Mario Gomes loves to have fun with his dogs. Some might even say it is the most important aspect of Gomes’ training. When we caught up with Gomes at the 2023 AWDF Nationals, he was just coming off of the field with his Malinois, Jesuz. He also competed with his German Shepherd, Tchala.

When Mario Gomes comes to mind, it’s easy to find heart-warming stories of love between a man and his dogs. Dig a little deeper and you’ll find stories about Gomes’ love for his family. One thing Gomes takes pride in is having fun with his dogs.

Mario Gomes has been involved in training dogs for sport since 1998. He loves seeing things click in the dog’s mind when he finally “gets it”. Gomes has competed at the world level with three different dogs. His goal is to have fun with his dogs and friends in the sport.

The day we caught up with Gomes; he had just left the field with Jesuz, his young Malinois.  We briefly discussed his performance.  The conversation quickly moved to the tracking.  This trial was very tricky with tracking.  Some dogs did very well with the tracking and others really struggled.  The rain did not help with the soggy conditions.  Jesuz did not do so well with tracking, but his German Shepherd, Tchala did much better.