12-11-2010

AKC Novice Test

Pattern Diagrams and Commands

Used by the Judge & Handler
Prepared by Mark Plonsky, Ph.D.
Copyright © 1996

The Novice test consists of 6 exercises as follows:

1. HEEL ON LEASH & FIGURE 8

A. HEEL ON LEASH

Figure 1. A Typical Novice Heeling Pattern.
Note that this pattern correlates with the commands given in the table below.

B. FIGURE 8

Figure 2. Schematic of the Figure 8 Exercise.
Note that this pattern correlates with the commands given in the table below.

2. STAND FOR EXAMINATION

3. HEEL FREE

This is performed identically to the heel on leash exercise except that no leash is used.

4. RECALL

5. LONG SIT

6. LONG DOWN

3 minute

OVERVIEW OF THE AKC OBEDIENCE EXERCISES

The Obedience Regulations may be obtained for $1 by writing to the AKC. Sometimes they are handed out at shows. Details on deductions, rules, and so on are given in this book. The regulations were last updated January 1994. This is a bright red booklet, given to bleeding pink if wet, so keeping it in a plastic baggie is advised.

Note: jump heights and lengths vary according to the entered dog’s breed and height. Dogs may be measured at the ring.

Novice (A/B)
    Heel on Leash and Figure 8    – 40 pts
Stand for Examination         – 30
Heel Free                     – 40
Recall                        – 30
Long Sit                      – 30     (across ring, one minute)
Long Down                     – 30     (across ring, three minutes)
___
Maximum Total Score            200 pts

Open (A/B)
    Heel Free and Figure 8        – 40 pts
Drop on Recall                – 30
Retrieve on Flat              – 20
Retrieve over High Jump       – 30
Broad Jump                    – 20
Long Sit                      – 30      (out of sight, three minutes)
Long Down                     – 30      (out of sight, five minutes)
___
Maximum Total Score            200 pts

Utility (A/B)
    Signal Exercise               – 40 pts
Scent Discrimination #1       – 30      (leather articles)
Scent Discrimination #2       – 30      (metal articles)
Directed Retrieve             – 30
Moving Stand and Examination  – 30
Directed Jumping              – 40
___
Maximum Total Score            200

Requirements for titles

Companion Dog (CD)

• Dog has no previous obedience title
• Dog earns three “legs” in the Novice Ring
• Each leg is a qualifying score (170 or more points, at least half the points earned in each exercise)

Companion Dog Excellent (CDX)

• Dog has CD
• Dog earns three “legs” in the Open Ring
• Each leg is a qualifying score (170 or more points, at least half the points earned in each exercise)

Utility Dog (UD)

• Dog has CDX
• Dog earns three “legs” in the Utility Ring
• Each leg is a qualifying score (170 or more points, at least half the points earned in each exercise)

Utility Dog Excellent (UDX)

• Dog has UD
• The UDX has 10 “legs”
• Each “leg” is earned by qualifying in both Open B and Utility B at the same show
• A qualifying score is 170 or more points and at least half the points earned on each exercise

Obedience Trial Championship (OTCH)

• Dog has UD
• Dog has 100 pts from Open/Utility (according to published point schedules, earnable only with first or second place scores)
• Dog must place first in Utility in an all breed obedience trial (no specialties) with at least 3 dogs in the competition.
• Dog must place first in Open in an all breed obedience trial (no specialties) with at least 6 dogs in the competition.
• Dog has an additional first place (total three) under the conditions of the above two bullets.
• Dog won the three first places under three different judges

Tracking is Obedience?

Historically, the original AKC Utility ring included a tracking exercise that was later removed from the set of required Utility exercises and formed the basis for today’s TD test. Because of this prior association, Tracking is considered a test of obedience, and the TD and TDX titles are considered to be obedience titles. This is also the reason that dogs with both UD/X and TD/X are able to combine them into special dual titles, including UDT, etc.

Agility is Not Obedience?

No. In the AKC, Agility is considered to be a performance event, and as such shares company with other performance trials such as Field Trials, Herding Trials, etc. This may or may not be true in other kennel clubs.

Additionally, some other events commonly associated with obedience, such as Freestyle, are not obedience though they are obviously derivative. Freestyle is frequently demonstrated at the Gaines Classics, UKC’s Top Gun, and other similar competitions. For more information about Freestyle, you can contact Heinz Pup-Peroni Canine Freestyle at PupFreSty@aol.com for more information.

Upcoming new things in AKC Obedience

From “Nola Ventura”
Subject Multiple Surface Tracking

I got this flyer from the WSOTC in Washington. The name has been changed again – originally it was like Variable ST but AKC changed it and who knows may still. This was sent to me earlier in the month. So they still had the idea of calling it VST.

“The AKC Obedience Department is working to develop a new tracking event: ‘Variable Surface Tracking’. The event can take place in a city, or parking lots, and in light industrial grounds. The track will be on grass areas about 50% of the time and on non-vegetated areas 50% of the time. Non-vegetated areas can include cement, asphalt and gravel surfaces such as driveways and parking lots. The track will be 600-800 yards, be 1-3 hours old, have 3-4 turns and 4 articles. The track will not have intentional cross-tracks, but natural cross traffic will be considered a part of the normal track.

Workshops are being held around the country to introduce this new event to the fancy and develop the rules do that it will become a practical and popular event once it is approved by the AKC Board of Directors. Attendance at one of these workshops is one requirement for grandfathering TDX judges to judge this event.

John Barnard, the head of AKC tracking, is a nationally recognized expert on tracking and scent work. He spent three decades with the Baltimore Police Department K-9 unit. During that time, he trained other law enforcement and national security officials in the intricacies of canine scent work and assisted several scientific studies concerning the use of dogs’ olfactory senses.”

12-14-10

Active vs. Reactive Dog Training.

Whenever we train a dog, we have two basic choices. To create an Active dog or a Reactive dog. An Active dog is one who knows that their behavior is driving the production of a reward and that the reward always comes through their handler.

An Active dog does not need to see the reward to perform a behavior. They understand how to push the right buttons (correct behavior) to drive the handler to produce a reward.  They trust the handler will provide a reward when the requested behavior is performed.

A Reactive dog on the other hand is a dog whose behavior is being driven by the reward itself. We teach them to be driven (perform a behavior) by that reward when the handler or trainer teases the dog with it .

An Active dog has a communication relationship with their handler while working. A Reactive dog has a relationship with their reward.

Look at this model of communication between a handler and an Active dog. It is the core of how a handler communicates with an Active dog from the dogs perspective:

1. They know a word, sound or hand signal, that predicts a behavior request
from the handler. (ie. sit,down,stand, come, whistle, hand signal)

2. They know a word or sound that releases them from a behavior
to access their reward. (ie. Yes, take it, clicker, ssst)

3. They know a word or sound that means you like what they are
doing, keep it up, hold that position.  (ie.  Good, brav)

4. They know a word or sound that means they are wrong, try
again. (ie. phui, a’a)

5. They know a word or sound that means the training or the
deployment is over a release command. (ie.  free)

A simple communication sytem which is based on Marker training is making dog training so much clearer for your dog to comprehend to learn new commands and progress in any area of work desired.

Positive Reinforcement: The dog receives something that he finds rewarding (food, toy) for performing a behavior. This makes him MORE likely to perform the behavior again.

Positive Punishment: The dog receives something that he finds aversive/uncomfortable (correction, water spray) for performing a behavior. This makes him LESS likely to perform the behavior again.

Negative Reinforcement: The dog is put in a position he finds uncomfortable (ear pinch, electric stim) until he performs a behavior. This makes him MORE likely to perform the behavior again.

Negative Punishment: The dog has access to something he finds rewarding, he performs a behavior his owner doesn’t want and the reward is taken away. This makes him LESS likely to perform the behavior again.

Disobedience – They are not excuting what we know they can perform very well at the level they are at.

Correction  – When a correction is taught effectively, a dog is under control of his corrections.  When a dog is under control of a correction, he does not want a correction.   Therefore, to avoid a correction he must do the exercise.

Work together with Drive –  To many people fight against the dogs drives.  When we do this we always loose.
Break down each exercise and teach them in a simple way how to get success.