Rally?

[Robyn, Greg and Snickers]

Anyone do rally training? Our trainer describes it as fun obedience. We have taken 4 obedience classes and she said this is what we should try next.

Was thinking of setting up a home course this summer and do the class
in fall. Just wondering if anyone has tried it. We are not interested in competition at
this point just more than basic obedience.

[Leslie and Halas]

We do Rally O. Halas got his first UKC Rally title in May. It's fun. You have to know obedience basics, but it sounds like you're there already, so I'm sure you could do it. Your dog really has to focus on you to find out what's coming next, so it helps you bond even more. Besides sit, stay, etc., there are also a lot of other things like turning circles, figure 8s, weaving through cones, and other stuff. If you go to competitions or even just to classes, the courses are different every time, so that really helps mix it up. Halas' next level will be off-leash, so that keeps it interesting, too.

I think on the UKC site (probably AKC, too), you can find sample courses or at least a list of the signs you might see.

I'd recommend trying it. It my opinion (and Halas'), it's a little more fun and definitely more laid-back than regular obedience. In fact, in Rally, they encourage you to talk to your dog, use verbal and hand signals, give commands a couple of times if you need to, do an exercise over if you think you screwed it up. From what they've told us at the UKC Rally trials we've been to (only 2 trials for us so far), they will disqualify you if you correct your dog too harshly, like yelling at him or yanking his leash. The whole point of Rally is to bond with your dog and have fun.

[Allyson, Peri & Taquito]

My trainer says the same thing. She wants us to try Rally-O or Agility next, just for fun. She says it really tightens your bond with your pup. DH and I plan to try one in the fall. We have planned too much during this summer already!

[Azure & Muppet]

Yes, we do Rally. It's a fun challenge and we really enjoy it.

[Robyn, Greg and Snickers]

Thanks for your feedback I think we are going to try it out!

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

This really does sound like fun....I think I'll try it in the Fall too!

[Kyoko]

We do Rally as well. At first, I thought it was boring, but we enjoy it now. I think it is good to build the positive relationship with your dog, and also to make regular obediene really reliable. We are doing it more for confidence building purpose for Charlie rather than competition, because she is an easily aroused and stressed dog. I think it will be too much for now for her to try competing. But, I like it, and Charlie seems to enjoy going to the school and practicing as well.

[Ellen]

I've been taking Rally classes with Riley for the past year now. We're in the highest level, but I'm not competing with him. While I may decide to compete one day, taking the Rally classes is just a great way to spend time with Riley and continue practicing basic obedience skills. I NEVER thought that Riley (who is the class clown and a goofball) could perform the skills that he now is now an expert in, and I end up using a lot of the skills in everyday life. For instance, when we take the elevator, I will ask Riley to sit and stay on my left side. If he's not quite in position, he will scoot his butt right next to me. When I drop something on the floor, I'll ask him to stay in a stand position. If Riley is lagging behind when we walk, I'll say "heel," and he'll catch up to me. So, there are a lot of practical applications for the skills you learn in Rally. The skills also help with tricks, like backing up in a straight line. It's not as flashy as agility (which Riley also does), but Rally is still fun. There are several of us that don't compete but take the same class over and over again, so it's also a weekly get-together with friends! Hope that you decide to take Rally classes.

[Natasha]

We do rally classes (+1 years under our belt) and agility classes (just started 3 months ago). Rouser, too, is the class clown, but he takes both very seriously when we are actually doing the exercises. We do not compete in either. Rouser is a much better dog when he has been mentally stimulated/challenged and these are great ways for the whole family to have fun and work together at the same time. I think I like agility better than rally, but rally has more practical applications in everyday life (as described perfectly by Ellen).

Leslie - I was interested to read your comment about rally being more laid back. In our rally classes (and the competitions we've watched here on the West Coast), they are pretty strict. If the trainer/judge says voice command, it's voice command only and it has to be done on the first command. The dog has to stay in heel (no sniffing - ugh, I wish!) when you're moving, etc. We also aren't allowed to correct him (in class, of course, we do, but the emphasis is on leading rather than corrections).

What did you register Halas under for the AKC? Was it mixed breed or did you try to identify/make a case for one or the other breed in your dog? Rouser is actually Golden/Lab/Poodle and I have no idea which we would choose, but mixed breed has more limited opportunities to compete in our area (if we decide we want to go down that route).

[Leslie and Halas]

Halas only does UKC obedience, and he's registered as a mixed breed with them. We're not registered with AKC. Maybe AKC is a little more strict than UKC? Our judges don't specify voice command, so we can give commands however we want. If you are at a station for a really long time just repeating your command while your dog just ignores you, then you'd get some points off, but they definitely give you a couple of chances to get your dog to do the exercise. The sits and downs can even be a little bit crooked without it really costing you. I'm in the midwest, so maybe they just do things a little differently in different parts of the country. We also just finished the first level, so I haven't really watched much beyond that. Maybe they get a lot stricter in the higher levels. I don't think they count off much for a little sniffing of the floor in the level we just finished, but they have mentioned that when you get to the higher levels when they're doing figure 8s around bowls of food, the dog can't really show any interest in the bowls without losing some points.