All photos by Heidi Dahms Foster EXCEPT Barn Hunt, that’s by GoDogPhoto
By Heidi Dahms Foster
One of the best developments of the past three or so decades is the ever-increasing number of organized activities you can do with your dog. Many of those activities are available locally or within a reasonable drive from the Quad Cities area, and opportunities are continuing to expand.
You can find fulfilling activities that fit both you and your dog’s activity level, physical abilities and aptitudes. Most organized dog sport events welcome both purebred and mixed breed competitors. Whatever activity you choose, you can enjoy being out, getting exercise, meeting new people, and enhancing your relationship with your pet.
Most activities in the Quad City area are facilitated by clubs, whether generic or single breed registries. Some may require a tracking number to compete, which can be obtained for a small one-time fee. Some of the clubs offer training and practices, and others offer numerous competitions through the year. It’s a great time to try something new, so check out some of these opportunities available in our area.
Agility: Agility is essentially a timed obstacle course for you and your dog, that becomes more complicated as levels advance. While you may have seen some spectacular runs on television during national competitions and said, “I can’t do that!” agility is obtainable for all levels. While it certainly is a physical sport for both handler and dog, handlers can adjust.
Physically challenged handlers have learned to direct their dogs from a scooter, or with minimal movement. This requires training the dog to take direction from a distance, and many do it phenomenally well. Adjustments in time and obstacles are also made for more senior dogs and handlers. Whether your challenge is to simply make it through a course within the time limit, or to compete at the highest levels, it’s all great fun, and a great run is a thing of beauty.
Several agility competitions go on during the year. A search online will show many local dog trainers that agility skills. The best way to find a trainer suitable for you and your dog is to attend local trials and ask people who are competing.
Obedience: Long a staple of trainers who want to enjoy a little competition, obedience is still a great test of your handler/dog relationship.
Obedience is a stepping stone to so many other sports, because control of your dog is crucial not only for success and safety in daily life, but even more so in activities where your dog will be off leash, and often in unfamiliar areas.
Obedience titles can be earned at the levels from the beginning Companion Dog to the upper levels of Utility, where a dog must perform scent work and directed work away from the handler.
Prescott Arizona Kennel Club and Chino Valley Canine Training Club hold competitions in both Obedience and Rally Obedience, and CVCTC also holds classes throughout the year, as do many local trainers.
Rally Obedience: While some encourage the sport of Rally Obedience as a precursor to Obedience, this wildly popular sport is a wonderful challenge in itself.
In traditional obedience trials, the dog/handler team completes a standard course on the judge’s direction, with the only interaction between dog and handler the initial command at the beginning of each exercise. In Rally, each trial is made up of a timed course of signs. The team is given a signal to begin, and the handler/dog completes the course on their own. In all but the most advanced levels, the handler may talk to the dog and use hand signals to help things along.
The courses offer fun interaction with your dog and a great sense of accomplishment at mastering the varying courses and the dog/handler relationship needed to complete the Rally levels.
FastCAT: FastCAT is a popular sport in which dogs essentially run a 100-yard dash within a set course, chasing—wait—a plastic bag? The bags, or lures, are drawn by a motorized line. Dogs find this fast-moving target irresistible, and hilarity ensures when you see their expressions of excitement and joy as they engage in the chase.
American Kennel Club Fast CAT trials have been conducted in the greater Prescott area through local clubs. Competing dogs can earn points and titles in FastCAT, with their average times converted to miles per hour and taking into account their height.
Barn Hunt: Barn Hunt is another dog sport that is becoming ever more popular. In Barn Hunt, dogs of all breeds hunt rats (protected in strong, aerated PVC tubes) in a maze of straw bales. The dog must find the hidden rats, indicate the find, and the handler must ‘call’ the find. The real challenge is that every dog indicates a find differently and handlers must learn to read that individual dog.
In each level, the dog must also complete a tunnel and a ‘climb’ on one or more bales. Like most dog sports, there are a number of levels, with added rats and course challenges. Barn hunt rats are most often pampered pets of the sport enthusiasts and rules for their care, handling and protection are strict.
While Barn Hunt is not currently available in the Quad City area, other clubs, such as Barn Hunt Casa Grande, are functioning in the state.
Scent Work: AKC asserts that dogs have a sense of smell that’s between 10,000 and 100,000 times more acute than humans, and law enforcement personnel have put these skills to great use for many years, apprehending drugs and other contraband.
In Scent Work, neither the dog nor the handler knows where the ‘target,’ the odor (generally Birch or another essential oil), is hidden. The handler must trust the dog to find the scent and indicate the ‘find’. This is a lesson in knowing your dog, because the handler has to indicate to the judge when the dog has found the scent.
Some dogs have clear indications (the ‘alert’) when they’ve found their scent, but others can be really subtle in their communication, and it’s up to the handler to know how to ‘read’ their dog. This really helps handlers gain a close relationship to their canine.
Trick Dog: Most dogs know a few tricks, but if you want to take it a step further, AKC offers five levels of trick titles that you can earn with your talented pooch. Teaching tricks is a great way to build a relationship with your dog and boost his confidence at the same time.
To earn a Novice title, the dog must perform 10 skills from the Novice list. If a dog has a Canine Good Citizen (CGC) certificate or title on record at AKC, it can do 5 Novice tricks (CGC + 5) to earn the Novice title. Dogs must perform additional tricks under an approved evaluator for each of the next titles – Intermediate, Advanced, Trick Dog Performer, and Trick Dog Elite, which also requires props and a “story.”
Some area clubs have trained evaluators who can certify your dog’s tricks for titles, and who can also evaluate your dog for the “basic manners” title, Canine Good Citizen.
Dock Diving: One of the most fun and fastest growing dog sports is dock diving, which is becoming more popular nationwide. Dogs can earn titles through North America Diving Dogs or through AKC. Nearly any dog can compete as long as it loves water, swims well, and enjoys retrieving.
Fetch: AKC Fetch is a pass-fail noncompetitive test. The four levels of titles (Novice, Intermediate, Advanced, and Retriever) assess the ability of the dog to retrieve.
In the Advanced and Retriever levels, the dog must respond correctly to signals. There is also a memory component in Advanced and Retriever because a retrieving bumper or ball is dropped (or thrown) behind a blind where it cannot be seen. For each of the four titles, the dog must pass the test twice under two different approved AKC Fetch judges.
Dogs who are at least 6 months of age are eligible to take the AKC Fetch test as long as they are registered or enrolled with AKC and have an AKC, PAL, or AKC Canine Partners number.
While the Quad Cities area has an abundance of top performing dogs, both purebred and mixed breed, most clubs want to know you’re serious about the sport you choose (Spectators are always welcome!). The best way to find a sport and an introduction into more advanced clubs and competition is to participate in basic classes. Following are some of the places to take basic classes with an eye to finding out more about dog sports and competition.
Resources:
Chino Valley Canine Training Club
Chino Valley Canine Training Club offers Basic and Rally Obedience, along with Canine Good Citizen and Trick Dog classes and certifications. Trials include Obedience and Rally Obedience, Scent Work, FastCAT, FETCH, and community activities. The club works to educate people about good health and training practices. Meetings are third Thursday at 6 p.m. at the Chino Valley Senior Center next to Memory Park. For more information visit the website at cvctc.com.
Prescott Arizona Kennel Club
The Prescott Arizona Kennel Club has been conducting all breed championship conformation shows in the tri city area since 1987, and numerous years of obedience and agility. On September 20-22, 2019, PAKC will offer two All Breed shows and two days of Rally and Obedience (mixed breeds can compete in obedience trials) along with single breed specialties at the Findlay Toyota Center in Prescott Valley. The shows usually host numerous activities to introduce people to dog events, so it’s a good place to learn about local activities and meet dog people. The club also offers conformation classes for those who have purebred dogs and would like to learn how to show. For more information visit prescottarizonakennelclub.com
Top Dog Performance Club of Northern Arizona: Agility Trials, Facebook Top Dog Performance Club of Northern Arizona
K9 Synergy: Dock Diving and more. k9synergydogtraining.com
