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Location: yorkshire, UK
Joined: Sep 2012
Posts: 80
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Working Trials
Just for anyone who may be interested.
Working trials is a KC competitive dog sport, it is open to any type or breed of dog, they need to be registered on the KC breed or activity register.
You and your dog are competing against the judges test, so to progress into the next stake you need to qualify, which means you have to gain 80% of the points available overall and at least 70% of the points in each section. Rosettes are also awarded up to 4th place. When you have progressed to TD or PD Championship if you win you are awarded the Ticket, 2 tickets make a WTCH.
Qualifying your dog in CDex, UDex, WDex, TDex or PDex enables you to use the letters after their name. The exercises Nosework - Tracking, the dog has to follow where a person (tracklayer) has walked between half an hour and 3 hours previously (depending on the stake), finding articles left by the tracklayer. The dog will be marked on how accurately they track. Tracks are approx half a mile long and have corners and angles, not just a straight line. Tracking surface can be grass, wheat, rape, plough or any other crop. Search - Small articles, are placed in an square area, 15yds X 15yds or 25yds X 25yds (depending on the stake), the dog then has to locate them and retrieve them back to the handler who must work the dog from out side the square. Agitlity 3 foot clear jump, 9 foot long jump and six foot scale, height reductions up to UDex for small dogs, they are also reduced for the intro stake. All jumps must be done under control, the dog must go over the scale wait in a position you have previously nominated (sit Down or stand), then return over the scale when commanded. Control On lead heelwork at 3 paces, slow, normal and fast, through left, right about turns and halts. (CD & Intro only) Off lead heelwork, as above but in all stakes Sit Stay 2 minutes handler out of sight (CD only) 1 minute for intro.
Down Stay 10 minutes handler out of sight (all stakes- 5 Mins for intro) Retrieve a dumbbell (except PD & TD Stakes) Speak PD & TD Stakes only Formal recall (CD & intro Only) Steadiness to gun all stakes except CD & intro Sendaway To send the dog out to a point nominated by the judge, which may or may not have a marker ie a cone or pole, in TD & PD there will also be redirections, sending the dog left, right and back.
Then of course the is the PD stake which has loads of other exercises in the bitework/manwork.
For a full run down of stakes, exercises and rules and regs see the kennel club website