Many individuals who come to our classes discover they really enjoy dog training and want to continue beyond the basics. Competitive dog sports have exploded over the past twenty years and now there are many different sports to choose from, based on your dog’s breed and preferences and how you choose to train as a team. Participating in dog sports provides focus to your training efforts and builds an incredible bond as you share the ups and downs of competition. Our club is working to offer introductory and advanced classes to help you get started in a variety of competitive venues. Below is a sampling of available options. For more information, visit AKC.org and check out their Sports and Events section.
CONFORMATION
This is what many people think of when they hear “dog show.” It appears to be something like a beauty pageant but really it is more than that. Purebred dogs were originally shown in conformation events to determine which male and female pair most closely represented the breed standard, as the most perfect representatives of that breed who would also be most likely to produce pups that met the breed standard as well. The breed standard defines both physical characteristics and important temperament traits to fulfill what the dog was originally bred to do. Conformation events take place all across the country and world. To participate in conformation, you must have an AKC-registered purebred dog who is okay with frequent grooming and walks nicely on a leash.
OBEDIENCE
Developed in the 1930s, Obedience is one of the AKC’s oldest sporting events, and it’s open to all dogs. There are multiple levels in competitive obedience, including both on-leash and off-leash tasks. At the Beginner Novice and Novice levels, most tasks are performed on-leash and involve tasks like heeling, performing a figure 8, staying in a sit or down, and allowing a brief examination by the judge. Higher levels involve more complex tasks like going over jumps, retrieving dumbbells or other objects on command, selecting scent articles, and responding to hand signals.
RALLY
In a Rally event, you and your dog navigate a course, side-by-side, through 10-20 different signs. Each sign provides instructions regarding a skill to be performed. The dog and handler move throughout the course with the dog under control at the handler’s left side. There are different levels in Rally, including: Novice, Intermediate, Advanced, Excellent, and Master. At each level, the skills to be performed become increasingly complex. To complete a level, the team must successfully complete three different courses, with a minimum score of 70. Rally is a timed event, but time is not the primary factor. Teams are judged on their execution of skills and sense of teamwork exhibited while completing each course.
AGILITY
Agility is a growing dog sport in the United States, with over 1 million entries to the AKC’s program each year.
Dog agility is a sport where you direct your dog through a pre-set obstacle course within a certain time limit. Courses typically have between 14-20 obstacles, which can include tunnels, weave poles, tire jumps, seesaws, and pause tables where the dog must stop for a set amount of time. At each trial the dog and handler race around unique courses designed for that day. All of this is done with the dog relying solely on the cues and body language the handler uses to direct them on course. All breeds, including mixed breeds and rescued dogs, can participate in agility – from the smallest to the largest of dogs.
SCENT WORK
The sport of Scent Work celebrates the joy of sniffing, and asks a dog to sniff to their heart’s content; turning your dog’s favorite activity into a rewarding game. It is a terrific sport for all kinds of dogs, and is a wonderful way to build confidence in a shy dog. In AKC Scent Work, dogs search for cotton swabs saturated with the essential oils of Birch, Anise, Clove, and Cypress. The cotton swabs are hidden out of sight in a pre-determined search area, and the dog has to find them. Teamwork is necessary: when the dog finds the scent, he has to communicate the find to the handler, who calls it out to the judge.
FAST CAT (LURE COURSING)
The CAT in Fast CAT stands for Coursing Ability Test, which refers to a dog’s ability to chase after a lure in a course. Dogs run individually in a timed 100-yard dash which chasing a lure pulled by a pulley system on an outdoor, fenced track. The lure often has bits of plastic bag that mimic bunny tails (hey, new way to recycle those grocery bags!) Many dogs absolutely love it and take to it quickly once they understand their favorite person is securely waiting for them at the end. So if you’ve ever wondered just how fast your dog can go, this is a fun sport to try.
DOCK DIVING
Dock Diving is a fun, exciting but easy to do sport with simple rules: You throw your dog’s favorite toy into a pool while he waits on a dock about 40 feet long. On your command, he runs along the dock, flings himself off the end of it, lands in the water and grabs his toy. The goal is to have the longest jump possible, which could be as short as two feet for beginners, or as much as 30 feet for those more experienced!
BARN HUNT
the sport of Barn Hunt. Dogs and their handlers work as a team to locate and mark rats (which are always safely held in aerated tubes) hidden in a maze of straw or hay bales. Certain breeds are better able to fill this role as well as some mixed breeds; as long as your dog can fit through an 18″ wide by bale-height tall tunnel, he’s eligible to try! Barn Hunt events include a pass/fail instinct class for owners who want to familiarize their dog with the test. Courses are made increasingly difficult by adding more obstacles, additional diversions and more rats to find.
spotc.org 