Prior to the formation of The Tracking Dog Club of South Australia Inc. in 1978 and its running of its first trial in 1980, trials were run only on request by obedience clubs, mostly SA Obedience Dog Club Inc. but also Southern Districts Kennel and Obedience Club Inc. and German Shepherd Dog Club Inc. SAODC ran its first trial in National Park, Belair, on 26th May 1962 with three qualifiers viz. Doug Kemp’s Orpington Marie CDX, John Moroney’s Morny Panda Carmel CD and Jack Trevor’s Prince Regent of Saxony CDX.
Tracking is the art of teaching your dog to find people who are lost. You don't have to be very young, or super fit. Neither does your dog. You don't have to have a dog who has excelled at Obedience Classes but it does need to be under effective control at all times. Both you and your dog need an average level of fitness, enjoy walking and are happy to be out in all types of weather. You need to have a bit of spare time. Your dog has plenty and will enjoy sharing it with you. The equipment you will need is a sturdy pair of boots. For rural tracking, a wind and waterproof coat and for urban tracking, clothing suitable for the prevailing conditions. Your dog will need a suitable harness. Please note "No Pull" harnesses are not permitted. For rural tracking you will need a minimum length of lead of 10metres. For urban track and search you will need a lead of no longer than 2 metres, as per legislated rules in S.A. You should carry water and a suitable bowl for the dog to drink from. For training some food rewards may be carried but not permitted in trials. A towel and brush is useful if your dog has long hair.
There are 2 disciplines you can enter.
Tracking and Track & Search.
The dog must be registered with Dogs SA or equivalent interstate counterpart.
The handler and all registered owners of the dog must also be a Dogs SA member or the equivalent interstate body.
No obedience qualifications are necessary. However the dog must be under effective control of the handler at all times, as the dog must continue to work regardless of distractions. Minimum age of the dog is 6 months.
Tracking is done in a rural setting with 8 Tests which progress to the following titles
To qualify for Tracking Dog (T.D.) there are three tests. Test 1 is approximately 400 metres long with two changes of direction. There will be one article placed on the track. Tracks 2 & 3 are approximately 800 meters with a minimum of two changes of direction. There will be three articles placed on the track. The dog must indicate at least one article and the tracklayer or end article to pass. For test one & two the handler must nominate the tracklayer. After this, all tracklayers will be unknown to the dog.
To qualify for Tracking Dog Excellent (T.D.X.) there are three tests and you must have your TD title. Tests four and five are 1000 meters with a minimum of four turns and test six is 1200 meters with a minimum of five changes of direction.
To qualify for Tracking Champion (T.Ch.) there are two tests and you must have your TDX title. Tests 7 & 8 are 1200 meters with a minimum of six changes of direction with 3 articles on the track and an extra turn on test 8
The age of the tracks varies between a minimum of 20 minutes for Test One to a minimum of 90 minutes for test seven and a maximum of up to three hours for a test seven and minimum of 2 hours for test eight.
Tracking Trials are held by the Club in the Monarto area.Full rules are available via the Rule tab.
TRACK AND SEARCH
(URBAN AND SEMI URBAN TRACKING)
There are 10 tests which lead to the following Titles
Track & Search Dog (TSD)
after successful completion of 3 Tests
Track & Search Dog Excellent (TSDX)
after successful completion of
a further 3 Tests
Track and Search Dog Champion (TSCH)
after successful completion of
a further 2 Tests
Track and Search Grand Champion (TSGrCH)
after successful completion of
a final 2 Tests
Track and Search Trials are held by the Club in metropolitan northern Adelaide.
Full rules are available via the Rule tab .
