NOTE: STAYS HAVE BEEN PERMANENTLY REMOVED
FROM ALL CLASS LEVELS FROM JANUARY 2022
There are usually only two people in each ring you go into .. the judge (who will usually be carrying a clipboard or a notepad) and the ring steward or caller steward. However as you move up the classes there may be a 'Scribe' in the ring too who notes all the judges marks so the judge can fully concentrate on watch the round.
The judge is the one who will be marking your round.
The Ring Steward will tell you where to start, what to do and where to finish (see individual exercise pages for what you might be told).
The judge is the one who will be marking your round.
The Ring Steward will tell you where to start, what to do and where to finish (see individual exercise pages for what you might be told).
- Always verbally thank the judge and steward before leaving the ring
In the lower classes you will probably be about 3 minutes in the ring
The time in the ring increases as you go up the classes and in championship C you are about 10 minutes in the ring
The time in the ring increases as you go up the classes and in championship C you are about 10 minutes in the ring
You need to find your class ring and your stay ring.
- All your Class level tests are done in the Class ring.
- Your class ring work is either done early in your pre-drawn running order or if you don't have a running order then it can be done during the day when you choose.
Remember ...
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Examples of Ring Numbers being displayed |
Other than in Introductory, you cannot take a toy or food into the ring
(even in zipped up pockets) if you are competing.
If you are found to take in toys or food during competition
you could be reported to the Kennel Club for disciplinary matters.
You can with judges permission take silent toys in to do training rounds (above Introductory level).
(even in zipped up pockets) if you are competing.
If you are found to take in toys or food during competition
you could be reported to the Kennel Club for disciplinary matters.
You can with judges permission take silent toys in to do training rounds (above Introductory level).
- Check your ring(s) regularly to see when they might be ready for you to work and ensure you are ready with your dog.
- If you have entered more than one class, give your dog a break between classes and don't run from one class to another.
- If you have noted that one of your classes has a small entry (say 25 ish) then work that one first as that class will finish early in the day.
- It is not good to keep the judge waiting for dogs to work, so don't leave working your classes to late in the day - but judges will usually always wait a short while whilst you 'warm up' your dog prior to coming in.
- It is certainly bad manners to be the last dog to work and to not be waiting at the ringside to work - ie the judge has to sit doing nothing and wait ages for the last dog to come to the ring to work.
- Remember your toys/treats to reward your dog when you leave the ring - always put these rewards well away from the entrance ring and ensure you do not reward close to other dogs either working in another ring or waiting to go into your ring.
Ensure your dog has gone to 'both' toilets before going into
the class ring or stay ring to compete.
the class ring or stay ring to compete.
Ensure the lead you use for Heel on Lead is plenty long enough to allow a 'loop' of loose lead
to hang below your dog.
The lead must never be tight on the dog during heelwork
If it goes intentionally tight (by you tightening/checking with it) or
unintentionally tight (as dog moves away from you) then high marks will be lost.
A common fault in the lower classes is the lead tightening because its held in the right hand and then the arm moves out during the heelwork causing a tight lead
- so ensure you 'anchor' the hand you are holding the lead in
(maybe holding onto your clothing) so you cannot unintentionally tighten the lead
to hang below your dog.
The lead must never be tight on the dog during heelwork
If it goes intentionally tight (by you tightening/checking with it) or
unintentionally tight (as dog moves away from you) then high marks will be lost.
A common fault in the lower classes is the lead tightening because its held in the right hand and then the arm moves out during the heelwork causing a tight lead
- so ensure you 'anchor' the hand you are holding the lead in
(maybe holding onto your clothing) so you cannot unintentionally tighten the lead
Once you are at the Ringside ready to work ...
- If there is a scoreboarder (ie someone sitting by the scoresheet at the ring entrance), check with them to see how many people might be waiting to go into the ring, if they have a list of people waiting to work - join that list (ie give the scoreboarder your dogs number).
- If there is no scoreboarder then look on the ringside table and there might be a written note on a table sheet showing the numbers of people waiting to work, add your number to the list so you keep your turn - also ask people hanging around the ring if they are waiting and hopefully you can then work out when it will be your turn.
- A good tip is to find out what numbered dog is going in before you and then look for that dog outside the ring, so you will know which dog you are following.
- If the list of dogs waiting to work is very long, then put your dogs number down, but if its a hot day it might be best to return your dog to the car to rest before going in .. but of course you can walk back to see how fast the other dogs are coming out of the ring, so you can get your dog when there are about 3 dogs to work before you.
Practice outside the ring as much as you think your dog needs before you go in to compete
- Its quite an art knowing how much or how little to do with your dog before going in, too much and the dog may get bored, too little and the dog may lose focus.
- Remember to reward your dog for all the good things it does.
- You can play with, motivate, reward and 'warm up' as you would in training, but you must be aware of others competing in nearby rings or those passing by you.
- Keep the noise levels from you and your dog to the minimum, and ensure any use of toy/food does not distract others (noisy toys cannot be used).
- The amount you can do is often limited by the space available at each particular show.
- Try to go into the ring fresh from your warm up, standing and waiting may cause your dog to lose its focus.
One of the ring officials will call your dogs number that you have either given to the scoreboarder or put on the 'waiting to work list' when they are ready for you.
- It is quite natural to be nervous, especially the first time in the ring, but its so important to try not to be as nerves can really affect how a dog works.
- Your dog will be relying on your for encouragement just the same as in training, and if you change your manner this could make the dog not like competing in the ring.
- Maybe buy some 'Rescue Remedy' and take a bit before competing if you will be nervous .. it might help!
- Most of all try to think 'this is our moment' and enjoy the thrill of completing a round with your beloved dog.
Going in .. Basic Overview of a round (Pre Beginners used as an example) ...
Pre-Beginners involves training your dog to be able to perform heelwork (on and off lead) (see 'What is Heelwork' page for more information) and a recall (see 'What is Recall' page for more information), all within the restricted confines of a roped out 'ring' area, at a show venue.
For this you will be in the ring with your dog with just the judge and steward.
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The above is not only an example of heelwork, but you can clearly see the judge (with clipboard) following the dog and handler whilst doing heelwork. This is Gail working her Finnish Lapphund. |
- As you progress up the classes extra exercises are added and usually the 'difficulty' of the heelwork pattern increases (see 'Class Levels' section)
Video Example of a 'Beginner' Competitive Round ..
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This is a Youtube example of a Beginner Round with John Johnson and his Rottweiller 'Prince'. The length of the round and complexity of the turns totally depends on the judge. Youtube posted with permission of Julie & John Johnson - many thanks |
If it Goes 'Wrong' in the Ring ..
- If your dog runs out of the ring - then obviously do your best to call it back before it runs into other rings, go after the dog and make it clear to others in the dogs path that it needs catching - the dog leaving the ring can be a disqualification from competing in the class.
- Always ensure your dog has gone to the toilet before competing - but if your dog goes to the toilet in the ring - ensure you have bags with you and pick it up - and also please offer to help the judge and steward clear up the mess by offering to go and get a bucket of water from the show organisers. This has to be cleared up well otherwise it can affect/put off other dogs in the ring.
- If your dog 'goes off' in the ring, then you might want to change your competitive round into a training one (see below) - just say to the judge asking if its OK to training from that point onwards.
- If your dog completely switches off you may also choose not to continue in the test any longer - just say to the judge you would like to 'retire' and level the ring (still thanking the judge though).
Can I .. Train or Play with My Dog in the Ring?
In Introductory yes its part of the class (see details in Class Levels page)
- If you want to train, play and motivate your dog in Pre-Beginners upwards then you need to ask the judge for permission to train and to take a toy into the ring
- Always remember to use the toy to reward all good bits your dog does, do not just hang onto the toy till the end.
- Be aware of others in nearby rings and be considerate in noise and excitement levels during a training round.
- If you choose to train your dog, the round will not be marked by the judge, and does not count as a competitive round and will be shown on the scoreboard as 'NFC' or 'Withdrawn'.
- You cannot later go back into the ring and compete in the same class. You only get one 'go' in the ring at each class level you have entered.
The Judging ..
- It is very important to understand that each round is individually designed by the judge.
- Therefore every round you do will probably be different, the order of exercises might be different, although it is often usual to do Heel on lead, then Recall, then Heel Free in the lower classes.
- Equally important is that every judge scores a round differently. Some judges mark very high, some mark very low. This means that sometimes you might lose 10 points on a round and still win, yet on another day under a different judge losing 10 points would not even gain you a rosette.
- Judges conform to the Kennel Club judging rules, but they also have their own ideas of the 'perfect' round and this is what they are looking for whilst judging. They deduct marks for faults they see as not matching their 'perfect' round. Opinions on style and motivation vary from judge to judge, which adds to the challenge.
- The beauty of judges having individual opinions on your dogs round makes this sport so interesting and challenging, and you need to be prepared for ups and downs across all your days at shows.
- Some judges write their marks on a sheet or notepad, so there would be notes on what you have been marked for. However some judges use a 'counter' machine and just put down totals for exercises.
- With the judges permission you can look at your sheet after you have been judged, some sheets will tell you more than others, and some have abbreviations for faults marked which you might have to ask what they mean. You cannot keep your sheet.
- Some days you may come home with a rosette from all classes you have entered, another day you will come home empty handed, this is the nature of our sport and you need to be able to go home thinking you had a good day out and NEVER EVER be upset or angry with your dogs performance. It is our choice to do this not theirs.
Once you have completed the ring work with the judge and steward, if the judge has a scoreboarder then the judges sheet for your dog will be handed to the scorer who will add your marks to the main scoresheet (see example below) OR if no scorer the judge will put your score on when they get a break from judging dogs.
Return later after giving your dog some good rewards to see if your score has been added.
Return later after giving your dog some good rewards to see if your score has been added.
Understanding the Scoresheet (please ignore stay colums as they are no longer part of Obedience competitions) ...
See 'What to Expect at a Show' page for more information on the scoresheet, booking in and running orders. See also 'Awards' page for information on what you might win and 'titles' available for your dog.
- The Ring Number column is where your dogs number is written (by the scoreboarder or judge down south, but can sometimes be written by you at more Northern shows).
- The first 10 dogs are pre-drawn dogs to work (called the Running Order or Draw) all others can choose where they work - the only exception to this is in the highest class (Championship C) where ALL dogs entered have a compulsory draw, in this class they cannot choose when to work.
- The other columns are the marks you have lost for each exercise in your class with a sub total before the stay exercise and a final score total under 'Total Lost' - the lowest 'Total Lost' score is the best.
- Where is states a 'C' or '0' or a dash that indicates a perfect (zero) score.
- The Position column shows if you have a rosette and what place.
- At the top right corner of this sheet is the judges 'Lunch' time, which is worth noting so you don't come over to work your round when the judge has gone to lunch.
- In this example you can see that dog number 512 (who worked 19th) won the class (came 1st) losing just 2 points and dog 492 (who worked 15th) came 6th losing 5 1/4 marks.
- Dogs 148 & 297 have 'withdrawn' written against their dogs number, this means that they stopped competing in the class (as it might have gone wrong for them) and so the word 'withdrawn' is added to their scoresheet listing - dogs with 'withdrawn' might have opted to 'train' their dog in the ring (judges permission needed to do this).
- The long line across means that dogs 216 and 75 did not come forward to compete in the running order (ie within the initial pre-drawn dogs).
What if there are several low scores that are the same ...
Once all dogs have worked the placings are worked out (usually late morning or early afternoon in the lower classes).
There are usually 1st to 6th places on offer (sometimes more at some shows).
If there are a few dogs that have the same lowest score marks, then those dogs will have to (if the handler wishes to) do a 'run off' for a place rosette.
For example (based on rosettes to 6th place) - If there were two dogs on a Total Lost of '2' next dog was on 3, next on 4, then three other dogs all on a score of '5' .. then run offs take place to 'split' the dogs on the same scores .. so:
There are usually 1st to 6th places on offer (sometimes more at some shows).
If there are a few dogs that have the same lowest score marks, then those dogs will have to (if the handler wishes to) do a 'run off' for a place rosette.
For example (based on rosettes to 6th place) - If there were two dogs on a Total Lost of '2' next dog was on 3, next on 4, then three other dogs all on a score of '5' .. then run offs take place to 'split' the dogs on the same scores .. so:
- The two dogs on '2' (and therefore both laying in first place) normally (but not essential) have to do the entire round again to 'split' them, the one with the best score from this 'run off' will receive first place, with the other dog gaining 2nd place.
- The dog on '3' will receive 3rd place.
- The dog on '4' will receive 4th place.
- The three dogs on '5' points will run off for 5th and 6th with one dog sadly not being placed - however dogs running off for a place lower than 1st will NOT usually be required to do the entire round again, they will just have one (or maybe two) exercises from the original test to repeat to enable to judge to sort the placings. The exercises are at the judges choice, could be retrieve (in beginners), or recall or even heelwork.
Presentation of Rosettes - How / Where ...
If you have had a great day and have a rosette, these are usually presented in the CLASS RING at the end of the day after all the judging (and possible run offs) have been done. However at some shows there is a 'presentation area' away from the rings where the prizes are given out. It is usual for people outside the ring to 'clap' and 'cheer' during the presentation as long as this won't disturb other people still working in nearby rings.
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Example line up - this is from
Thurrock Special Pre-Beginner Class 2013 |
- It is usual to attend the presentation with your dog - however if your dog is not comfortable in very close proximity of other dogs or people, then collect the award without your dog.
- The Ring Steward will call out the placed dog numbers in order. If you hear your number then enter the ring, your Rosette and Prize Cards (and trophy if the show gives one) will be handed to you by the judge.
- You then take your place in a 'line up' of the placed dogs and handlers.
- It is good manners to shake the hand of all other handlers in the line up saying 'well done' or similar.
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Dog Shows, Dog Sports, Dog Activities, The Kennel Club, Heelwork, Retrieve, Recall, Sendaway, Scent, Distant Control