What on earth is Rally-Obedience??
Rally-O is fast becoming all the obedience rage. Many folks were turned off by competitive obedience, so when agility came around, it became an addiction. A decade or so later, Bud Kramer dreamed up an idea about merging obedience and agility, and called it Rally (for the cars). Rally is particularly wonderful because APDT rally is open to all dogs, purebred or mixed. It’s also open to older dogs, handicapped dogs and humans, and allows food in the rings. Since the APDT is all about positive training, it allows competitors to talk to their dogs in the ring, too. With all that going for it, how can you go wrong??
Rally-O is a course set full of signs (anywhere from 10-22), and the handler/dog team heel from one sign to the next and do what the sign tells them to do (I swear some dogs read the signs!) it can be a turn, a pace change, an obstacle (cones, jumps, food bowls), a change in body posture (sit, down, stand), or some combination thereof. The rules vary according to the venue; since I’m an APDT judge and on the board of directors of the APDT on the Rally committee, I’ll give some details on APDT Rally regulations.
If you decide that you want to compete, you start at Level 1, which is on-lead. The course is made up of 18-20 signs plus a start and finish sign and a bonus sign. You have 4 minutes to complete the course. You start with a perfect score of 200 and lose points for mistakes made. In order for your run to count (we call this qualifying) you must get a score of 170 or higher and stay under 4 minutes. The bonus sign is worth an extra 10 points, so in reality a perfect score is a 210. Once you qualify in Level 1 three times, you earn a title…Rally1 (RL1). From here, you can continue to compete in Level 1 but you can also begin to trial in Level 2, which is off-lead. Level 2 is longer, with 20-22 signs plus the start, finish and bonus signs. You still have 4 minutes to complete the course, and there are more and varied signs for the judge to chose from. It’s in Level 2 that you will start to see things like food bowls (the dog has to heel in a Figure 8 around them without going for the food!), jumps and moving downs (where you heel with your dog, tell him to lay down as you heel, and once he’s down, you tell him to heel again). Again, you need to qualify three times with a score of 170 or higher to get your title, RL2. The process continues for Level 3, with increasingly difficult signs but the same time frame and number of signs.
At each level, once you complete your title, you may begin the process of going for Championship points. You can, for example, trial and qualify in Level 1 ten times with a score of 170 or higher and get an RL1X (excellent) title. You can do this also for levels 2 and 3. And you can do this in multiples of ten (you can get an RL1X2 by qualifying 20 times after you get your Level 1 title …many people do this if they don’t want to take their dog off-lead).
• I just want my dog to behave
• I'm not trying to get an "obedience" title
• My dog just wants to run
• I really want to do agility
• My dog doesn't like other dogs
• My dog wasn't very good in basic obedience
And, if you STILL have the bug, you can go for your ARCHEX (APDT Rally Champion Extraordinaire). This requires you to get 10 QQs in Levels 2 and 3 with a score of 195 or higher. This is the highest title you can get in APDT rally…quite the achievement!
If you are still reading this, you are obviously interested in rally…YAY!!! For more information on the signs and rules, please visit www.apdt.com and go to the Rally page. Then come to class with us!!
The AKC markets rally as a stepping stone from the CGC certificate to competitive obedience. I perceive it as a great way to explore your working relationship with your dog. To me, rally is a destination all its own. It encourages you and your dog to work together at having fun, and when it is done right, it looks like a dance, with both partners sporting huge grins. I’ve judged absolute beginners, seasoned competition people, owners in their 80s, dogs with three legs, blind dogs, deaf dogs, handlers on oxygen tanks, crutches, and in wheelchairs. I’ve judged kids, purebreds, mixed breeds, adolescent dogs and geriatric dogs. I LOVE supporting folks in their efforts, cheering them for things they’ve done well, and chatting with them about what they can do better next time (if they want to).
Ali
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