Activities for Whippets
Whippets can excel in conformation, lure coursing, agility, rally, obedience, nosework, barn hunt, frisbee, tracking, dock diving, therapy work, and just about any activity they can share with their people. Here's a quick list of all the areas Whippets compete in...find one you like and get started!
Lure Coursing
Lure coursing is a sport for dogs that involves chasing a mechanically operated lure. Competition is typically limited to dogs of purebred sighthound breeds, although the AKC has a pass/fail trial for all breeds called the Coursing Ability Test. The purpose of non-competitive lure coursing tests is to offer sighthound breed owners a standardized gauge to measure their hounds' coursing instinct. The purpose of the competitive lure coursing trial program is to preserve and develop the coursing skills inherent in the sighthounds and to demonstrate that they can perform the functions for which they were originally bred.
Agility
Agility is a dog sport, where the dog is handled through an obstacle course. The roots of the sport go back to 1970 England, when it was created as a demonstration sport. The first time dog agility was shown to an audience was at Crufts dog show in 1978. The new, fast sport immediately took off and within a couple of years it was given official dog sport status in the UK. Nowadays, agility is one of the most popular dog sports around the world.
Agility can be practiced with all kinds of dogs, no matter what the size. A good way to start is to contact your local agility club or an experienced coach, who can help you to start your new hobby safely. The obstacles include jumps, tunnels, balancing, and navigating an elevated pathway. AKC and UKC typically use similar obsacles, but the UKC obstacles are more varied.
It is important to move at the level of your dog’s skills, as there are levels from basic to advanced. You can also prepare your puppy for agility by safely teaching him obedience skills, and practicing on the obstacles because you will need basic control to start.
Barn Hunt
Barn Hunt is the new and quickly growing dog sport catching fire across the country! Barn Hunt is based on the traditional roles of many breeds in ridding farms, barns, crop storage areas, and homes of destructive vermin. Some breeds were specifically created to fill this role, and for many of those breeds, Barn Hunt provides their first true opportunity for responsible breeders to test proper working traits in their dogs. Barn Hunt is also open to any dog of any breed or mix who wishes to play the game and can fit through an 18" wide by bale-height tall tunnel. Barn Hunt has titles, levels of increasing difficulty, and championships. Barn Hunt is an independent sport, but titles are recognized by the American Kennel Club (AKC) and the United Kennel Club (UKC) and as of January 2018, Barn Hunt titles were recognized by the Canadian Kennel Club (CKC).
Frisbee Dog
Frisbee dog (sometimes called Disc dog) is a another dog sport. In frisbee competitions, dogs and their disc throwers compete in events such as distance catching and somewhat choreographed freestyle catching. The sport celebrates the bond between handler and dog, by allowing them to work together. The term "disc" is preferred because "Frisbee" is a trademark (held by Wham-O) for a brand of flying disc. Teams of one person and one dog compete in the standard distance "toss and fetch" event. Points are awarded to the team that catches at varying distances. Competitions also often feature the dynamic freestyle event, which consists of short routines choreographed to music with multiple discs in play. The less common long distance events have various formats, but generally the longest catch wins. Divisions in disc dog events are usually based on the skill and experience of the handler. Men and women generally compete in the same divisions for all disciplines, although the long distance category is sometimes divided by gender.
Nosework
K9 nose work, is a sport that tests a dog’s ability to use his powerful sense of smell to locate a specific odor against the backdrop of many others. The video below explains the details.
Dock Diving
Dock diving, also called dock jumping, first appeared at the 1997 Purina Incredible Dog Challenge. The sport was an instant hit. There are now dock jumping organizations in the U.S. and around the world devoted to the sport. A dog and her handler compete to see how far the dog can jump off of a dock and into a pool. All the handler has to do is throw the toy into the pool.
The rest is up to the dog. The rules of dock diving are straightforward. Your team consists of you and your dog. If you want a friend to help you hold your eager retriever back, that is fine too. Each team gets a few tries at the dock. How many tries and how often you can compete varies from competition to competition, but all events have openings for beginners. The dock dog’s jump is measured from the where the base of his tail hits the water to the edge of the dock. Most events use cameras to accurately measure the exact distance.
Therapy
Therapy dogs are dogs who go with their owners to volunteer in settings such as schools, hospitals, and nursing homes. From working with a child who is learning to read to visiting a senior in assisted living, therapy dogs and their owners work together as a team to improve the lives of other people.
AKC accredited Therapy dogs are not service dogs. Service dogs are dogs who are specially trained to perform specific tasks to help a person who has a disability, such as a dog for the blind, or a dog who assists someone who has a physical disability. Service dogs stay with their person and have special access privileges in public places such as on planes, restaurants, etc. Therapy dogs, the dogs who will be earning the AKC Therapy Dog title, do not have the same special access as service dogs.
To earn the AKC Therapy Dog title, you and your dog must have completed at least 50 therapy visits. These visits must be documented with time, date, location, and a signature of a staff person at the facility (e.g., school, hospital, etc.).
Rally
Rally Obedience is the very latest dog sport to be recognised by the Kennel Club. It's fun and no matter what level you and your dog may be at it's easy to get involved and start training and competing.
Rally involves you and your dog working as a team to navigate a course with numbered signs indicating different exercises to perform; think of it as a sort of 'obedience exercise obstacle course' including simple exercises.
The course is set by the judge or trainer. There is no pause between exercises - you and your dog work briskly through the course without direction from the judge. You are encouraged to talk to and praise your dog during the performance. Any dog can get involved; your dog does not have to be pedigreed to take part, but if you want to compete it must be registered with the Kennel Club on either the Breed Register or the Activity Register. A couple of big differences in between AKC and UKC Rally are:
1)In UKC you can ask the judge if you did the exercise correctly, something along the lines of "Was that OK?" and they will tell you.
2) If you re-do an exercise in UKC you don't have to do the whole thing, you can just do the part you messed up. So UKC is a little more competitor 'friendly'.
Flyball
A dog sport in which teams of dogs race against each other from a start/finish line, over a line of hurdles, to a box that releases a tennis ball to be caught when the dog presses the spring-loaded pad, then back to their handlers while carrying the ball is known as Flyball.
Flyball is run in teams of four dogs, as a relay. The course consists of four hurdles placed 10 feet (3 m) apart from each other, with the starting line six feet from the first hurdle, and the flyball box 15 feet after the last one, making for a 51-foot length. The hurdle height is determined by the shoulder height of the smallest dog in the team. Each dog must return its ball all the way across the start line before the next dog crosses. Ideal running is nose-to-nose at the start line. The first team to have all four dogs cross the finish line error free wins the heat. Penalties are applied to teams if the ball is dropped or if the next relay dog is released early.
Tracking
AKC tracking events are the competition form of canine search and rescue. These Tracking events provide experience for dogs and their handlers to meet some needs for tracking and finding lost humans or other animals, as well as, demonstrating the extremely high level of scent capability that dogs possess.
The AKC’s Tracking Tests allow dogs to demonstrate their natural ability to recognize and follow human scent. This vigorous outdoor activity is great for canine athletes. Unlike Agility and Obedience events that require a dog to qualify three times, a dog only needs to complete one track successfully to earn each title.
Obedience
"The purpose of Obedience Trials is to demonstrate the usefulness of the dog as a companion of man, not merely the dog’s ability to follow specified routines in the obedience ring. The basic objective of Obedience Trials is to produce dogs that have been trained and conditioned always to behave in the home, in public places, and in the presence of other dogs." Competition obedience was for many years the only “dog sport" available. But as other dog sports were created, the face of competition obedience has changed. Many of its competitors have been enticed by other sports - particularly those that are easier to learn and those that dogs enjoy more. Other sports such as Agility now draw the entries Obedience once did, but it's still out there for those that would like to pursue titles for their dogs in a structured atmosphere. Many have turned to UKC obedience where the rules are not so strict and some say it's more fun.
So as you can see there are many events and activities Whippets can enjoy with their owners. Some very structured, and others not so much.
