UKC obedience
Obedience events test the training of dogs as they perform a series of exercises
at the command of their handler. There are several levels of competition,
ranging from basic commands such as "sit," "come" and "heel" to scent
discrimination and directed retrieves over jumps. The classes are further
divided by the experience of the handler as well. All dogs start their
competition with a perfect score of 200, and points are deducted according to
the performance of dog and handler. Obedience events offer an opportunity for
the handler and dog to form a special bond of trust unequaled in other events.
Basic Ring Manners
Basic good manners are expected of all dogs at a UKC obedience trial. All dogs should be on a leash except when in the ring in a class or exercise where the dog is required to be off the leash. Every dog must enter and leave the obedience ring on a leash.
Dogs that bark during or between the exercises can be penalized. The degree of penalty depends on the frequency of barking.
Dogs that soil the ring will not receive a qualifying score but may be allowed to continue the exercises for practice at the discretion of the Judge.
A dog that leaves the ring during an exercise must not receive a qualifying score but may be allowed to continue the exercises for practice at the discretion of the Judge. A dog that leaves the ring between exercises must be given a major deduction.
Novice Competition/United Companion Dog Title
Novice competition requires that your Dal demonstrate the basic rudiments of obedient behavior. Individual novice exercises including heeling on lead with an honor dog, figure eight heeling on lead, heeling off lead, recall over a high jump, and an "honor" down. An honor down means that your Dal will complete his/her down stay (with you in the ring) while the next dog completes its on lead heeling pattern. Sit stays are done as a group exercise.
Open Competition/United Companion Dog Excellent Title
Open competition ask a bit more of your Dal. All heeling is done off lead, including the figure eight. Rather than a recall over the high jump, your Dal will be asked to "drop" midway back on the recall. In UKC competition, you may give both a hand and a verbal command to drop and a steward will walk past your dog while he/she is in the dropped position. Two different retrieves are included; a retrieve on the flat and a retrieve over the high jump. Your Dal must go over the jump on both the trip out to get the dumbbell and the trip back to return to you.
Utility Competition/United Utility Dog Title
The Utility competition allows you and your Dal to demonstrate advanced obedience skills. Utility exercises are much more complex than either Novice or Open exercises. In the signal exercise you will heel, stand and leave your dog using only hand signals. After crossing the ring without your Dal, you will then use hand signals to "drop" your dog to a down position, sit them up from the down position and then to recall and finish. During this time, the you are across the ring and using only hand signals to communicate with the dog. The scent exercise tests your Dal's nose. Five articles (generally small dumbbells) are used. Only one will be handled by the owner at the start of this exercise, while the remaining four are touched/handled by the steward. All five articles are then placed in the center of the ring and your Dal will be sent to locate and retrieve th the one that you have "scented." The articles are numbered to make sure that your Dal has retrieved the proper article. During the directed signal retrieve exercise, your Dal will be asked to move out away from you and sit at your signal and then retrieve a specific glove that you indicate. Three gloves are placed in the ring; one each to your left and right at a 45 angle from you and one straight out in front of you. The left and right gloves are closer than the center glove. At a signal from the judge, your Dal is sent towards a spot midway between you and the glove. As your Dal reaches the spot that has been indicated by the judge, you give them the command to sit (this is somewhat like the reverse of the Open level drop on recall). After completing the sit, upon a signal from the judge, you send your Dal to retrieve a specific glove. The last Utility exercise is directed jumping. At a signal from the judge, you'll send your Dal straight out to the opposite side of the ring, where you'll ask him/her to sit. Once seated, you'll use a hand signal to send them to either a bar or a high jump. These jumps are located midway across the ring to the right and left of where the dog is sitting.
Common Themes
For all obedience exercise, there are some common themes. At the conclusion of every exercise, your Dal is asked to "finish" or come back around into heel position. This can be done by going around behind you from right to left, or by doing a "swing" finish and circling on your left side to return to heel position. In Open and Utility competition, you are not allowed to touch your dog to guide him from one exercise location to the next. Although you may gently guide the dog by the collar in Novice, if you plan to continue to advanced work, this is a habit you may not want to build.
All in all, obedience can be a lot of fun for both you and your Dal. It gives you the chance to demonstrate just how smart our spotted friends really are. Dalmatians learn much better using positive training methods, so it is generally recommended to break down each exercise into smaller component parts and reward your Dal as he/she learns each step. Then as the step are put together to build the complete exercise, you can gradually begin to wean away the rewards until you are rewarding with an ear rub or a "good dog" at the successful conclusion of each exercise and then a food reward after the entire performance is complete.
Basic Ring Manners
Basic good manners are expected of all dogs at a UKC obedience trial. All dogs should be on a leash except when in the ring in a class or exercise where the dog is required to be off the leash. Every dog must enter and leave the obedience ring on a leash.
Dogs that bark during or between the exercises can be penalized. The degree of penalty depends on the frequency of barking.
Dogs that soil the ring will not receive a qualifying score but may be allowed to continue the exercises for practice at the discretion of the Judge.
A dog that leaves the ring during an exercise must not receive a qualifying score but may be allowed to continue the exercises for practice at the discretion of the Judge. A dog that leaves the ring between exercises must be given a major deduction.
Novice Competition/United Companion Dog Title
Novice competition requires that your Dal demonstrate the basic rudiments of obedient behavior. Individual novice exercises including heeling on lead with an honor dog, figure eight heeling on lead, heeling off lead, recall over a high jump, and an "honor" down. An honor down means that your Dal will complete his/her down stay (with you in the ring) while the next dog completes its on lead heeling pattern. Sit stays are done as a group exercise.
Open Competition/United Companion Dog Excellent Title
Open competition ask a bit more of your Dal. All heeling is done off lead, including the figure eight. Rather than a recall over the high jump, your Dal will be asked to "drop" midway back on the recall. In UKC competition, you may give both a hand and a verbal command to drop and a steward will walk past your dog while he/she is in the dropped position. Two different retrieves are included; a retrieve on the flat and a retrieve over the high jump. Your Dal must go over the jump on both the trip out to get the dumbbell and the trip back to return to you.
Utility Competition/United Utility Dog Title
The Utility competition allows you and your Dal to demonstrate advanced obedience skills. Utility exercises are much more complex than either Novice or Open exercises. In the signal exercise you will heel, stand and leave your dog using only hand signals. After crossing the ring without your Dal, you will then use hand signals to "drop" your dog to a down position, sit them up from the down position and then to recall and finish. During this time, the you are across the ring and using only hand signals to communicate with the dog. The scent exercise tests your Dal's nose. Five articles (generally small dumbbells) are used. Only one will be handled by the owner at the start of this exercise, while the remaining four are touched/handled by the steward. All five articles are then placed in the center of the ring and your Dal will be sent to locate and retrieve th the one that you have "scented." The articles are numbered to make sure that your Dal has retrieved the proper article. During the directed signal retrieve exercise, your Dal will be asked to move out away from you and sit at your signal and then retrieve a specific glove that you indicate. Three gloves are placed in the ring; one each to your left and right at a 45 angle from you and one straight out in front of you. The left and right gloves are closer than the center glove. At a signal from the judge, your Dal is sent towards a spot midway between you and the glove. As your Dal reaches the spot that has been indicated by the judge, you give them the command to sit (this is somewhat like the reverse of the Open level drop on recall). After completing the sit, upon a signal from the judge, you send your Dal to retrieve a specific glove. The last Utility exercise is directed jumping. At a signal from the judge, you'll send your Dal straight out to the opposite side of the ring, where you'll ask him/her to sit. Once seated, you'll use a hand signal to send them to either a bar or a high jump. These jumps are located midway across the ring to the right and left of where the dog is sitting.
Common Themes
For all obedience exercise, there are some common themes. At the conclusion of every exercise, your Dal is asked to "finish" or come back around into heel position. This can be done by going around behind you from right to left, or by doing a "swing" finish and circling on your left side to return to heel position. In Open and Utility competition, you are not allowed to touch your dog to guide him from one exercise location to the next. Although you may gently guide the dog by the collar in Novice, if you plan to continue to advanced work, this is a habit you may not want to build.
All in all, obedience can be a lot of fun for both you and your Dal. It gives you the chance to demonstrate just how smart our spotted friends really are. Dalmatians learn much better using positive training methods, so it is generally recommended to break down each exercise into smaller component parts and reward your Dal as he/she learns each step. Then as the step are put together to build the complete exercise, you can gradually begin to wean away the rewards until you are rewarding with an ear rub or a "good dog" at the successful conclusion of each exercise and then a food reward after the entire performance is complete.