by Chris Robinson
At some point, usually within a few weeks after completing their championship or the end of their career as a special, after a few days of playing with their toys and lounging on the couch, your dogs are going to give you the same sort of look you get from your school-age children in August. You know the one I mean. It’s the look the kids give you just before they whine, "There’s nothing to do! I’m bored!"
Like the children, if you don’t find something for your bored dog to do, they’ll likely get into mischief and it is almost always costly mischief either in terms of the price of repairs or the amount of extra work it creates for you, or both. Unlike your kids, the dogs won’t automatically reject all of your suggestions. The dogs will be happy with whatever you do. One thing about dogs is that they are easy to please. Mine, for example, think it’s a great day if I stand on the front steps and throw a few bumpers for them.
All dogs need some sort of job whether they’re high-powered sporting or herding dogs or a tiny, companionable lapsitter. Indeed, one of the reasons many dogs wind up in shelters or rescue situations is because their original owners were unprepared for that very fact. So, what’s the canine job market like these days? Well, unlike our current economic situation, the dogs’ job market is booming and many of these jobs are closely related to the breed’s historical purpose.
Sporting Breeds, Standard Poodles and Airedales
The group with the most options available for field work is the sporting group. For many sporting breeds, field trials have been around almost since the first registry was formed. However, in the last twenty-five years, another option has been on the table—hunt tests. The American Kennel Club, the United Kennel Club, through its Hunting Retriever Club, in the U.S. and the Canadian Kennel Club operate a hunt test program. In these programs, dogs do not have to beat other dogs but instead have to meet a standard of performance. These are pass/fail tests rather than win/lose events.
While most sporting breeds have always been eligible for these events, it took some intensive work and lobbying by the Standard Poodle folks to convince the American Kennel Club that these dogs, despite their designation as members of the non-sporting group, really and truly are retrievers to get their dogs included in the AKC hunt tests even though the breed has always been eligible for these events in Canada. Another sporting breed, the American Water Spaniel, was also excluded for years from the AKC’s test program simply because the parent club could not reach consensus as to whether the dogs should compete in the spaniel hunt tests or the retriever hunt tests. This issue has at long last been resolved and the AWS is now participating in AKC spaniel tests. Finally, after a long struggle for recognition as hunting dogs, Airedale Terriers will be eligible to participate in AKC spaniel hunting tests as of July 1, 2009. Airedales have been eligible for the CKC’s retriever working certificate tests for about two years and for HRC tests for several years.
If AKC or CKC field trials and AKC, CKC or UKC hunt testing programs are not what you want, there are other options. The North American Versatile Hunting Dog Association (NAVHDA) conducts a testing program and the National Shoot-to-Retrieve Association offers a field trial program for pointing breeds that very closely resembles actual bird hunting where you get to shoot the birds your dog points.
If you are looking for a good introduction to field work, many of the parent clubs still have working certificate programs which predated the hunt tests. Unlike the hunt tests which require multiple qualifying scores at each level, most of these working certificates need only a single passing grade to earn the title and are a good way to get started with field work. The CKC also has a working certificate program for retrievers which requires a single pass to earn any of the three working certificate titles and at the first level, the requirements are not as stringent as they are for the junior hunter tests.
In addition to these formal programs, you could also take your dog hunting. After all, that’s really what they were meant to do! But, you say, I’ve never even held a shotgun in my life. Fortunately for you, every state department of natural resources has a firearms safety program and virtually all have hunter education courses. As for teaching you to shoot, if you’ve never fired a shotgun, you are a gun instructor’s dream because you have no bad habits that he or she will have to undo. If you are female and worried about being taken lightly by some male shooting instructor, the Women’s Shooting Sports Foundation maintains a list of firearms instructors who are particularly good at teaching women to shoot. If you are concerned about learning how to hunt, an organization called Becoming an Outdoors-Woman can provide you with help in this area.
If you haven’t a clue how to teach your dog how to be a hunting dog, there are retriever, pointing breed and spaniel clubs all over the country and most have members who are more than willing to help novices learn how to play the game. The AKC, CKC and the HRC maintain lists of clubs holding hunt tests. Find one located near you, get in touch with their contact person and show up for a training event. If you don’t like what you see at one club or you don’t like how you are treated, find another one. Professional trainers in the area are frequent-ly members of these clubs and they can provide quality assistance for you. Also, there are some clubs that host training clinics each year where they bring in professional trainers to help you get started.
Once you and your dog learn how to hunt not only do you get to experience the pure pleasure of seeing your dog do what it was bred to do and loving every minute of it but the harvest of game birds is also pretty tasty table fare.
Hounds
There is a plethora of events and activities for sighthounds, including Italian Greyhounds from the toy group, ranging from lure coursing to oval track racing to straight track racing to open field coursing. The AKC and the CKC have field trials for sighthounds and the AKC has a lure coursing testing program. In addition, the American Sighthound Field Association has an extensive lure coursing program. The National Oval Track Racing Association is another program for sighthounds. The name of the association is pretty much self-explanatory. Finally, if you want your sighthound to do what it really was bred to do, there is open field coursing where the hounds hunt jackrabbits. This activity is primarily confined to the western states where jackrabbits are a nuisance and the states where live game coursing is legal.
For scenthounds, however, there are not nearly as many opportunities. The AKC and the UKC have field trials for Bassets, Beagles, Dachshunds and Coonhounds and Dachshunds compete in both the AKC and the CKC’s earthdog programs. There are also tracking tests available from the AKC, CKC and UKC. There are a few field testing programs available from some of the individual parent clubs. For example, if you have a Basset, the parent club has a hunting test program and if your dog is a Bloodhound, the parent club has a man trailing program.
Working dogs
There is a wide variety of activities available for working dog owners, although many of them in the U.S. are parent club programs. The Giant and Standard Schnauzers, Rottweilers, and Samoyed are eligible to compete in AKC herding events. The American Herding Breeds Association also allows Dobermans, Bernese Mountain Dogs, and Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs to compete in its events. The Australian Shepherd Club of America permits Rottweilers, Samoyed, and Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs in its stockdog program.
The Canadian Kennel Club has a Draft Dog/Sled Dog program and the United Kennel Club has a weight pulling program. The American Kennel Club has had a draft dog program under consideration for about two years but so far, at least, has failed to approve it. However, a number of parent clubs have draft dog programs among them the Newfoundland, Saint Bernard, Greater Swiss Mountain Dog, Bernese Mountain Dog, Mastiff, and Rottweiler clubs. In addition, the Siberian Husky, Alaskan Malamute, and Samoyed Clubs have sled dog and packing programs. The Newfoundland, and the Portuguese Water Dog Clubs also have water rescue or water dog testing programs. The UKC through its affiliate Service Dogs of America has a Dog Sport program that includes police work and breeds whose historical purpose included protection work are always welcome in Schutzhund events.
Terriers
The primary programs for terriers, for obvious reasons, are the earthdog events. Both the AKC and the CKC have these programs for the small terriers that historically went to ground after their quarry. But, some of the larger terriers had very different historical purposes. The Airedale, for example, was developed to be a hunting dog, the Kerry Blue, Irish, and Soft-Coated Wheaten Terriers were all-purpose farm dogs.
Airedales, in addition to CKC, AKC and UKC hunting test or working certificate events, also have a parent club hunting dog program which awards titles in one additional hunting area that is not part of AKC, CKC or UKC hunting tests—a fur tracking test. Recently, the Kerry Blue Terriers were admitted to the AKC’s herding program and the Black Russian Terriers and Soft-Coated Wheaten Terriers are eligible to compete in AHBA events. The Aussie Shepherd Club also lets Soft-Coated Wheaten and Kerry Blue Terriers participate in its stockdog events. In addition, the UKC has a terrier racing program.
Herding Dogs
Herding breeds have almost as many choices for the breeds’ historical work as do the sporting breeds. In addition to the previously mentioned AKC, CKC, AHBA and ASCA events, Border Collies also have an organization called the United States Border Collie Handlers Association that conducts both sheep and cattle dog trials.
Many herding breeds historically have been involved in police work. For herding breed owners with this interest, there is the UKC’s program as well as Schutzhund training. These breeds have also been historically used for search and rescue work. The National Association for Search and Rescue has a certification program for SAR dogs.
Which brings us to the two "neglected" groups, toys and non-sporting. But individual breeds within these two groups do have programs that relate to the breed’s historical purpose. Standard Poodles, for example, not only can participate in the AKC, CKC and UKC hunting test programs and the CKC’s working certification program but also the Poodle Club of America’s working certificate program. Miniature Poodles can also do the PCA’s tests. The Dalmatian club has a road dog program that tests the dog’s ability to do its traditional job as a carriage and horseman’s dog. The American Herding Breeds Association welcomes American Eskimo Dogs, Finnish Spitz, Poodles, Keeshonden and Schipperkes among others in its herding events. Silky Terriers are included in the AKC and CKC earthdog programs and Italian Greyhounds can run in AKC, CKC and ASFA lure coursing events.
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As for the rest of most of the toy breeds and a significant number of the non-sporting breeds, their historical purpose was to be a companion dog. The AKC, CKC and UKC all have very good companion dog programs called "Obedience." For those dogs whose historical purpose no longer exists or is illegal, there is always agility, rally or tracking.
Why is it important for a show dog to earn field or for those dogs without a field program, performance titles? There are a number of very good reasons, some of which are economic and others that fall under the old-fashioned notion "for the good of the breed."
With the advent of these field testing programs, field titles became more readily achievable for a great number of people. Unlike field trials which required huge investments in time and money as well as the services of high-priced professional trainers, many of the field testing programs permit an amateur trainer to train and handle his or her own dog. With the growing participation in these activities, more and more puppy buyers are looking for dogs that not only look like what the standard says they should but also can do what the standard says they should be able to do.
A number of the genetic problems we see in purebred dogs have come about because the physical soundness necessary to spend a day in the field has not been a primary consideration in breeding decisions. Furthermore, the splits between "show" and "field" types plaguing many breeds today have occurred because "show" people did not care about the dog’s ability to perform in the field and "field" people did not care about whether the dog came close to meeting the conformation standard for the breed when breeding decisions were made. It is vitally important to the future of every breed that the dogs in a breed look like the breed is supposed to look and do the work the breed is supposed to do. Without both, the essence of the breed is lost.
There are some tangible benefits also. Field work is fun, for one thing and it’s a relatively painless way for both you and the dog to get some exercise. There are also "artistic" benefits. There’s nothing that compares, in the dog world, with watching a pretty dog do what it was intended to do especially when it is your dog. It is winning the national specialty and taking Best in Show at Westminster and the National Dog Show all in one. The dogs will love it. Watch how they come alive when they get to do their real job. Finally, the breed will be the better for it. If the breed is not split, you have taken one more step to prevent that from happening. If the breed is split, you’ve taken a step toward bringing it back together once again. For those of you who have problems getting going, here’s a little additional incentive that always worked with me: NOW HEAR THIS! Get up from your easy chair, call that retired show dog off the couch, go out and start doing what the dog was bred to do. And, that’s an order!
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