Dog Sports and Activities

DOG SHOWING [CONFORMATION]

Conformation shows are competitions where the judge assesses your dog against the breed standard to find the best examples of the breed in appearance, structure and movement. Champions look like Labradors, move like Labradors and in all ways help to preserve the typical Labrador type. The judge chooses the dog and bitch which, in his/her opinion, most closely conforms to the breed standard. Each judge has their own interpretation of the standard, so shows produce different results with each judge's adjudication. 

Go to Dogs Victoria - Showing Your Dog

Download Show Judging Flow Sheet

RALLY OBEDIENCE [RALLY-O] TRIALS

The objective of Rally Obedience also known as Rally-O is to provide a fast moving and motivational sport for both handler and dog working as a team and demonstrating basic obedience skills. Handlers are encouraged to interact with their dogs and use praise and encouragement. 

The Rally-O course contains a series of exercises that the dog and its handler must perform as a team in sequence. They are scored on these exercises and timed on how long they take to complete the course. The team with the highest score wins and the time is used to decide on a tie when two teams have acquired the same number of points at a particular trial. 

Go to Dogs Victoria - Rally-O

OBEDIENCE TRIALS

Obedience training forms the basis of any discipline you may endeavour to undertake with your dog, but most importantly, basic obedience is vital to ensure that your puppy grows into a socially acceptable member of the family and the community.

Obedience trialing involves many basic exercises such as sit, drop, stand, stay and walk at heel. The first class that the handler and dog competes at is a basic level of obedience and they can work their way through the classes; each one building on the exercises of the previous class and increasing in difficulty, enabling the dog and handler team to gain titles along the way.

Go to Dogs Victoria - Obedience

AGILITY TRIALS

The aim of this competition is for a handler to direct his/her dog around a course of different obstacles and to assess and enhance the ability of the dog and handler to work as a team. It is an educational and sporting activity intended to improve the dog's integration into society.

The sport requires a good rapport between dog and Handler, which results in perfect teamwork. Whilst speed of the dog is to be desired, steadiness of work is essential to a faultless performance of the course.

The overall objectives of Agility Trials are:

• to encourage a graded progression through the sport;
• to encourage new participants and new ideas and the continuance of Agility as a unique canine discipline;
• to encourage an increased level of fitness for dog and Handler; and
• to encourage safe and pleasant competition for all.

Go to Dogs Victoria - Agility 

RETRIEVING ABILITY TEST FOR GUNDOGS [RATG]

The Retrieving Ability Tests for Gundogs (RATG) is open to both Registered Gundogs and Associate Gundogs. It is a test of basic retrieving ability. The tests are designed so that they might be held in conjunction with either obedience trials or perhaps show events depending on the area that is available. It is a test of basic obedience and basic retrieving with the dog working off lead. 

Titles are awarded at two levels - novice retrieving ability (NRA) and open retrieving ability (ORA).

Novice level consists of four exercises; walking to heel, a recall, and two single mark (sighted) retrieves. Open level also consists of four exercises; walking to heel, one minute stay with recall (incorporating a stop on command), walk-up retrieve, and either a double mark retrieve or a double rise retrieve.

Go to Dogs Victoria - Retrieving or Retrieving Australia

RETRIEVING TRIALS

A Retrieving Trial is an event at which competitions for the working of registered Gundogs are conducted, both on land and in or through water, to determine their relative merits in the field which emulate as closely as possible hunting conditions. 

The function of a Retriever is to seek and retrieve fallen game, when ordered to do so. It should sit quietly with the handler or in the hide, walk at heel, or assume any station designated by the handler, until sent to retrieve. When ordered a dog should retrieve quickly and briskly without unduly disturbing too much ground. It should deliver tenderly to hand and then await further orders from the handler.

Accurate marking or memory of falls is of paramount importance. A dog that marks the fall of a bird, uses the wind and takes direction from its handler is of great value.

Go to Dogs Victoria - Retrieving or Retrieving Australia

TRACKING TRIALS

Tracking is a very rewarding sport for dogs as it is the one sport where the dog is in control. Tracking involves teaching the dog to follow a specific scent trail that has been left by a person laying the track. The track can be in paddocks, through bushland, gravel, dirt roads and the track will be laid in all weather conditions during the colder months, between May and September. The handler does not teach the dog to track which comes naturally to the dog, but we do teach them which scent we want them to follow. 

To compete in a tracking trial, the handler and dog will start with a basic track following the scent of a tracklayer that is known to the dog. Should the dog and handler pass this first test, they then move onto harder tests and gain titles along the way.

Go to Dogs Victoria - Tracking

TRACK & SEARCH TRIALS

Track and Search trials are designed to mimic the example of a dog tracking a missing person over various different terrains which includes roads, pavement and gravel paths and can occur in urban areas and even at night. Again the dog and handler start at a more basic level and work their way through the tests gaining further titles as the tests get harder culminating in the title of Grand Champion Tracking.

Go to Dogs Victoria - Track & Search

Scent Work is a sport that is based on the task of working detection dogs to locate an odour and communicate to the handler that the odour has been found. Detection is done in a variety of environments and often during changing conditions.

Scent Work is a positive, challenging activity that allows dogs the opportunity to use their strongest natural sense in a way that is fun, engaging, and builds and strengthens a foundation of trust between the handler and dog.

Dogs are trained to recognise specific odours, and to alert their handlers when the odours are detected. Dogs may paw, bark, point with their nose or body, sit, lie down, or use any other non-destructive behaviour to communicate the location of the odour. Handlers take their dogs through a search area which may be set up in a variety of environments.

Go to Dogs Victoria - Scent Work 

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