Erin Sullivan and her American Pit Bull Terrier, Doc, in a successful tracking test. Erin writes about her adventures in training Doc, a rescue dog from Baltimore, on her blog: baltimorebulldogs.blogspot.com. Photo by bartlettimage.com.
The Canine Sport of Tracking
Any dog can learn to follow a scent trail and compete in tracking.
The sport of American Kennel Club (AKC) tracking started out as a stepchild to its competition obedience Utility Dog (UD) title. Although you needed to pass a separate tracking test to earn your UD title between 1936 and 1946, tracking garnered a one-paragraph description in the rules and regulations of the time. Fans of tracking pushed for changes in the rules as a result of increased understanding of scent work and, in 1947, tracking became a separate class. The Tracking Dog (TD) title was the only tracking title available until 1980 when the Tracking Dog Excellent (TDX) title was added.
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Products — January 2010 Back Issue
