General Rules — Obedience & Dexterity (UO/GW)

General (TJ authority)

• TJ may decline work areas or obstacles that don’t comply with Testing Standards.
• Marking of areas is per TJ decision after checking the location.
• Sequence of exercises is drawn before the event and is the same for all participants.
• “Reporting in and social behaviour” is always first; “Off-leash heeling” follows immediately.

Dog Handler (DH) Evaluation

• Behaviour of the DH, teamwork, sportsmanship are all evaluated.
• Splayed stance of the DH is generally faulty and devalues the respective exercise.

Dog (D) Evaluation

• Joy to work, handling, directability, mobility, fitness, endurance, overall picture.
• D is shown in a natural gait, follows DH at knee height, attentively and close.
• When DH stops, D sits independently, close and straight.

Audio Commands / Visual Commands (AC/VC)

• Must be short. The dog’s name counts as 1 AC.
• If AC and VC are both used, they must be given simultaneously.
• 2nd AC/VC to execute same command → −2 grades on that exercise or partial.
• 3rd AC/VC required → entire exercise = Insufficient.
• No execution after 3rd AC/VC → exercise terminated, 0 points.
• 3-second pause must be maintained between AC/VCs.
• D refuses apparatus or area → 0 points; repeating is not permitted.
• Non-used AC/VCs are not penalised.
• Additional AC/VC and body help, as well as hidden aids: devalue accordingly.

Positions

• After AC/VC the D must assume position quickly, without hesitation, straight and attentively.

About-Turns

• DH turns left (180°). Two options:
  • D goes right turn behind DH
  • D shows left about-turn at 180°

Repeated Mistakes

• A marginal mistake carried through the entire work (e.g. crooked GS) is not punished heavily in each exercise, but is incorporated in the overall image discussion.

Beginning and End of Exercises

• Every UO/GW exercise begins and ends in GS (Grundstellung / basic position) at TJ directive.
• GS: D sits close and straight to the left of DH, shoulder at knee height.

Praise — When and How

UO/GW

“Praising the D briefly after ending an exercise is permitted.”

• Timing: only after the exercise has ended (GS given, TJ directive received) — not during
• Form: verbal or physical — both permitted (praise is the explicit exception to the no-touching rule)
• Duration: briefly — no prolonged celebration between exercises

Nosework

No specific timing restriction is stated for nosework. Praise is the named exception to the no-touching rule, so physical and verbal praise are permitted. In practice: praising the dog at the end of a find (after ending the alert) is normal; praising during active search would constitute interference.

What is never permitted — hard stops

• Food during work → Termination (explicitly listed as a termination reason)
• Motivational articles (toys, tug, etc.) during work → Termination
• These are also listed under “Aids not permitted” alongside GPS — they are banned for the entire work phase, not just during specific exercises.

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Touching the Dog — What Is and Isn’t Allowed

The general rule (from the Warning section of the regulations):

“Touching the D during nose work and UO/GW is prohibited — except for praise.”
Violation = Warning (first offence −5 pts; second = phase terminated).

During active search / alert

• Physical guidance of the dog by hand, pushing it toward VP, positioning it = prohibited (touching during nose work)
• Praise — verbal or physical — is explicitly permitted at any point

At the alert conclusion (after TJ calls DH to the dog)

• Physical contact is part of the prescribed ending procedure: DH takes the dog off leash, leads it to the down position
• This is implicitly permitted — it is the required procedure, not guidance during work
• Any hand guidance during the alert itself (before TJ gives permission to approach) = prohibited

Giving water to the dog

• UO/GW phase: not permitted during exercises.
• Nosework phase: permitted with TJ permission — DH must ask; TJ decides when appropriate (e.g., between finds, after the alert).
• Tracking (F) specific: DH may also clean the dog’s head, eyes, and nose during work — explicitly permitted by regulation.

Horizontal ladder exception (explicit prohibition)

Even when walking alongside the dog on the ladder, DH must not touch the dog or the apparatus.

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Passing Threshold

• Minimum 70% of total points required to pass each phase.
• Both phase A (nose work) and phase B (UO/GW) must be passed to receive a title/rating.
• At events with rankings: highest scores in phase A are decisive before phase B.

Score Scale

| Grade | % | Notes | |—|—|—| | Excellent (v) | 96–100% | | | Very Good (sg) | 90–95% | | | Good (g) | 80–89% | | | Satisfactory (b) | 70–79% | | | Insufficient (m) | 0–69% | |

Table rounded to 0.5 points.