Working Dog
News

SUPPORTING TRAINERS, HANDLERS, JUDGES AND REGIONAL CLUBS.


1st Quarter 2023
UPCOMING EVENTS
See what's happening for Working Dogs.
In This Issue

Seasons are changing and warmer days are upon us, and for many that means dusting off our working gear and getting busy outdoors. Some hardy souls in New England got a jump on the season with a winter draft test, check out the summary below.

As you start training for working events, remember that part of being a partner with your dog is being your dog's best advocate, we share some thoughts in this issue.
 
In this issue, you will also find updates, a few reminders and a request for photos to make us all smile. Please let us know your thoughts and as always, feel free to reach out to us at workingdog@ncadogs.org with any questions.
Interested in becoming a Judge?
Hands on opportunity to see what Draft judging is all about!! At Specialty Carting at the National, you will have opportunities to work side by side with judges and learn more about judging draft events.


Another easy way to explore what it takes! Come to the working dog forum at the National and we can chat about the path to judging!



Water Test Judges please note:

Water Test Judges should have received their latest judges’ exam for Water Trials. Please make sure you return it promptly to Sue Marino. Thanks for participating in this part of continuing education for all judges.  If you have not received your test yet, please contact Sue Marino.

FEATURED ARTICLES
CHECK OUT THESE RESOURCES FROM FELLOW TRAINERS
No Wheels? No Worries! Draft Enthusiasts brave winter snows and skiers to Succeed with Draft in Winter Conditions
The members and dogs of the Newfoundland Club of New England are no strangers to winter weather. The area is known for wonderful winter snow, ski resorts and cross country skiing. And in their typical “can do” fashion, NCNE makes the most of their opportunities, holding periodic “winter tests” at a nordic ski resort where dogs and handlers compete for draft titles in the SNOW!


This year, the test was FULL with 6 BDD and 6 DD teams. The competitors brought all different types of snow sleds and carts on skis and showed that newfs can do awesome work in any conditions….. And it was a BLAST!

Everyone was bundled up for the snowy conditions- and the newfs couldn’t have been more comfortable working in the cool, crisp mountain air. Stewards and test committee constructed the maneuvering course around snow piles, and maneuvering in the snow provided stiff technical challenges. The freight haul traversed the Woodpecker ski run, and many surprised downhill skiers paused for the “newf parades” as the freight hauls passed them. Everyone had a great time and many skiers stopped to watch this unusual site at the Prospect Mountain Nordic Center. The facility was soooo accommodating, truly embracing this special NCA event and welcoming all of us with warmth and smiles.   

All entrants were wonderfully prepared for these unique conditions and many qualified! If your area has snow, this is definitely something to consider!! Ask NCNE how!
Spring Training Idea for your Dog
It’s “Spring Training” in Major League Baseball as well as Newf training! Spring always gives me new enthusiasm for working on foundation skills with my dogs because we are SOO happy to have a little sun, and no more snow!! So grab your pup, and hope you hit a home run with this great training idea!

Both water work and draft work require special skills for your team to be able to work different directions farther apart. The skill of teaching your dog to head to the right, to the left or straight away from you while you remain behind the dog are foundational work that we can all strengthen. Deanna Alko has developed this lesson for directional skills and is sharing it with us all to help us build this important skill. It starts in your yard, and can bring you much success in training for directed retrieves, rescues as well as for directed figure 8s in carting. Listen to these great training tips and have fun with your newf learning left, right and around!   
Teamwork requires skill and advocacy - be your newf’s best advocate
Newfoundlands work in partnership with their humans in a wide variety of activities. Make sure you are the part of the team that knows best when your best pal is nervous, stressed, or getting worked higher than their threshold. These key pieces of training help you be able to be your newfs best advocate in stressful situations for your pup. Here’s an article that gives a bit of deeper thoughts to this piece of your working training.
Online Entry and Database Reporting takes the next steps.
The Working Dog Committee and the TRAC committee are moving forward with next steps for our online entry processes. We encourage each club to take full advantage of our online entry system as it also interfaces with our NCA database and helps with updating title information, ownership information and reporting for awards.  As we continue this process, the ability for data to be transferred through online systems will make it easier and easier to work through the online process.  Look for more information soon on the next phases of this work, and we thank those clubs who are willing to be “pilot” programs for us during the coming year. 
 
PLEASE encourage your secretaries to continue to give us feedback…. We want this to work for everyone and we know it will make your volunteer jobs with tests much easier. Let us know how we can continue to support! 
Regional Club Test Committees
Keep planning ahead! As air travel continues to be unpredictable at times with unexpected flight cancellations, delays and changes, we are finding that Regional Clubs have to be prepared for some unfortunate events such as last minute needs to replace a judge on the panel.  As you plan, keep in mind that, if something does happen, consider your options of who may be able to step in at the last minute. Inform your WDC contacts for water tests or draft tests as soon as you know a replacement is needed so we can assist as needed.

Committees – Please Note!
  1.  Please remember that there does need to be a designated boundary for the test area so everyone knows when they are out of bounds. Clubs need to designate what the boundaries are and it needs to be discussed and/or marked. If your park will not allow marking with surveyor’s tape, boundaries need to be clearly defined by something like a tree line or sidewalk. Going out of a test area IS a DQ so the test area needs to be clear for all entrants and judges and committee.   Marking the area with cones, surveyor flags or even chalk like you do for turns are all ways you can identify the area without obstruction. 
 
  1. An honor dog is required for group exercises. While most divisions usually have enough entries to not need this requirement, some days on day two if dogs have pulled or moved up, it is always good to have a backup plan that includes another dog and cart to do this required group exercise.   
RESOURCE
GUIDE
Need help getting started with a working event? Check out these tools for Regional Clubs!
Judge's Corner
Reminder: Judges - we are offering a new option for email on the NCA website. You may now enter a "public display email" in your member profile. This will allow you to have a designated email address just for public display, so you can easily sort and find communication coming from the NCA website, and to protect your private home or work email from scam, phishing emails or mass marketers.

To add a public email, go to the Member Portal, select "My Profile" then select the red "Edit Profile" button. Add the email address you wish to use in the "Public eMail Address" field. Then click the red "SAVE" button at the top of the page.

You may wish to get a free email address through Gmail or other service to use specifically for this purpose.
If you would like to share photos of working dogs at work (and play), please send them in - we'd love to see them! Make sure you have permission from the photographer for us to use the photos for publication.
NEWFOUNDLAND CLUB OF AMERICA
www.ncanewfs.org