General – Page 8

Obedience regulation amendments announced: Stays are to be removed as of 1 January 2022

Following discussions by the Obedience Liaison Council and consultation with the obedience community, The Kennel Club Board has approved a number of regulation amendments under the terms of which all stays will be removed from the list of exercises for obedience with effect from 1 January 2022. Stays are currently suspended until 31 December 2021 as part of the Covid-19 regulation amendments.

Consideration of this matter has been ongoing for some time. Recommendations by the Obedience Liaison Council and the Activities Committee were not made lightly and were submitted to the Board only after careful consideration, as the removal of stays represents the most significant change to Obedience regulations in a long time.

NEXT OBEDIENCE LIAISON COUNCIL MEETING 20 JANUARY 2022

The next meeting of The Kennel Club Obedience Liaison Council will be held on Thursday 20 January 2022. Proposals for inclusion on the agenda should reach the Obedience Liaison Council Secretary by October 22 2021.

Each eligible society may submit, through their representative, items for the agenda. Individuals may also submit items for the agenda direct to The Kennel Club but must be accompanied by an agreement from a representative to present the item at the meeting. Proposals must be concise and, if an amendment or an additional regulation is proposed, the regulation number must be given.

All items for inclusion on the agenda should be sent by email to obedience@thekennelclub.org.uk. Please note that postal submissions may not be received in time due to the offices being closed.

A full list of Obedience Liaison Council representatives can be found at https://www.thekennelclub.org.uk/…/already-competing…/

Crufts 2022 – South East & East Anglia Inter Regionals Team Try Outs

Crufts 2022 Team Day is
Friday 11th March 2022…

Application forms will be available very soon… and will be downloadable here

Early Try out days this year – been tricky finding dates us selectors can manage…

Try Out 1:- Saturday 23rd October
At Knowl Hill Village Hall,
Near Maidenhead.

Try Out 2:- Saturday 30th October
At Halstead Village Hall,
Pebmarsh, Halstead. Essex.

The Final:- Saturday 4th December
At Flaunden Village Hall,
Flaunden, near Bovingdon, Herts.

FIRST EVER RALLY WARRANT TITLE GOES TO BORDER COLLIE

A four-year-old Border Collie, Littlethorn Leaf RW, belonging to Denise Platts of Barton-upon-Humber, North Lincolnshire is the first ever dog to be awarded the new Rally Warrant (RW) title. She qualified for the award at the Ditton Dog Training Club.

This title was introduced by The Kennel Club at the start of 2021 in a move designed to encourage new competitors into the rally discipline, as well as to give confidence to existing competitors to work at every rally level.

NEW GOVERNMENT PLANS TO CRACK DOWN ON DOG THEFT WELCOMED BY THE KENNEL CLUB

The Government’s Pet Theft Taskforce has today recommended a new ‘pet abduction’ offence and further proposals to combat the crime

The UK’s biggest organisation dedicated to dog health and welfare has welcomed recommendations from the Government’s Pet Theft Taskforce published today (3 September), following a successful campaign lobbying for stronger sentencing and better data collection on the crime.

Currently, sentencing places undue weighting on the monetary value of the pet rather than giving sufficient weight to the emotional impact of the crime, meaning it is often treated in the same way as the theft of a laptop or mobile phone. There is also no central record in order to help decision-makers understand the scale of the problem or the circumstances around it – for example, whether a theft was driven by opportunism or organised crime.

MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF THE OBEDIENCE LIAISON COUNCIL HELD VIA MICROSOFT TEAMS AT 10.30 AM ON THURSDAY 22 JULY 2021

Click to view Minutes here

Razor makes obedience history – First Kelpie to win Obedience Champion title

He wins two Obedience Certificates in two days

Cories Ray of Sunshine, known at home as Razor and listed on The Kennel Club’s activity register as an Australian Kelpie, recently made history when he won his Obedience Champion title. He is owned by Nina Whitnell of Colchester, Essex.

Razor’s achievements are unique, as no other Kelpie in the UK has ever qualified for the championship obedience class nor won an Obedience Certificate, let alone claimed an Obedience Champion crown.

Although the Kelpie breed is not currently recognised by The Kennel Club, it has been exhibited in its native Australia since 1908 and received recognition by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI) in Belgium in 1989. In Australia, Kelpies regularly perform well in various canine activities including obedience and herding tests.

Resumption of Kennel Club licensed events: Guidance updated 19 July 2021

In view of the Government’s lifting of the majority of the remaining Covid-19 restrictions on 19 July 2021, we have updated our guidance in relation to the resumption of licensed events in all canine disciplines.

Find out more – thekennelclub.org.uk/resumptionofevents

New figures show scale of dog theft and ‘jaw dropping’ failure to tackle the crime

New statistics show that a staggering 98 per cent of dog theft criminals are never charged, and in more than half of cases a suspect is never identified
Freedom of Information statistics reveal 196 cases of dog theft every month, up 7 per cent on 2019
Over 500 dogs estimated stolen across the UK since the Government’s Taskforce set up to tackle the issue in May, as the pandemic puppy surge led to growing dog theft fears
The Kennel Club’s new ‘paw and order: dog theft reform’ campaign urges the Government’s Pet Theft Taskforce to improve the reporting and recording of the crime, and to treat dog theft with more proportionate sentences

As concerns about dog theft soar following the surge in pandemic puppy buying, new research shows a shocking failure to tackle a crime that is devastating 196 families every month, with only two per cent of cases in 2020 resulting in a criminal charge.

PARSON RUSSELL TERRIER MAKES OBEDIENCE HISTORY

First small breed to win Obedience Certificate for 32 years

He wins another Obedience Certificate a week later

The Parson Russell Terrier, Glencymreig Degu OW, owned by Louise Healey of Grantham, Lincolnshire, recently made history in more ways than one when he was awarded the Dog Obedience Certificate at two championship obedience shows held a week apart.

When ‘Stanley’ won the Certificate at Winchester City Dog Training Club championship obedience show, competing in the Championship C Dog class by Peter Lubbi, he became the first of his breed to win such an award in the UK, as well as the first small breed to do so for 32 years.