Many of us involved in the sport of rally obedience often have an opportunity to participate in the same sport under different organisations. in order to succeed in the same sport in multiple venues, a person really needs to have an idea of each organisations rules. We all do this for different reasons. maybe we like titles, maybe we like working with our dogs, maybe we need the pressure of a trial, any trial to get our dog training butts in gear.
When I travel out of town for seminars, I typically am doing an Introduction to CARO Rally Seminar with participants who already have an idea of what rally is about and who often have been participating in CKC rally for some time. At every seminar I have done to date, conversation drifts towards a comparison of CARO and CKC. Where are they the same? Where are they different? Which should a person do first? Which is more difficult? I know where these questions are coming from: For those who know one venue, comparison is often an easy way to understand something new. However, for those brand new to the sport, comparing two venues when they do not have a basic knowledge of either venue is confusing. What this means is that I try to steer clear of venue comparison because there simply isn’t time to cover the important similarities and differences.
At the last seminar I delivered, I promised to prepare something for participants to help them better understand the similarities and differences and I am finally getting around to it. From my extensive experience with CARO and my limited experience with CKC, these two venues differ in a few ways that I intend to explore every over the next few weeks.
- Eligibility
- Classes
- Titles
- Equipment and rewards
- Course design
- Ring procedure
- Exercise performance criteria
- Scoring
Ayoka Bubar BA, CPDT-KA 