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.
The suspension of stays during Covid-19 had been well received and the benefits it provided to the smooth running of shows was noted during discussions. Additionally, it was hoped that new competitors would be more willing to try obedience without the stays as an exercise.
It had been discussed whether it was necessary to include an alternative control exercise in place of the stay exercise; however, it was decided that there were enough elements of control included as an inherent part of other exercises, therefore a new and separate exercise would not be needed.
These latest amendments to the obedience regulations are mostly concerned with removing references to stays. However, due to the removal of stays the number of marks available have been amended.
Marks allocated
The marks required to be awarded Obedience Certificates have been adjusted from 300 to 230 to account for the removal of the stay exercise. Therefore, the number of points needed to qualify for the Obedience Certificate is now 215.
The total marks available for each class have also been adjusted and are now as follows:
• Introductory: 30
• Pre-Beginners: 45
• Beginners: 70
• Novice: 70
• Class A: 110
• Class B: 170
• Class C: 230
Please note the relevant amendments to the obedience regulations will be published on The Kennel Club website in due course. All references to stays will also be deleted.