Changes to agility regulations

The Kennel Club has recently approved the following changes to the regulations for agility which will come into effect on 1 January 2020.

The below regulation has been amended to take in to account that the Wall has been included as a separate piece of equipment in the regulations.

Amendment to Regulation H(1)(B)1.a.(6)

TO:

Electronic timing gates – The only obstacles allowed at the Start and Finish of a Standard Agility or Jumping Course are; Hurdle, Wall, Spread Jump, Brush Jump, Long Jump, Tyre Wishing Well, Pipe Tunnel. The electronic timing gates should be positioned within 30cm in front of the first obstacle and within 30cm after the last obstacle. The distance between the electronic timing gates should be no less than the width of the part of the obstacle the dog must negotiate. Whenever possible the timing gates should be placed within the width of the Hurdle wings, or in the case of the Wall, within the pillars. For the Long Jump, Tyre, Wishing Well and Pipe Tunnel, the timing gates should be placed as close as possible to the outside edge of the obstacle without impeding the dog’s natural path.

N.B. This regulation should also apply if manual timing is used in conjunction with start/finish poles.

(Insertions in bold)

(Effective date 1 January 2020)

The below regulations have been amended to allow for Championship classes to be held at the new Intermediate height.

Amendment to Regulations H10.c.(3) H(1)6.a, H(1)(B)1.a.(2) and K2.g

TO:

  1. Contents of Schedule

(3) Kennel Club Championship Agility Certificate (Large Dogs) and / or Kennel Club Championship Agility Certificate (Intermediate Dogs) and / or Kennel Club Championship Agility Certificate (Medium Dogs) and / or Kennel Club Championship Agility Certificate (Small Dogs) for Championship Class.

(Insertions in bold)

(Effective 1 January 2020)

Amendment to Regulation H(1)5

TO:

  1. Championship Agility Certificates (Large, Medium, Intermediate and Small Dogs)
  2. A Kennel Club Agility Certificate will be awarded to any Large Agility Dog, Intermediate Agility Dog, Medium Agility Dog or any Small Agility Dog winning a Championship Agility Class provided such a dog has no faults in the final round of the Class. If the winning dog does have faults in the final round of the Championship Agility Class the award must be withheld.
  3. A Reserve Agility Certificate will be awarded to any Large Agility Dog, Intermediate Agility Dog, Medium Agility Dog or any Small Agility Dog placed second in the Championship Agility Class provided it has gained a clear round in the final round of the Class. If the second placed dog has faults in the final round the award must be withheld.

(Insertions in bold)

(Effective 1 January 2020)

Amendment to Regulation H(1)6.a

TO:

  1. Agility Championships
  2. The Kennel Club will offer at Crufts Dog Show each year the Kennel Club Agility Championships Large Dog, the Kennel Club Agility Championships Intermediate Dog, the Kennel Club Agility Championships Medium Dog and the Kennel Club Agility Championships Small Dog. A dog awarded one or more Agility Certificates during the calendar year preceding Crufts Dog Show shall be entitled to compete.

(Insertions in bold)

(Effective 1 January 2020)

Amendment to Regulation H(1)(B)1.a.(2)

TO:

(2) Championship Class

(i) The Agility Rounds (Large, Intermediate, Medium and Small) must contain the following elements: ‘A’ Ramp, Dog Walk, See Saw, Hurdles, Hoop (Tyre), Long Jump, Pipe Tunnel and Weaving Poles, together with any other obstacles as described in these Regulations, at the discretion of the judge.

(ii) The Jumping Round (Large, Intermediate, Medium and Small) must contain the following elements: Hurdles, Hoop (Tyre), Long Jump, Pipe Tunnel and Weaving Poles and must exclude contact obstacles.

(iii) The Final Agility round (Large, Intermediate, Medium and Small) may contain the Table obstacle and must contain all the obstacles described in (i) of this Regulation, together with any other obstacles as described in these Regulations, at the discretion of the judge.

(Insertions in bold)

(Effective 1 January 2020)

Amendment to Regulation K2.g

TO:

  1. Title of Agility Champion (Ag Ch). The following dogs shall be entitled to be described as Agility Champion.

(1) Large Agility Dogs.

(a) Any dog awarded three Agility Certificates under three different judges, in accordance with the Kennel Club Regulations for the Championship Agility Classes.

(b) Any dog which has won a Kennel Club Agility Championship.

(2) Intermediate Agility Dogs.

(a) Any dog awarded three Agility Certificates under three different judges, in accordance with the Kennel Club Regulations for the Championship Agility Classes.

(b) Any dog which has won a Kennel Club Agility Championship.

(2)(3) Medium Agility Dogs

(a) Any dog awarded three Agility Certificates under three different judges, in accordance with the Kennel Club Regulations for the Championship Agility Classes.

(b) Any dog which has won a Kennel Club Agility Championship.

(3)(4) Small Agility Dogs

(Insertions in bold. Deletions struck through)

(Effective 1 January 2020)

The below regulations have been amended to reflect that the Table and Pause Box have been removed from the list of obstacles. It was felt that there was no clear understanding of how the obstacles could be judged or used effectively.

Amendment to Regulation H(1)(B)1.a.(iii)

TO:

The Final Agility round (Large, Intermediate, Medium and Small) may contain the Table obstacle and must contain all the obstacles described in (i) of this Regulation, together with any other obstacles as described in these Regulations, at the discretion of the judge.

(Deletion struck through)

(Effective 1 January 2020)

Amendment to Regulation H(1)(B)3

TO:

  1. Obstacles.—The following obstacles meet with the approval of the Board of the Kennel Club. Any changes to current obstacles (such as materials used, structure or style) or any other new obstacles must be submitted for approval by the Kennel Club before being made available for use at its licensed events.
  2. Table—914mm square minimum. Height: Large Dogs - 600mm, Medium Dogs - 400mm, Small Dogs - 300mm. To be of stable construction with a non-slip surface.
  3. Pause Box—Defined area 1.219m x 1.219m.

(Deletions struck through. Subsequent paragraphs to be renumbered)

(Effective 1 January 2020)

Amendment to Regulation H(1)(B)5. Marking

TO:

  1. Standard marking. All course faults in multiples of 5. For time faults see paragraph b below.

(1) Table/Pause Box—faulted at judges discretion.

(Deletions struck through. Subsequent paragraphs to be renumbered)

(Effective 1 January 2020)

The below regulation has been amended to increase the minimum number of obstacle that may be used in an agility or jumping course. This is to ensure an adequate test would be provided.

Amendment to Regulation H(1)(B)1.a.(3)

TO:

(3) Design—The course should require a dog to traverse at least 10 15 obstacles but not more than 20 and all jump obstacles in any class should be the same height. All obstacles should have a minimum of 5m and up to a maximum of 10m between centres of consecutive obstacles using the straight line centre-to-centre method.

(Deletion struck through. Insertion in bold)

(Effective 1 January 2020)

The below regulation has been amended to reflect the need for judges to have a wide range of experience before being approved to judge Championship classes, including qualifiers at Premier Shows.

Amendment to Regulation H19.b

TO:

On a person’s first appointment to judge the Championship Agility Class the minimum conditions which apply are:

Criteria

On application a person must:-

  1. have a minimum of 5 years’ experience of competing at Kennel Club licensed Agility Shows, and
  2. ..have a minimum of 5 years’ experience of judging at Kennel Club licensed Agility Shows, and
  3. have judged at a minimum of 10 licensed Agility Shows over the previous 3 years including standard classes in each height category which must include Grade 7, class size and geographical distribution of judging appointments will be a consideration, and

(4) have judged Kennel Club qualifier(s) for Crufts, Discover Dogs, or Olympia, and

(45) have handled a dog competitively at Grade 6 or 7, and

(56) have been assessed before their first Championship appointment, and

(67) have completed and passed an Agility Judges examination on the Kennel Club Academy prior to attending a Kennel Club Judges Seminar, and

(78) have attended a Kennel Club Agility Judges Seminar and passed the assessment, or

(89) otherwise have been approved by the Board.

(Insertions in bold)

(Effective 1 January 2020)