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Obedience
Specialty Results
 The sport of canine obedience is like no other
discipline in the canine world. All forms of dog training require
teamwork, but no other is as precise as heeling in the obedience
ring. It demonstrates teamwork akin to dancing and can be matched
by nothing else. Every move you make, from an about turn to a
slight shift in your eyes, is reflected in the eyes and subtle
movement of your dancing partner, your dog. The overall relationship
you have with your partner will determine your success. You can
qualify by knowing the steps, but when it's done right, people
will stop, smile and watch in amazement. Such teamwork is a reflection
of the relationship between dog and handler, far surpassing mere
obedience. It is a relationship that shines brightly with each
dancing step. In the past few years, the AKC has made some positive
changes to its obedience program, including the Canine
Good Citizen Certificate and Rally
Obedience.
Yankee Golden Retriever Club sponsors two American
Kennel Club sanctioned breed and obedience matches each year,
one in the fall and one in the spring. The club awards prizes
and trophies at its matches. In addition, the club puts on an
independent specialty show and obedience trial (Golden Retrievers
only), licensed by the AKC, which is ordinarily held each year
on the last Friday in May. Titles and legs toward titles can
only be earned at AKC licensed shows.
Goldens & Obedience
Golden Retrievers are responsive, intelligent
dogs, and are known for their natural desire to please. These
traits help make Golden Retrievers excel in obedience trial competition.
Goldens are consistently one of the top scoring obedience breeds
each year.
About Obedience Competition
 Obedience competition was developed to
promote better canine citizenship, and the exercises were derived
from what was taught to war canines, especially during WWII.
The exercises for each level of obedience have a use in everyday
life; they are not tricks.
In the Novice class, the easiest titling level,
the "Heel" exercise requires that the dog remain close
to the handler's left side when walking at any speed and sit
promptly when the handler halts. The "Figure 8" heeling
pattern demonstrates that the dog will do the same even when
weaving through a crowd of people or around objects. The "Stand
for Examination" keeps your dog standing quietly while you
may stop to greet a friend, and shows that the dog will allow
strangers to approach and touch him. The "Recall" is
most important for your dog's safety; it must be trained to come
instantly whenever it is called. The "Long Sit" and "Long
Down" keep the dog out of trouble when the handler has other
things to pay attention to.
In the advanced levels, Open and Utility, off-lead
work, hand signals, jumping, retrieving, directional commands
and scent discrimination of the upper levels simply further these
concepts. The titles awarded demonstrate the goals of obedience:
Companion Dog, Companion Dog Excellent, Utility Dog, Utility
Dog Excellent, and Obedience Trial Champion. A different form
of obedience training leads to the Canine Good Citizen Certificate.
Dogs earning the CGC have demonstrated appropriate manners and
reactions in everyday situations.
 Each dog and owner are judged
individually through a set of exercises, and then sits and
downs are judged in groups. There
are three levels of obedience competition. Each level has routines
of increasing difficulty. The classes are Novice A & B,
for the Companion Dog title, (Novice A is for owners who have
never
titled in obedience before), Open A & B, for the Companion
Dog Excellent title (Open A is for dogs who have not yet earned
the CDX title; Open B is for CDX and UD dogs competing for
Obedience Trial Championship and Utility Dog Excellent titles),
and Utility,
for the Utility Dog title.
To attain an obedience title, the
dog and handler must successfully complete the routine for
that level three times, under three
different judges. Each successful attempt is called a "leg." Three "legs" equals
a title. The titles must be earned in ascending order; the
Novice (CD) title must have been won before the dog may compete
in the
Open (CDX) class and the CDX title must have been won before
the dog may compete in Utility (UD).
 A perfect score in obedience is 200 points.
Each dog and handler enter the ring with 200 points, and the
judge takes points or fractions of points off for errors of either
dog or handler. A passing score is 170, provided that no exercise
has been scored down to less than 50% of the allotted points
for that exercise and that no exercise is scored zero. (Getting
up or lying down on the long sit is an automatic zero, as is
sitting up or standing during the long down, or failing to come
on the recall.) Thus it is possible for many dogs to qualify
in each level and still award placements to the top four highest
scoring dogs. If two dogs receive the same score, they have a "run-off" where
they go through the exercises again and are rescored to determine
placement. While many handlers enter at competency, simply to
earn the titles, many compete for high scores. Most trials offer
a trophy or special award for "High in Trial," given
to the dog from any of the classes whose score is closest to
200. The top dogs are exceptional in attitude and stamina, are
soundly built, in peak condition, and can handle the stress of
competition. Their owners have trained long and hard, with regularity,
consistency and dedication, to give their dogs the winning edge.
 Dogs
with the Utility title can continue to compete for the title
of Obedience Trial Champion, or OTCh. To earn this title,
a Utility Dog must earn 100 points in Open B and Utility classes,
with at least 3 first-place wins, one in each class and the
third in either class. Points are given for first thru fourth
places,
depending on the number of dogs entered in that class. The
Utility Dog Excellent title is awarded to any dog who qualifies
in both
Open B and the Utility class at ten different trials, regardless
of placement or high scores.
We've provided additional information on the
following topics:
For more information on the subject of obedience,
visit the following American Kennel Club links:
Obedience
Section
Canine
Good Citizen Program
Obedience
Rules and Regulations
Rally
Obedience Section
Rally
Regulation
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