NW1 trial was on Sept 28, 2019. We had been working on getting her more comfortable in new locations. We still have a long way to go, and she may never get over it completely, but she is certainly making strides. Her first search was a little rough, but she found the hide. But alas, at our second search, Quincy saw the dreaded zoom lens! The photographer was wonderful and quickly put it away, but it was too late. Yet with a little patience, she was able to work and get to the hide. As the day went on, Quincy became more comfortable coming in 4th place in the container search and 2nd place in the interior search. She earned her NW1 title and was chosen to receive the coveted Harry Award! That was the most special honor of the day- just as special as her heart.
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