August 9, 2008 - "Dog Show!"
In lieu of our typical Saturday class, we took a field trip to watch three students and one of the instructors compete in an American Kennel Club Obedience Competition. All three students were competing in the Novice A class. Novice is a beginning level obedience title, so for the students this was their first time showing. The instructor competed in Novice B with a dog he has been hired to title in AKC obedience. Novice B is for people who have earned titles before; people who have experience showing dogs.
The Novice routine involves heeling on a leash, during which the dog must demonstrate he can heel at a normal pace, a fast pace, and a slow pace. Also in this portion of the routine there are 90 degree turns, about turns (aka U-turns), sitting in motion, standing in motion, and heeling in a figure 8 around two people standing in the ring. The dog then must stand for evaluation, which means the judge will approach and pet the dog while the handler is standing away. The dog cannot break his standing position. Next the dog and handler repeat the heeling routine without a leash. Then the dog must sit at one end of the ring while the handler walks to the opposite end of the ring and call the dog to "come". The final portion of the trial is for the dogs to maintain a 1 minute sit stay and a 3 minute down stay.
There are some things that can occur during the performance that result in a disqualification (the AKC term is "Non-Qualify" or "NQ"). For example, if the dog sits or lies down during examination, the dog has "NQed". However, there are other things that can occur that won't disqualify the dog and handler but will result in points lost on the overall score. The overall score is used to rank the paricipants and award prizes.
For all three students that competed, they NQed. Two of the three students had very strong performances but because of one tiny error, their scores were considered non-qualifying. In this case, both dogs NQed at the very end by scooting their butts about an inch during the sit stay.
The instructor, however, got third place in his class. Way to go!
Before finishing the program, I will have to train a dog to pass the Novice routine. We may or may not actually compete in an AKC trial, depending on the availability of shows in the area. If we don't compete in one before graduation, we will be qualified to enter a show on our own after graduation.
The Novice routine involves heeling on a leash, during which the dog must demonstrate he can heel at a normal pace, a fast pace, and a slow pace. Also in this portion of the routine there are 90 degree turns, about turns (aka U-turns), sitting in motion, standing in motion, and heeling in a figure 8 around two people standing in the ring. The dog then must stand for evaluation, which means the judge will approach and pet the dog while the handler is standing away. The dog cannot break his standing position. Next the dog and handler repeat the heeling routine without a leash. Then the dog must sit at one end of the ring while the handler walks to the opposite end of the ring and call the dog to "come". The final portion of the trial is for the dogs to maintain a 1 minute sit stay and a 3 minute down stay.
There are some things that can occur during the performance that result in a disqualification (the AKC term is "Non-Qualify" or "NQ"). For example, if the dog sits or lies down during examination, the dog has "NQed". However, there are other things that can occur that won't disqualify the dog and handler but will result in points lost on the overall score. The overall score is used to rank the paricipants and award prizes.
For all three students that competed, they NQed. Two of the three students had very strong performances but because of one tiny error, their scores were considered non-qualifying. In this case, both dogs NQed at the very end by scooting their butts about an inch during the sit stay.
The instructor, however, got third place in his class. Way to go!
Before finishing the program, I will have to train a dog to pass the Novice routine. We may or may not actually compete in an AKC trial, depending on the availability of shows in the area. If we don't compete in one before graduation, we will be qualified to enter a show on our own after graduation.
posted by Shannon @ 9:24 PM
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