Are you allowed to bring pups to watch?

[Gunnarsmum]

There's a Rally and Obedience show in my area and my fiance and I were going to go watch. Since it was outside, we figured we would take Gunner just to work on socialization and what not plus we didn't want to leave him home while we were there. Are you allowed to do this? It's all depending on how the weather is though. The show isn't for another month and a half or so and Gunner would be about 13 weeks old then. I want to compete with him which is why I'm going to watch and get some feelers/tips/hints and pictures.

[agilegsds]

Some clubs allow unentered dogs, while others don't. However, for AKC you cannot have dogs under 6 months old on show grounds.

Agility has the same rules but some clubs don't care if you bring a younger pup, as long as an AKC Rep isn't there. But I have never seen pups at obedience or rally.

Now if you're able to find a NADAC or USDAA agility trial you should be fine.

[Kayos and Havoc]

If the show is at a public park like ours is, it is kind of hard to keep you out. Especially if you were just out walking your dog and "happened" to see the show.

[selzer]

I thought that you could show pups in conformation between 3-6 months? Or is that only at matches?

Here in NE Ohio and NW PA, do not bring unentered dogs to a show. You will likely be kicked out. You can bring them to matches and no problem. That is probably what that six month rule is all about. You cannot enter a dog in obedience, rally, or even CGC that isn't six months old, so it is easy for stewards to see a young puppy and tell the owners to get it out of there.

Sorry, but if you get shots starting at six weeks, you may be finished with vaccinations including rabies at 4 or 4 1/2 months old, but that doesn't mean there aren't other diseases with no vaccination connected to it on the grounds and pups and elderly dogs are the most likely to succomb to such diseases. So it is really a safer practice to allow your pup to grow up a bit before exposing it to the atmosphere.

The matches are where you go to socialize, for fun, to take pups (carefully and within reason), etc. The shows are for dogs that have registered in advance and paid up front -- a hefty price tag too nowadays. $29/entry, uhg! on top of gas, etc.

[amjrchamberlain]

Selzer - Pup classes are 6-under 12 months. I looked for match ages but couldn't find them.

OP - As others mentioned, some clubs will allow unentered dogs, some won't. You might call the trial secretary and ask before you go. You wouldn't want to bring him and have them tell you that he can't be there. I saw that happen in February - a family with a Great Pyr adult had come to see the trial going ons and were asked to remove the Pyr. Apparently, they had driven a good distance and decided instead to each go into the building, one by one, always leaving someone with the Pyr. outside. I felt a bit bad for them. They were completely new to the dog fancy and felt put off. Some clubs might not have allowed the dog on the show grounds at all.

Still, selzer makes a great point regarding diseases and the age of your pup.

I hope you and your DF decide to go watch - that's a great way to really see how things work and to get ideas/tips!

Best Wishes!

[Gunnarsmum]

We won't be too upset not to bring him. We just figured if we could bring him then we would have. But its our local kennel club that's holding the trials. I'll be doing their Puppy K classes and working with them throughout. Plus joining group obedience classes for socialization. Thanks for your input.

[Liesje]

I would contact the club. Before Kenya and I started training and competing in agility, I went to a trial as a volunteer but also to watch several sessions. The club president encouraged me to bring Kenya, even though she was not entered and we were not full members of the club. Kenya was 3 years old at the time and is AKC registered, I don't know if that makes a difference, but I didn't think she was allowed and the club said they didn't care.

[selzer]

I prefer to go with the rules, whatever they are in these circumstances.

When you have one person telling you to go ahead and bring the dog even though the dog is not allowed, it separates you from other people in the club who have not been given such an invitation and know the rules and become irritated that some people do what they want etc. You may never hear a word from these people, but rest assured they are there, and watching.

I think that it sets up divisions. Where this group can do whatever and the rest of the people have to follow the protocol. Otherwise, people see you doing it and bring theirs. More people bring theirs and pretty soon you have a lot of dogs that do not belong, and a lot of dog owners who are not there to compete. Some of those dog owners never trained a dog in anything, including the one they have with them. What follows is a nasty incident. Then comes the memo or the rule or the penalty for not abiding by the rule.

So check what the club's policy is, and go with what the policy is. In my opinion, going on someone's word that the rule is not enforced isn't your best bet.

[MaggieRoseLee]

Gunnersmum, if you can add you GENERAL location to your "My Stuff' and then "My Profile' you may be able to get specific help and suggestions for your area.

I know we have a bunch of dog fairs and events in the NE PA
http://www.sportsfest.org/athlete/event.phtml?id=44 is one. There are matches and tons of the general public around with their dogs.

For agility trials the OFFICIAL rule is no unentered dogs allowed on site. But many are in public parks and areas so there are regular dogs around. As long as they behave (or stay a distance away so they behave) I've never seen a problem.

Other thing is to contact the training facility you are planning to use. Many have puppy kindergarten classes which are wonderful. And they will also usually allow you to watch their classes to get a feel for their methods.

[Kayla's Dad]

You may also want to look for fun matches in your area. A lot of the clubs may put on a fun match as well as the official trials. May still want to check with the sponsoring club, but at least in this area, dogs which are not entered in the match are usually welcomed.