Obedience key at rally
SAXONBURG — Whether it's for a puppy or an adult canine, proper training can lead to a lifetime relationship between master and pet.
That was apparent in comments from some of the more than 25 dog owners who gathered at Cooper Hall at Roebling Park over the weekend for the 38th annual obedience and rally trials hosted by the Butler Dog Training Association.
Dari Harding of Butler owns an 8-year-old French Brittany named Kami. But French Brittanys are not an AKC-recognized breed, so instead, Kami is registered with the AKC as an All-American Canine Companion, which allowed her to compete at the association's show.
French Brittanys were bred for hunting, and that's part of why Harding began training Kami in the first place, she said.
“We've been really seriously training for five years,” Harding, now 66, said. “But I couldn't live with her if I did not (train her). She's really high energy. She's a hunting dog, and I don't hunt so she needed a job essentially.”
The event centered on an obedience trial and an obedience rally trial.
In rally trials, the dogs have a varied course to complete, typically with 10 to 20 exercises that test how well the dog completes the task and how well the owner and dog work together, said Nancy Kieffer, association trial chairman.
Some of the tasks can include jumps, retrieving objects and following basic commands like sit and stay. Novice dogs are led through the course on a loose leash, but those at the advanced and excellent level are off-leash for the trial, she said.
In order for a dog to qualify as a novice title dog, it must receive a minimum score three times, under at least two different judges, with a 70 out of 100 points as the qualifying score, Kieffer said.
In regular obedience trials, the dogs do similar tasks in a set routine, with those at the novice-level completing half the course on a leash and half off-leash, according to Kieffer.
Essentially, the entire purpose of the event is to help dog trainers get a qualifying score, she said.
“People come here because they're trying to get a qualifying score,” she said. “In the obedience world, that's a lot.”
Regardless of whether the qualification is at the novice level or an advanced one, “it's a wonderful thing,” she said.A wonderful thing indeed, especially for owner Rick Hood of Gibsonia. Hood's dog, a 4-year-old German shepherd named Timo, received his last needed qualifying score on Saturday. Timo also did perfectly during a trial where the owners order the dogs to stay in a sitting position while they leave the building for three minutes. The dogs cannot move and have to wait until the owners return and tell them to move.While such a trick can be stressful for inexperienced dogs, it's also up to the trainer to make sure they exude confidence, Kieffer said.“If the handler is nervous, it goes the whole way down the leash to the dog,” she said, noting that she has seen some dogs get up from the sitting position before the owner returns, something she says is rare or even unheard of with well-trained dogs.Of course, some breeds take to obedience training quicker than others, such as those that are bred for herding and hunting. Specifically, border collies and Australian shepherds are some of the more common dogs in the Butler area since they generally take to training well, Kieffer said. While some hunting dogs are good with training, others are not.But even if a breed is supposedly good to train, it all depends on the individual dog and trainer.“All dogs train differently,” Kieffer said. “Even two dogs of the same breed will train differently.”However, purebred dogs are the most commonly used for obedience shows, Kieffer said.“Most people have been showing a certain breed for years, and they just like that specific breed,” she said.One of the tricks to training dogs, even those not specifically bred for herding or hunting, may be to start young.For Cathy Yunker of Leeper, Clarion County, starting early was key to training 15-month-old Diamond, a blue Doberman. At such a young age, Diamond has been in two competitions, scoring a 98 of 100 and being among the top three dogs of her previous show, Yunker said.But then again, Kieffer said that one benefit of training an older dog is that the “puppy craziness” has died down, she said.No matter the age of the dog, many times it's simple obedience training around the house that can get a person hooked on dog training, Kieffer said.“(Trainers) start by going to obedience classes. Most of us just want a dog that's easy to live with, and then they get the (training) bug,” she said.In fact, dog training has its own perks for the owners as well, according to Harding, who admits she is always thinking about new exercises and planning months in advance when she's not training with Kami a few times a week.“It's a good sport,” she said. “It keeps you thinking, keeps you moving.”For those individuals who want to see what dog training is all about, Harding said the best place to start is with beginner obedience classes, which the Butler Dog Training Association offers, with information available on the association's website. butlerdogtraining.com.
