TABLE OF CONTENTS - United Kennel Club · TABLE OF CONTENTS Regulations ... Agility is an obstacle...

TABLE OF CONTENTSRegulations Governing UKC LicensedAgility Trials. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 I. Jurisdiction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 II. Who May offer agility trials. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 III. Agility defined. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 IV. UKC’s philosophy on agility. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 V. Definitions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 VI. General Rules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 VII. Entering a UKC event. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 VIII. Judging Schedule. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 IX. Judge Changes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 X. Agility Handlers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 XI. Rules applying to licensed

agility classes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 XII. Rules applying to exhibitors

and spectators. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 XIII. Exhibitor Guidelines. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 XIV. Agility Titles and All-Star Ranking. . . . . . . . . 22 XV. Warm-up ring. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 XVI. Equipment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 XVII. Ring Manners. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 XVIII. Official UKC Agility Classes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 XIX. Official agility size divisions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 XX. Rules applying to exhibiting at

UKC agility trials. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 XXI. Agility ring/course requirements. . . . . . . . . . 40 XXII. Judging Procedures. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 XXIII. Judging Criteria. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 XXIV. Agility Obstacles - Descriptions and

Specifications. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 XXV. Awards, trophies, ribbons and

placements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 XXVI. Agility Judge Rules and Guidelines. . . . . . . . 90 XXVII. Planning UKC Events. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91 XXVIII. Planning UKC Licensed Agility Trials. . . . . . . . 93 XXIX. UKC Policy on Show Site Changes. . . . . . . . . 97 XXX. Canceling a UKC Licensed Event. . . . . . . . . 98 XXXI. Dog Temperament and Behavior. . . . . . . . . 99 XXXII. Use of Alcohol and Illegal Drugs

at Events. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 XXXIII. Misconduct and Discipline. . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 Inherent Rights and Powers of UKC. . . . . . 109 UKC Policy Regarding Persons Associated

with Fighting Dogs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110Revision Effective September 1, 2012. . . . . . . . . . . 114Revision Effective July 18, 2013. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126Revision Effective January 1, 2014. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127Revision Effective January 1, 2018. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

UKC® Agility Rules 3

UKC is the trademark of the United Kennel Clublocated in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The use of the ini-tials UKC in association with any other registrywould be in violation of the registered trademark.Notify the United Kennel Club, 100 E Kilgore Rd,Kalamazoo MI 49002-5584, should you becomeaware of such a violation.

I. Jurisdiction. All UKC Licensed Agility Trials shall begoverned by the rules herein. The following rules andregulations governing UKC Licensed Agility Trials andthe awarding of UKC Championship points and titlesissued by the United Kennel Club, are uniform and are not given on a local or geographical basis.

II. Who may offer agility trials. Any UKC club that iseligible to offer agility trials may be licensed to offer All-Breed Agility Trials. UKC reserves the right to grant,withhold or revoke event licenses at its own discretion.

III. Agility defined. Agility is an obstacle course runagainst time by a handler and dog as a team. The han-dler directs the dog, off lead, through the course with-out touching the dog or the obstacles. The team shouldnot perform as formally as in obedience. The overallperformance should convey an image of fun, enthusi-asm and partnership between the dog and handler.

IV. UKC’s philosophy on agility. The UKC conceptof Agility is that all handlers, regardless of physicalabilities, and all dogs, regardless of breed and phys-ical structure, should have the opportunity to partic-ipate and experience success in agility. If a dog hasbeen trained to negotiate the obstacles withoutmajor faults and to move at a brisk pace, it shouldbe able to qualify for titles, without being required tomeet exceptionally fast speed requirements and wincompetitively against other participants.

The dog-and-handler team is judged partly onthe time required to complete the course, but alsoon the precision with which the course and obsta-cles are negotiated. Competition among partici-pants is involved only in the awarding of placementprizes and does not figure into the awarding of titles.We believe this program rewards the dog and han-dler for their efforts in training to develop the abilityto meet the challenges of the Agility course, ratherthan for their possession of physical attributes tonegotiate the course at fast speeds.

Official UKC® Rules andRegulations

Regulations Governing UKC® Licensed Agility Trials*Amended to January 1, 2011**Rules effective July 1, 2011

***Revision effective January 1, 2018

under the rules of the United Kennel Club. Adog that has been disqualified from a confor-mation show or performance event pursuantto Section XXXI.B.1 must not participate in anyfurther events unless reinstated by UKC.

L. Dog. The word “dog” used in these regula-tions includes both sexes.

M. Entry Form. An official UKC documentrequired for entry into a UKC licensed event.The entry form provides all of the necessaryinformation regarding the dog being enteredinto the event as well as the owner informationfor the dog.

N. Excused. The Judge may excuse any dogwhenever he/she reasonably believes thedog’s physical condition creates a risk of injuryto the dog or the dog is not under the handler’scontrol. A dog excused by a judge in any eventmay not participate in another event of thesame type in the same show or trial, except thatin Agility, in Obedience, and in Rally, anexcused dog may compete in another class atthe same trial. A dog excused from a conforma-tion class in show 1 may be shown again onthe same day in show 2, and it is also eligiblefor any performance events on the same day.

O. Guideline. An indication or outline of recom-mended policy or conduct.

P. Immediate family. The spouse, parent, step-parent, child, step-child, brother or sister of aperson are immediate family members.

Q. Leg. A qualifying score toward an obedience,rally, or agility title, a qualifying pull in a weightpull, or a qualifying win toward a GrandChampion conformation title.

R. Licensed classes. Classes that are requiredto be offered at a UKC conformation show orperformance event.

S. Limited Privilege number (LP) program. Thisprogram is open to the following, provided theyare spayed/neutered: mixed breed dogs, pure-bred dogs of unknown pedigree, and purebreddogs with disqualifications as described in theUKC breed standard. All Limited Privilege dogsare eligible for Agility, Obedience, and otherperformance events. Eligibility for future eventswill be determined and published in UKC publi-cations and on the UKC website. For moreinformation or to obtain a Temporary Listingnumber please visit the Dog EventsDepartment section of the UKC website.

T. Multi-Breed show. A conformation show thatoffers classes for more than one breed, but

V. Definitions. A. Agility Trial. An all-breed event hosted by a

UKC Licensed club at which the Judge evalu-ates the ability of teams of handlers and dogsto perform a series of obstacles in accordancewith these rules.

B. All-Breed show. A conformation show thatoffers classes for all breeds eligible for UKCconformation privileges.

C. Assigned Course Time. Also referred in anabbreviated form as ACT. The AssignedCourse Time is the maximum number of sec-onds allowed for a dog to complete thecourse without incurring time fault deductions.

D. Blind. A dog is blind if it has no useful sight. E. Breeder of record. The owner of the dam on

the date of breeding is the breeder of record ofall dogs whelped in the resulting litter.

F. Conformation show. A show hosted by a UKCLicensed club at which the conformation andtemperament of purebred dogs are evaluatedby Judges in accordance with UKC rules andthe UKC standards for each breed.

G. Corresponding date. UKC schedules eventsbased on a 52-week calendar. If a club offersan event on the 4th Saturday of this year, thenthat club’s corresponding date in all subse-quent years is also the 4th Saturday, regard-less of the actual date.

H. Day-of-Show/Trial/Pull Entry (DOS). MostUKC clubs allow entries to be taken on theday of a show or trial. The start and finish timefor taking these entries is published inBLOODLINES Dog Event News magazine andon the UKC website.

I. Delimiting line; delimiting box. A delimitingline is a line marking part of the course areaprohibited to the handler while the dog is nego-tiating that part of the course area. The delimit-ing box is an established boundary (indicatedby lines) prohibited to the handler while thedog is negotiating that obstacle on the course.

J. Determining a dog’s age. In determining adog’s age for entry purposes, a month-to-month calendar day system shall be used. Forexample, a dog born on January 1 shall turnsix months old on July 1 of the same year.

K. Disqualified. Dog is deemed ineligible forcompetition. This can be the result of a condi-tion prohibited in the rules, such as an alter-ation to the dog’s natural state, an undesirabletrait as listed in a breed standard, or a condi-tion of or action by a dog that is prohibited

4 UKC® Agility Rules UKC® Agility Rules 5

A Veteran Dog competes with other dogs inthe same licensed agility classes for which itis eligible, and legs and points are accumu-lated toward the same titles and Agility All-Star ranking points, but a veteran dog is sub-ject to different height divisions, crawl tunnelheights, and assigned course times. A han-dler enters his or her veteran dog in an agili-ty trial by indicating on the entry form thatthe dog is a “Veteran Dog”. A handler is notrequired to enter his or her dog as a VeteranDog but may not switch between VeteranDog standards and regular dog standards atthe same trial or set of trials.

EE. Wait List. The list of all entries after 200entries per judge have been received iscalled the “wait list”.

FF. Wicket. Any measuring device that is used toaccurately determine a dog’s height. Height isdetermined by drawing a straight line from thetop of the withers perpendicular to the ground.

GG. Withers. The high part of the back of thedog, located between the shoulder blades.

VI. General Rules. A. Licenses. All licenses for UKC Licensed events

shall be granted, withheld or revoked at thesole discretion of the United Kennel Club.

B. Governing rules. UKC Licensed events aregoverned by UKC rules, classifications, andpoint systems. The entry application signedby the exhibitor specifically states that theexhibitor is familiar with the UKC Rules andRegulations. Every exhibitor is expected toknow the rules before competing and beready to abide by them.

C. Suspended/Barred Individuals. A list of indi-viduals who have been suspended or barredby UKC is prohibited from participating in anyUKC Licensed event, including but not limitedto owner, co-owner, handler, back-up handler,judge, guide, vendor, spectator, Master ofHounds, Bench Show Judge, Judge orDirector for any Conformation, Performanceor Companion event.

D. Event Ground Restrictions. No dog less than8 weeks of age may be present on thegrounds of a UKC licensed event. The pres-ence of any other dog not entered into theevent is at the discretion of the host club.

E. Judging dogs. No dog may be judged beforethe advertised start time of the event.

F. Finality of Judges’ decisions. By enteringany agility trial, the owner and handler of any

fewer than all the breeds eligible for UKC con-formation privileges.

U. Non-qualifying score. Also referred to as an“NQ” or a “Zero score”. A non-qualifying scoreis given for the most serious deviations fromthe ideal or for failing to complete an obstacle.Unless excused by the Judge, the dog maycomplete the course.

V. Obedience trial. An all-breed event hosted bya UKC Licensed club at which Judges evaluatethe ability of teams of handlers and dogs toperform a series of exercises.

W. Performance event. Events where the dog isjudged on the basis of performance ratherthan conformation. Agility, obedience, rallyobedience, terrier racing, and weight pull aretypical performance events.

X. Pre-entry and Pre-Entry Only. Some UKC clubsoffer pre-entry in addition to day-of-trial entry.Pre-entries must be submitted by a specific date(usually called the “closing date” and publishedin BLOODLINES Dog Event News magazine andon the UKC website), and are normally lower inprice than day-of-show entries. Trials that do notaccept day-of-trial entries are designated as“Pre-Entry Only” in the Upcoming Events listingon the in BLOODLINES Dog Event News maga-zine and on the UKC website.

*Y. Qualifying Score. See Section XX.B.5.c. Z. Single-breed show. A conformation show that

offers classes for a single breed. This is alsosometimes referred to as a “specialty” show.

AA. Sportsmanship. Conduct and attitude consid-ered as befitting participants in sports, espe-cially fair play, courtesy and grace in losing.

BB. Temporary Listing (TL) number. ATemporary Listing number may be used toenter a dog in UKC events before the dog isregistered or listed with UKC. Refer to theUKC website for rules and instructions onhow to obtain a TL number by going to:https://www.ukcdogs.com/DEWebCom.nsf/TL%20Web?OpenForm.

CC. Trap Obstacle. A hurdle obstacle permittedin an AGIII course, in addition to the requiredobstacles, which is not one of the numberedobstacles.

DD. Veteran Dogs. A veteran dog is a male orfemale dog seven (7) years or older on thedate of trial. The dog’s age shall be deter-mined by the dog’s actual birthday or clos-est known date of birth known, as reportedto UKC on the dog’s registration application.


title has been verified. O. When points or legs are awarded. 1. Points or legs earned toward UKC titles are

awarded after United Kennel Club receivesand processes the official event report fromthe host club.

2. No Agility All Star points or titles will beawarded until a dog with a TemporaryListing (TL) number has been permanentlyregistered. Points earned toward UKC AllStar Standings are awarded after theUnited Kennel Club receives and processesthe official event report from the host club.

P. UKC right to review and correct event relat-ed documents. UKC has the right to inspectall reports, score sheets, and other documentsrelated to UKC Licensed events and to reviewthose documents for any reason. UKCreserves the right to correct any mistakesfound. Pursuant to the Inherent Rights andPowers, UKC employees may make correc-tions, additions or deletions to any documentsrelated to UKC-licensed events, regardless ofwhether or not those documents are signed bya Judge or club officer.

Q. UKC right to change rules, policies, andfees. UKC reserves the right to change rules,policies and fees at any time without notice.

VII. Entering a UKC event. Dogs must bePermanently Registered, have a Limited Privilegenumber (performance events, companion events &Junior Showmanship), or have a valid TemporaryListing number. A. Official UKC entry form. Entries for all

licensed Agility Trials must be submitted usingthe most current official UKC entry form. Entryforms must be complete when submitted tothe club’s Event Secretary, including a validUKC Permanent Registration number, UKCLimited Privilege number or UKC TemporaryListing number. Incomplete or unsigned entryforms or entries unaccompanied by entry feesare invalid, and are to be refused by the EventSecretary/Event Manager.

B. Eligibility for entry in licensed Agility Trials.Entry in licensed agility trial classes is limited to:

1. Dogs that are at least twelve (12) months ofage on the day of the event.

2. Dogs that are Permanently Registered withUKC as of the day of the event.

3. Dogs that have a valid Temporary Listing(TL) number as of the day of the event.

dog agree to accept the decision of the Judgeas final. The decision of a Judge is the respon-sibility of the Judge and not that of UnitedKennel Club.

G. PRE-Entry Only. At a pre-entry only event, thedog must be Permanently Registered, or havea valid Limited Privilege (LP) number, or aTemporary Listing (TL) number by the eventclosing date.

H. Prohibition against Event Chairperson andEvent Secretary serving as Judge. No per-son may serve as a Judge for the host club atany UKC Licensed event held on the sameweekend when that person is serving as EventChairperson or Event Secretary.

I. Presence of Event Chairperson and EventSecretary at events. The Event Chairpersonand the Event Secretary must be present dur-ing events at which they are serving in thesecapacities.

J. Regulation and recording of event results.The UKC Dog Events Department regulatesand records the results of agility trials, confor-mation shows, obedience trials, rally obedi-ence trials and weight pulls and issues awardsfor levels of achievement at these events.Additional events may be added at the solediscretion of the United Kennel Club.

K. Required Inoculations. All dogs six months ofage or older must have inoculations for Rabies,Canine Distemper and Canine Parvovirus to bepresent on the grounds of any UKC event or tobe eligible to compete at UKC events. Dogsunder six months of age present on thegrounds of any UKC event must have currentinoculations for Canine Distemper and CanineParvovirus. Failure to comply with this para-graph will result in disciplinary action.

L. Special requirements for bringing dogs intostate where event is being held. Clubs hold-ing events in states with special requirementsfor bringing dogs into the state must list thoserequirements in writing when submitting theEvent Application for a Scheduled Weekend.

M. Responsibility of Owner to advise UKC ofaddress change. It is the responsibility of anowner on record to notify UKC of addresschanges for any UKC registered dogs whomay have pending titles. An official UKCchange of address form may be found on theUKC website, www.ukcdogs.com.

N. Title Certificate. UKC will mail the appropriateTitle Certificate to the owner on record, once a


explained in writing by the Event Secretarywhen submitting the Event report.

2. Pre-entry. Clubs accepting pre-entriesmust establish a pre-entry deadline afterwhich no further pre-entries will be accept-ed. The pre-entry deadline must be pub-lished with the other event information inBLOODLINES Dog Event News magazineand on the UKC website. Clubs may offer adiscounted entry fee for pre-entries. In suchcases, exhibitors whose entries fail to arriveby the pre-entry deadline date must betreated as a day-of-trial entry.

3. Pre-entry only. Clubs may elect not to takeday-of-trial entries. In such a case, the clubmust include this information on itsApplication for Licensed Events. Suchevents will be designated “PE ONLY” at thetop of their listing in BLOODLINES DogEvent News magazine and on the UKCwebsite (www.ukcdogs.com).

E. Canine Amputees and Deaf dogs. CanineAmputees and Deaf dogs may participate inagility trials but must be able to safely performall course requirements.

F. Conditional Entries. An entry must not be madeand must not be accepted by a club which spec-ifies any condition as to its acceptance.

G. Entry Limits. 1. Limitations on entering a single dog in

more than one class. a. No dog may be entered more than once

in the same agility class per trial. Forexample: a dog may not be entered inAgility I-A and Agility I-B at the same trial.

b. No dog may be entered more than onedivision of the Agility I, Agility II or AgilityIII classes.

c. No dog may be entered in the “A” sec-tion of Agility I and an Agility III class atthe same trial.

d. No dog may be entered in the “A” sec-tion of Agility II and the Agility III class atthe same trial.

2. Limitations on the number of entriesallowed per Judge per day. Entries arelimited to 200 entries per Judge per day. Noclub may limit agility entries below 200entries per Judge per day without the writ-ten approval of UKC. Any club whoseentries exceed the limit of 200 entries perJudge per day may choose one of the fol-lowing options:

4. Dogs that have a Limited Privilege (LP)number as of the day of the event.

5. At a Pre-Entry only show/trial, the dog mustbe Permanently Registered, have a valid TLor a valid LP number by the closing date ofthe show/trial.

C. Ineligibility for entry in licensed agilityclasses. The following dogs must not enter inagility trials even if otherwise eligible and maybe refused by the Event Secretary.

1. Disqualified dog. Dogs that have been dis-qualified by a Judge at a UKC Licensedevent in accordance with Section XXXII.B.1.

2. Blind or lame dogs. Blind or lame dogsmust not enter in agility trials.

3. Females in season. Female in seasonmust not enter an agility trial.

4. Dogs that appear to be ill. Dog thatappear to be ill or dogs with sutures, band-ages, adhesive or any other material that isindicative of or related to any surgical ormedical procedure must not be entered inan agility trial.

5. Pregnant or lactating female dogs.Pregnant or lactating female dogs may notparticipate in UKC agility trials. A Judgewho reasonably believes that a dog is preg-nant or lactating must excuse the dog andmark the reason in the Judge’s book. TheJudge’s decision is final. A bitch that hasbeen bred is considered pregnant until:

a) She whelps a litter; b) A veterinarian has determined that a

bred bitch is not pregnant. c) The 64th day after the last day the bitch

was bred, counting the day of breeding. D. Entry procedures and deadlines. UKC clubs

must use the following procedures for takingentries for licensed classes:

1. Day-of-trial entries. Clubs accepting day-of-trial entries must establish a day-of-trialentry deadline time after which no furtherday-of-trial entries shall be accepted for thatday’s event. This information will be pub-lished with the other event information inBLOODLINES Dog Event News magazineand on the UKC website. In the case ofextreme weather or other emergency condi-tions, the Event Committee may decide toextend the taking of entries or delay the startof all judging by a reasonable period oftime, or both. In such cases, the extensionof entry-taking or delay of judging must be


include the height division of his/her dog inthe space provided on the entry form whenentering a dog in an agility class.

L. Entry numbers and armbands. Each dog shallbe assigned an entry number and the host clubmust provide armbands displaying the entrynumber to the person exhibiting the dog. Eachexhibitor must wear the armband with the num-ber visible to the judge when in the ring.

M. Corrections or changes to entry form.Move-Up/Entry Correction Forms must beprovided by the club. An Exhibitor or ownermust complete the form before exhibiting in aclass other than indicated on the entry form.The Move-Up/Entry Correction From must beattached to the entry form.

1. Corrections and Changes to an Entryform. An exhibitor or owner may make cor-rections on an entry form any time prior tothe judging of the class in which the dog isentered. An exhibitor or owner may changethe dog’s name or the dog’s registrationnumber on an individual entry, but he/shemay not change both on the same entry.

2. Class changes. Any dog that has, accord-ing to the owner’s records, completed therequirements for a UKC title may be shownat the next level of competition at the firstevent following the completion of the title.At UKC Licensed agility trials where twoevents are held concurrently, any dog com-pleting the requirements for a title at Trial 2must not be moved up to the next level ofcompetition for Trial 1. If an exhibitor choos-es to compete in Trial 1, he/she must do soin the lower class. Class changes must beapplied for not later than one-half hour priorto the start of any regular judging on theday of the trial. In the case of a club runningtwo trials simultaneously, the club mustpost its class change policy at the entrytable and the Event Secretary’s table on theday of the trial, or publish the class changepolicy in the Judging Schedule.

a. If a dog is moved to a higher class priorto UKC notification.

1) Moving back to lower level of compe-tition. Once a dog has been shown atthe higher level of competition, it maynot be returned to a lower level classunless the owner has been notifiedby UKC that the dog is ineligible forthe higher level.

a. Overflow Judge. If the limit is exceededbefore the close of entries, the club mayapply to UKC for approval of an overflowJudge. The application must include acomplete breakdown of all entries foreach class. The overflow Judge is tojudge the section that will affect thefewest number of exhibitors. An overflowJudge may not judge a certain number ofdogs within a class but must judge theentire class section or a class section divi-sion assigned to him/her. An overflowJudge may be approved by UKC to judgetwo trials in the same day. An overflowJudge is not considered an EmergencyReplacement Judge.

b. Wait list. Clubs may accept entries overthe limit provided they establish a “waitlist” of all entries over the limit in theorder they are received. If clubs choseto accept over 200 entries per judge, theentries must be placed on the wait list inthe order received. If, on the day of trial,any of the first 200 entries per judge areabsent, the absentee must be replacedby the first person on the wait list who ispresent and ready to compete.Regardless of the number of entriestaken, no Judge will be allowed to judgemore than 200 entries per day. Clubsmust refund the entry fees for allexhibitors on the wait list who do not getthe opportunity to compete.

H. Refusing an entry. Host clubs may refuse theentry of an otherwise eligible dog. While aclub’s decision is subject to review by UKC, itwill not be overturned except where there isstrong evidence that the club’s decision isbased on prohibited categories of discrimina-tion (race, religion, national origin, etc.) or per-sonal disputes.

I. Refund or Cancellation of Entry. The Hostclub shall be responsible for their own refundand/or cancellation of entry policy. It is sug-gested that the policy be posted.

J. Substitutions of an Entered Dog.Substitution of an entered dog may be allowedat the club’s discretion, so long as the newdog meets all Entering a UKC event require-ments. Substitutions of a dog are prohibitedwhen the Trial’s entry deadline time has beenreached or the dog is ineligible to compete.

K. Entering a dog’s height division on theentry form. Each exhibitor is required to


B. Scheduling performance and conformationevents when there is only one ring available.When the event site only accommodates asingle ring, and a club is offering both confor-mation and a performance event, conforma-tion shall be judged last so that the perform-ance dogs are not distracted by the scent offemale dogs in season.

IX. Judge Changes. A. Change of Judge after event has been pub-

lished in BLOODLINES Dog Events magazine.All judge changes occurring prior to the lastweekday before an event must be approvedby UKC. Changes made too late for publica-tion in BLOODLINES Dog Event News maga-zine will be posted on the UKC website. Thehost club must make every reasonable effortto notify exhibitors of the change and offerrefunds to all pre-entered exhibitors who sub-mit a written request for refund of their entryfee(s). Judge changes must be posted in plainview at the event site during event hours.

B. Appointing an emergency replacementJudge. If, on the day of the event, a Judge isunable to start or complete his/her assign-ment, the Event Chairperson must appoint anemergency replacement Judge. Priorityshould be given in order to another Judgelicensed for the events assigned to the originalJudge, then to a UKC Apprentice AgilityJudge. If no licensed or Apprentice Judge isavailable, the club may appoint the availableperson best qualified to take the assignment.All official event report forms must show thename, address and phone number of theemergency replacement Judge. The EventSecretary must include a written explanationfor all assignment changes when submittingthe event report to UKC and include the cre-dentials of any emergency replacementJudge. Points or legs earned by exhibitorsunder emergency replacement Judges shallbe considered as if they were earned underthe original Judge for the purpose of calculat-ing required wins under different Judges.

X. Agility Handlers. A. Age. Agility handlers may be any age provid-

ed the handler is able to control the dog. AJudge may excuse a dog at any time if he/shebelieves the handler is unable to control thedog and the Judge’s decision is final.

2) If owner’s records are incorrect. If theowner’s records are incorrect, all winsearned while showing at the higherlevel of competition shall be invalid.

b. Moving a dog to a higher class after offi-cial notification from UKC. Once anowner has been notified that his/her doghas earned an agility title, the dog mustthereafter be shown in the class appro-priate to its title.

1) A dog that has earned a UAGI titlemust not compete in the Agility I-Aclass, but may compete in AGI-B,AGIIA or B classes, or both.

2) A dog that has earned a UAGII titlemust not compete in Agility II-A class,but may compete in AGI-B, the AGII-B class or both.

3) A dog that has earned a UACH titlemay continue to compete in only theAgility I-B class, Agility II-B class, andin the AGIII class, or all three.

4) A dog that has earned an ACHX titlemay continue to compete in only theAgility IB class, Agility II-B class,Agility III class, or all three.

5) A dog that has earned a new UGRACHtitle may continue to compete in onlythe Agility I-B class, Agility II-B class,Agility III class, or all three.

VIII. Judging Schedule. A. Start time for licensed classes. At pre-entry

only trials, judging must start at the advertisedstart time. At all other trials, judging must startat the advertised start time or as soon as pos-sible thereafter if there are a large number ofday-of-trial entries. No dogs are to be judgedprior to the start time advertised in BLOOD-LINES Dog Event News magazine and UKCwebsite, provided that the trial secretary maydelay the start time of a pre-entry only trial, ofnot more than one (1) hour, by notifying eachand every handler entered of the delay in starttime, at least two days in advance of the trialdate. Dogs should be present at their ring attime of Judging. Judges are not required towait for dogs. The start of judging in Agilityevents includes the judge’s briefing, a handlerwalk-through without dog, and course familiar-ization with the dog, all of which shall occurafter the advertised start time.


C. Order of Judging dogs. It is recommendedthat dogs be judged in numerical order,according to the armband number assignedby the Event Secretary, except that a Judgehas discretion to allow a dog to be judged outof sequence at the request of the handler,and also to accommodate deep chesteddogs, veteran dogs, and handlers with con-flicts with other scheduled events.

D. Requirement to judge a whole class. If twoor more Judges are used at a trial, the Judgemust judge a whole class, except in trials thatuse a Chief Judge and Back-up judge.

E. Limitation on trialing a single dog in morethan one agility class.

1. No dog may be entered more than once inthe same agility trial class.

2. No dog may be entered in more than one divi-sion of the Agility I, Agility II or Agility II class-es.

3. No dog may be entered in the “A” division ofAgility I and an Agility III class at the same trial.

4. No dog may be entered in the “A” division ofAgility of Agility II and the Agility III class atthe same trial.

F. Dogs that may compete in licensed classes.All eligible dogs (Section VII.B.) may partici-pate in UKC Licensed agility trials, except asnoted below.

1. Mandatory excusals. The following dogsmust not compete in agility trials even if other-wise eligible and must be excused by theJudge. The Judge’s decision is final in allmandatory excusals. The Judge must markthe reason for any excusal in the Judge’s book.

a. Ineligible dogs. Dogs that would be inel-igible for entry, stated in Section VII.C.,except as permitted by that section.

b. Age of Dog. Dogs under the age oftwelve months on the date of the trial.

c. Deaf dogs and canine amputees. Deafdogs and dogs missing all or part of onelimb may participate in agility trials butmust be able to safely perform allrequired obstacles. A Judge mayexcuse a canine amputee for lamenessonly if the Judge determines that thedog is stiff or sore in one or more of itsremaining limbs. The decision of theJudge is final.

d. Females in season. No female in sea-son may participate in an agility trial.The host club has the option of refund-ing the entire entry fee or retaining up to

B. UKC Total Junior Handler. A Junior Handleris a male or female handler who has notreached his/her eighteenth birthday as ofJanuary 1 of the competition year and be amember of the UKC Total Junior Program.After December 31, of the year in which theJunior Handler turns 18, the Junior may nolonger participate in the Junior Handler pro-gram. A club may request verification of theJunior participant’s age. The Junior Handlermust include their Total Junior membershipnumber on the UKC Official Entry Form.

C. Handicapped handlers. UKC encouragesthose with physical handicaps or debilitatingdiseases to participate in this sport.Handicapped handlers may use a wheelchair,crutches or cane in the ring but must be able tomove around the ring without other assistance.

1. Handlers who need the aid of supportingdevices (i.e. leg braces, canes, crutches,wheelchairs, etc.) to move through thecourse, or those with debilitating diseasesmay request reasonable arrangements toassist them as necessary, including revis-ing course times where appropriate. Allhandlers needing an adjusted ACT mustinform the Event Secretary when enteringthe agility trial. The Event Secretary willinform the Judge of the entry.

2. Persons who are hearing impaired andthose unable to give verbal commands forother reasons may use clickers, squeakers(not whistles) to help direct their dogs overthe course. Also, the Judge is to use a flagto inform the handler of major faults thatwould require a repeat attempt to completethe obstacle. It also is suggested that thebackup timer maintain a position at somedistance in front of the handler to relay theflag signal, in case the Judge gets behindthe handler in a given situation. Handlersshall not request revisions of course times.

XI. Rules applying to licensed agility classes. A. Requirement to offer licensed classes. All

licensed classes must be offered at every UKCLicensed agility trial, except that with specialpermission from UKC a Single Breed(Specialty) show may request to offer Agility Ionly or Agility I and Agility II.

B. Order of class judging. Classes and divi-sions may be judged in any order as deter-mined by the host club.

UKC® Agility Rules 1716 UKC® Agility Rules

same club on the same day, provided thedog is not handled by the agility eventJudge. The following rules apply to boththe Chief Judge and the Back-up Judge.

a. A dog that is owned or co-owned by theJudge;

b. A dog that is owned or co-owned by amember of the Judge’s immediate family;

c. A dog that is owned or co-owned by aperson living in the same household asthe Judge.

d. A dog that has been owned or trainedby the Judge or that has lived in theJudge’s household, regardless of own-ership, within three months of the dateof the event.

e. A dog that has been owned or trained bya member of the Judge’s immediatefamily or that has lived in the householdof a member of the Judge’s immediatefamily within three months of the date ofthe event.

2. Procedures whereby prohibited dogs mayparticipate in the agility trial. Any prohibiteddog listed above may trial (run) provided that:

a. The host club must designate a ChiefJudge and a Back-up Judge on theApplication For One Licensed Event.The Chief Judge shall be the overallauthority for judging the event; and

b. Therefore a prohibited dog of the ChiefJudge must trial (run) under the Back-upJudge.

c. Therefore a prohibited dog of the Back-up Judge must trial (run) under the ChiefJudge.

d. A prohibited dog of the Chief Judge eli-gible to participate as stated in a.through c., above, may be entered/runfor purposes of obtaining qualifying legsand titles, and All Star points, but not forplacements nor for awards.

e. A prohibited dog of the Back-up Judgeeligible to participate as stated in a.through c., above, may be entered/runfor purposes of obtaining qualifying legsand titles, and All Star points, and shallbe eligible for trial placements andawards.

XII. Rules applying to exhibitors and spectators.UKC exhibitors and spectators are expected to dis-play good behavior and good sportsmanship on

50% of the fee as a processing fee ofany agility trial competitor who providesa veterinarian’s certificate verifying thatthe female came into season after theclosing date. The certificate may bemailed, provided the postmark is nolater than the date prior to the day of thetrial, or delivered by hand to the EventSecretary before the start of the adver-tised time of the trials as published inBLOODLINES Dog Event News maga-zine or on the UKC website.

*e. Blind or lame dogs. Blind or lame dogsmust not participate in agility trials. Adog is blind if it has no useful sight.

*f. Dogs that appear to be ill. Dog thatappear to be ill or dogs with sutures,bandages, adhesive or any other mate-rial that is indicative of or related to anysurgical or medical procedure must notbe entered in an agility trial.

*g. Pregnant or lactating female dogs.Pregnant or lactating female dogs maynot participate in UKC agility trials. AJudge who reasonably believes that adog is pregnant or lactating mustexcuse the dog and mark the reason inthe Judge’s book. The Judge’s deci-sion is final. A bitch that has been bredis considered pregnant until:

1) She whelps a litter;2) A veterinarian has determined that a

bred bitch is not pregnant.3) The 64th day after the last day the

bitch was bred, counting the day ofbreeding.

G. Rules Regarding Dogs Owned or TrainedBy Judges, Immediate Family Membersand Members of the Same Household asan officiating Judge.

1. Dogs that may not trial (run) under anofficiating Judge. Except as outlined insubparagraph G.2. below, exhibitors maynot trial (run) dogs from the following cate-gories under any officiating agility Judgewho is Chief Judge, for agility or the Back-up Judge for agility. These dogs may, how-ever, show in other types of events on thesame day, provided the dog is not handledby the Chief Agility Judge. For example, adog owned by a person judging an agilityevent, may participate in a companion, per-formance or conformation event hosted by


exhibitors whose dogs they reasonablybelieve are benefiting from “double handling”.

E. Interfering with the Judge. No person mayinterfere with the Judge in any way whilehe/she is judging a run.

F. Ring and event grounds cleanup. Exhibitorsare required to clean up after their dogs if theyfoul the ring or the event grounds. The ringsteward may bring cleaning supplies to theexhibitor and may hold the dog while the ownercleans the ring. Any exhibitor who fails to cleanup after his dog may be directed by the EventCommittee to leave the event grounds.

G. Misbehavior of handlers. 1. Excusing a handler. The Judge must

excuse a handler who exhibits poor sports-manship. The Judge has sole discretionwhether or not to allow the dog of anexcused handler to continue to participatein the trial with a substitute handler. TheJudge’s decision in these matters is final.

2. Handler misconduct. a. A handler who abuses his/her dog in the

ring shall be excused immediately bythe Judge. The Judge must mark thedog as excused and the reason in theJudge’s book for the excusal. The Judgemust file a Misconduct report with theEvent Committee as soon as possibleafter the incident in accordance withSection XXXIII.D.1.a.1).

b. Poor sportsmanship that rises to the levelof misconduct must be dealt with inaccordance with Section XXXIII. The han-dler must not be permitted to exhibit untilthe hearing has been held. A differenthandler may exhibit any additional dogsthe handler has entered. In this case theclub is not required to refund entry fee(s)for said dog or any additional dogs theexhibitor has entered on that day regard-less if the dogs were shown or not.

XIII. Exhibitor Guidelines. An agility trial is an eval-uation of a handler’s ability to train and work with adog. Many exhibitors have made a lifelong commit-ment to dog training. Judges have spent years train-ing and trialing dogs before stepping into the ring tojudge. They are serious about the sport, andexhibitors should be as well. Exhibitors’ behaviorand deportment speak to the degree of commitmentthey have to their dogs and to the sport. The follow-ing are suggested guidelines for UKC exhibitors:

and off the course. Judges, Event Committee mem-bers, and host club officers may excuse and/or barexhibitors or spectators from the course or eventgrounds for violations of these rules or conduct thatinterferes with the event and event participants. A. Bait and Baiting in the ring. Exhibitors are

prohibited from bringing any item of food, toysor any other training aids (other than a leash)into the agility ring, except that a handicappedhandler whose is deaf may use a training aidthat has been approved by the Judge. Baitpouches, fanny packs or other items that adog may associate with bait are also prohibit-ed. The Judge may require an exhibitor toremove any such item that the Judge, inhis/her sole discretion, believes may violatethis rule. Judges must excuse the exhibitorwho violates this policy and assess the dog anon-qualifying score. The Judge’s book mustbe marked accordingly. The Judge’s decisionon this matter is final. Exhibitors who violatethis rule may also be subject to disciplinaryaction by the host club and UKC.

B. Complaints about the Judge’s scoring. Byentering a UKC event, the exhibitor is inviting theopinion of the Judge and must accept theJudge’s decision as final. Exhibitors are encour-aged to discuss runs with Judges but must notargue about the Judge’s scoring or class place-ments. Complaints about the Judge may onlybe lodged with the host club if the exhibitorbelieves the Judge has violated a specific UKCrule. Complaints about a Judge’s knowledge orapplication of UKC agility rules may be filed withUKC but must address specific deficiencies.Electronic audio or video recordings will not beconsidered by UKC when reviewing a Judge’scompetency to judge an agility trial.

C. Control of the dog. Exhibitors are expected tokeep their dogs under control at all times. TheEvent Committee may expel from the showgrounds any person whose failure to control adog interferes with judging or with the ability ofother exhibitors to present their dogs.

D. Double handling. Persons outside the ringare prohibited from any intentional actionsdesigned to affect the performance of a dogbeing judged in the ring. This prohibition shallapply equally to persons attempting toimprove or to impair a performance. TheEvent Committee may expel from the showgrounds any person they reasonably believeis double handling. Judges may excuse


B. United Agility II Title (UAGII). This title mustbe earned from the A or B sections of theAgility II class, or any combination of the two.To earn this title, a dog must earn three quali-fying scores at three different UKC Licensedagility trials.

1. Receive three qualifying scores at three dif-ferent UKC Licensed agility trials in theAgility II class;

2. A qualifying score requires the successfulcompletion of all obstacles and a score of170 points or more;

3. All three qualifying scores may be obtainedunder the same Judge.

C. United Agility Champion Title (UACH). 1. Eligibility. Accumulation of points toward the

title of United Agility Champion (UACH)begins at the next trial following the comple-tion of the requirements of the UAGI andUAGII titles. Scores obtained in the Agility Iclass at the same trial at which a dogobtained its third qualifying score towards theUAGII title, and vice-versa must not be usedtoward the accumulation of UACH points.

2. Requirements. This title must be earnedfrom the B sections of the Agility I and AgilityII classes. To earn this title a dog must:

a. Accumulate 100 agility championshippoints, at least 40 of which must beearned in the AGI-B class and at least 40of which must be earned in the AGII-Bclass. Agility Championship points areearned in the AGI-B and AGII-B classesby successfully completing all obstaclesand obtaining a minimum qualifyingscore of 196 or more in either or both.The number of Agility championshippoints increases as the qualifying scoreincreases in accordance with the tablebelow: Agility championship points areawarded as follows:

Qualifying score Points Earned

Score of 196 1 Score of 197 2 Score of 198 4 Score of 199 6 Score of 200 10 b. Fractions of scores must be rounded

down to the nearest whole numberwhen computing championship points.

A. Exhibitors should accept the decision of theJudge gracefully. There should be no snatch-ing of ribbons, loud comments or derision ofthe Judge or his/her decisions, either in thering or out.

B. Exhibitors’ clothing should be neat and clean.Their apparel speaks to the respect they havefor the sport, the trial and its proceedings.

C. Exhibitors’ dogs should be clean and, wherenecessary, brushed or trimmed to present aneat appearance.

D. Exhibitors should take care when discussing thejudging with the Judge to not appear confronta-tional. The judging was the Judge’s evaluationon that day, and poor behavior on the part of theexhibitor will not change the outcome.

E. Exhibitors should make an effort to help newexhibitors. We were all new to agility trials atone time and we appreciated it when some-one helped us.

F. Exhibitors should always leave the eventgrounds in the condition they found them.Help the event committee clean up your area.

G. Exhibitors should take care not to promoterumors and negative comments about dogs,other exhibitors or judges.

H. Exhibitors should remember they are at the trialat the invitation of the trial-giving club. In orderto ensure being invited back, exhibitors shoulddo whatever they can to assist the host cluband promote the family flavor of UKC events.

XIV. Agility Titles and All-Star Ranking. The UnitedAgility I (UAGI) and United Agility II (UAGII) titles arenot required to be earned successively. However,titles will be awarded by UKC in sequence; UAGI,UAGII. If a dog meets all requirements for the AgilityII title, it must complete the Agility I title before thecertificates or dog’s record is updated by UKC.Equivalent titles from other venues must not be sub-stituted for UKC agility titles. A. United Agility I Title (UAGI). This title must be

earned from the A or B sections of the Agility Iclass or any combination of the two. To earn thistitle, a dog must earn three qualifying scores atthree different UKC Licensed agility trials.

1. Receive three qualifying scores at three dif-ferent UKC Licensed agility trials in theAgility I class;

2. A qualifying score requires the successfulcompletion of all obstacles and a score of170 points or more;

3. All three qualifying scores may be obtainedunder the same Judge.


24 UKC® Agility Rules

Champion (GRACH.)3. Agility All-Star points. All-Star points are

automatically awarded at all UKC Licensedagility events. The Agility All-Star points arecalculated by UKC based on the official UKCAgility Trial event reports submitted by theclub. Fractional points shall be rounded downto the nearest whole number. UKC will tallythe All-Star points per category as following:a. Agility I, Agility II, and Agility III cate-

gories. All-Star points will be awarded toeach dog with a qualifying score of 196or higher, in accordance with the follow-ing table:

Qualifying score Points EarnedScore of 196 1Score of 197 2Score of 198 4Score of 199 6Score of 200 10

b. Grand Agility Champion (GRACH) cat-egory. GRACH All-Star points will beawarded to each dog that earns earn aqualifying score of at least 196 points ineach of the AGI-B, AGII-B and AGIII class-es in the same trial with a combined scoreof 594 points or higher. GRACH All-Starranking points will be as follows:

Combined qualifying score Points Earned:Combined score of 594 1Combined score of 595 2Combined score of 596 or 597 4Combined score of 598 or 599 6Combined score of 600 10

4. Agility All-Star competition year. AgilityAll-Star points are calculated from January1 to December 31 of each year.

5. Publication of agility All-Star standings.UKC will tally the All-Star points by category(Agility I, Agility II, Agility III and GRACH)and publish the names of the top 50 rankeddogs in each category on the UKC websiteeach month.

6. Corrections to agility All-Star standings.Corrections in Agility All-Star points orstandings for any competition year must bepromptly reported to UKC. Correction to theAgility All-Star Standings received afterJanuary 31 of the following year shall notbe considered.

c. There is no restriction on the number ofscores or agility championship points thatmay be earned under the same Judge.

D. United Agility Champion Excellent Title(UACHX).

1. Eligibility. Any dog that has earned aUACH title may earn legs in the Agility IIIclass toward the title of United AgilityChampion Excellent (UACHX) beginning atthe next trial following the completion of therequirements of the United AgilityChampion (UACH) title.

2. Requirements. To earn this title a dog must: a. Receive five qualifying scores at five dif-

ferent UKC Licensed agility trials inAgility III;

b. A qualifying score requires the success-ful completion of all obstacles and ascore of 196 points or higher;

c. All five qualifying scores may beobtained under the same Judge.

E. United Grand Agility Champion Title(UGRACH).

1. Eligibility. Any dog that has earned aUACHX title may earn legs toward the title ofUnited Grand Agility Champion (UGRACH)beginning at the next trial following the com-pletion of the requirements of the UnitedAgility Champion Excellent (UACHX) title.

2. Requirements. To earn this title a dog must: a. Combined wins. At five different UKC

Licensed agility trials, earn a qualifyingscore of at least 196 points in each of theAGI-B, AGII-B and AGIII classes in thesame trial with a combined score of 588points or higher.

b. Judge Requirements. All combined winsmay be obtained under the same Judge.

F. United Grand Agility Champion designationtitles. A United Grand Agility Champion titlewill be issued with the designation in accor-dance with the numerical times the title hasbeen earned. For example: UGRACH2,UGRACH3, and so on.

*G. UKC Agility All-Star Ranking System.1. Eligibility. All UKC permanently-registered

dogs and all mixed-breed dogs withLimited Privilege numbers are eligible toearn All-Star ranking points.

2. Agility All-Star Categories. All-Star pointswill be tallied for four categories: Agility I,Agility II, Agility III and Grand Agility


the Judge and Stewards. 4. Obstacles. Agility obstacles shall be made

in accordance with the requirements in thisrulebook. An agility obstacle made inaccordance with previous rules will contin-ue to be permitted, until the obstacle isreplaced. Such obstacle will be consideredto be a “grandfathered” obstacle.

5. Electronic Timers; Stopwatches. Electronictimers are allowed at UKC Licensed agility tri-als. When a club uses electronic timers theclub must have available, in the event of fail-ure of the electronic timers, stopwatches anda person to act as a back-up time steward.The officiating judge, may, however, require aback-up time steward in addition to the elec-tronic timers. In the event of failure to recordthe time for an agility leg, which was not inter-rupted, as permitted by XXIII J.11, the han-dler shall be given the choice of acceptingthe leg with the normal ACT, or to run thecourse again, for time only, without change inperformance and handler faults, providedthat each obstacle must be completed, or ifnot completed, attempted the number oftimes required for that class (for example,three times for AGI). Failure to complete, orattempt each obstacle the required numberof times, will result in a non-qualifying score.

6. Wicket. Any measuring device that is usedto accurately determine a dog’s height.

*B. Equipment that must be provided by theexhibitor. An exhibitor must provide for eachentered dog a leash, and a collar that com-plies with the rules herein. The handler mayrun the dog with or without a collar during thescored performance, but the dog must weara collar during course familiarization.

1. Collars. Fancy collars (such as collars withsequins or buttons etc.), studded, or“pinch” or “prong” collars, harnesses(head/or body), or any type of special train-ing collars are prohibited in the agility ring.Collars must properly fit the dog and beapproved by the Judge. Collar tags or otheritems hanging from the collar are prohibitedin the agility ring. Neither is it permissiblefor a dog to wear a scarf or bandanna,caps, sunglasses, etc.

*2. Leashes. A lead without a hand loop or knotat the end is recommended, long enough toallow the dog to move freely, but not to wrap

7. Agility All-Star Invitational. The 50 topranked dogs in each category (Agility I,Agility II, Agility III and GRACH) may beinvited to participate in an Agility All-StarInvitational competition.

*XV. Warm-up ring. The host club may set up awarm-up ring if space permits. All warm-ups mustbe done in that ring. Training on the grounds of aUKC Licensed agility trial is not permitted. No pri-vate warm-up or practice areas are allowed. A. Location. The warm-up ring must not disturb

or interfere with the trial ring. It is recommend-ed that the warm-up ring be at least 10’ awayfrom the trial ring.

B. Rules governing the warm-up ring. *1. A single jump/hurdle, a single set of

weave poles, a single table, a platformjump, and a single pause box are the onlytypes of agility obstacles allowed in thewarm-up ring.

2. All rules governing agility trials must applyin the warm-up ring.

3. The warm-up ring equipment must be clubprovided.

C. Dog abuse in the warm-up ring. Any personwho observes a dog being abused in thewarm-up ring must report it to a member ofthe trial committee or an officer of the hostclub. A member of the trial committee or offi-cer of the host club who becomes aware thata dog is being or has been abused in thewarm-up ring must treat this misconduct inaccordance with Section XXXIII of this rule-book. A Judge who becomes aware that adog is being or has been abused in the prac-tice ring must refuse to judge the dog and oth-erwise report the matter in accordance withSection XXXIII.D.1.a.1.

XVI. Equipment. A. Equipment that must be provided by the

host club. A club hosting a UKC Licensed agili-ty trial must provide the following equipment:

1. Ring barriers. The ring barrier may consistof a natural wall, ring gates or ropes, suffi-cient to provide a barrier for the dog.

2. Floor coverings. Floors that do not providesafe footing for dog and handler must becovered by mats or suitable coverings.

3. Ring supplies. Items such as pens, pen-cils, calculators, clipboards and stopwatch-es must be available for use in the ring by


ance, except in AGIII. F. Misbehavior of dogs in the ring. 1. Disqualifying a dog. A Judge must dis-

qualify a dog that bites or attempts to biteany person (includes the handler) or thatbites or attacks another dog. See SectionXXXI.B.I. A dog that has been disqualifiedmay not continue to compete in agility trialseven if otherwise eligible when disqualifiedby the Judge. The Judge’s decision is finalin all disqualifications. The Judge mustmark the reason in the Judge’s book forany disqualifications. A dog that has beendisqualified according to Section XXXI.B.I isineligible to enter and ineligible participatein a UKC Licensed event until notificationfrom the United Kennel Club

2. Excusing a dog. The Judge must excuse adog whose behavior in the ring is so unruly(not under the handler’s control) that it indi-cates to the Judge it is unable to compete.A dog that demonstrates aggressiveness toany person or other dog while in the ring,during the scored performance or familiar-ization course must be excused in accor-dance with Section XXXI.A.

XVIII. Official UKC Agility Classes. A. Requirement to offer licensed classes. A

club must offer all agility classes, sections andall three size divisions. Limits of entries maynot be placed on any of the five classes or sizedivisions. With special permission from UKC aSingle Breed Conformation show may requestto hold Agility I (A & B) only or Agility I (A & B)and Agility II (A & B) only.

B. Licensed agility classes. The licensed agilityclasses include:

1. Agility I classes (AGI). a. Section A. 1) Eligible competitors. The Agility I-A

class (AGI-A) may be open to dogsthat have not earned a UKC UAGItitle.

2) Ineligible competitors. The following areineligible to compete in the “A” section ofthe AGI class:

a) Any licensed or professional dogtrainer.

b) Any person licensed to judge agilityin UKC or any other organization.

c) Any agility instructor, regardless ofthe person’s status as an amateur

around parts of obstacles when released bythe handler during the course familiarization.The leash must be attached to a collar dur-ing course familiarization. Prohibited leadsare any type of longline or flexi leashes.

3. Small ribbons or rubber bands. Small rib-bons or rubber bands may be used to holdthe hair away from the dog’s eyes.

XVII. Ring Manners. A. Leash Requirements. All dogs at a UKC

Licensed agility trial must be on leash exceptwhen in the agility ring, when the dog isrequired to be off leash. Every dog must enterand should leave the agility ring on leash.

B. Barking. A dog that displays continuous, non-stop barking where the Judge is fairly certainthe dog is not expressing happiness may beassessed a minor fault at the Judge’s discre-tion. Faults of this type shall be recordedunder Additional Faults.

C. Fouling the ring. 1. Course Familiarization. A dog that elimi-

nates, spits up, or vomits in the ring duringthe course familiarization, must be assesseda 10-point deduction from the final score.

2. Judged performance. A dog that elimi-nates, spits up, or vomits in the ring, duringor after the judged performance must beassessed a non-qualifying score.

D. General. A dog that shows fear or extremehesitancy around the agility equipment or inthe ring environment must be excused andassessed a non-qualifying score.

E. Leaving the ring. 1. Leaving the ring during the course famil-

iarization. A judge must assess a minorfault when a dog leaves the ring during thecourse familiarization.

2. Leaving the ring during the scored per-formance.

a. Non-qualifying score. When a dogleaves the ring as a result of fear or dis-traction, the performance must bescored as non-qualifying.

b. Major deduction. When the dog leavesthe ring as a result of over exuberanceand miscalculation while working, suchas being unable to stop, but returnsimmediately on command, a majordeduction must be assessed under“Additional Faults” but this event alone isnot enough to non-qualify the perform-



from the top of the withers perpendicular tothe ground while the dog is standing normallyand not leaning. Each exhibitor is required toinclude the size division of his/her dog whenentering a dog in an agility event.

1. Borderline dogs. If a dog is on the border-line, before the trial the handler should askthe Judge for a measurement so that thedog may be exhibited in the proper divisionwithout penalty.

2. Correcting a size division before the dogruns. When a dog is found to be above orbelow the limit for the size division in whichit is entered, the dog must be moved to theproper division.

3. When a dog runs in the wrong size divi-sion. When a dog has run the course in theincorrect height division, it must beassessed a non-qualifying score and mustnot be allowed to re-run in the correct sizedivision. The Judge must mark the reasonfor the NQ in the Judge’s book. The Judge’sdetermination of the dog’s height is final.

4. Determining depth of chest of dogs. Thedepth of chest of a dog is determined byplacing the dog in a down position, restingon its front elbows in a “sphinx position”.The measurement is then made from theground to the withers.

C. Judge’s option to measure dogs. A Judge mayrequire that any dog be measured. The Judge’sdetermination of the dog’s height is final.

*D. Determining jump height division andcrawl tunnel height.

1. Hurdle height, hoop (tire) jump, pausetable and crawl tunnel heights.**Effective July 1, 2011**a. Division Toy. Division Toy is for dogs

whose height at the withers is up toand including 10 inches.

1) Hurdle and hoop (tire) jump height.The height must be set at 4 inches.

2) Pause table height. The table heightwill be set at 4 inches +/- 4 inch tol-erance.

**b. Division 1. Division 1 is for dogs whoseheight at the withers is up to and includ-ing 14 inches. As of 07/01/11: Division1 is for dogs whose height at the with-ers is over 10 inches up to and includ-ing 14 inches.

1) Hurdle and hoop (tire) jump height.The height must be set at 8 inches.

or professional. d) Any handler other than the owner

or an eligible member of theowner’s immediate family.

e) Any dog that has earned a UnitedAgility I title. Once UKC has notifiedthe owner of a dog that the dog hasearned a UAGI title, that dog mustno longer compete in this section.

b. Section B. The Agility I-B class (AGI-B) mustbe open to all eligible dogs and handlers.

2. Agility II classes (AGII). a. Section A. 1) Eligible competitors. The Agility II-A

class (AGII-A) may be open to dogsthat have not earned a UKC UAGII title.

2) Ineligible competitors. The follow-ing are ineligible to compete in the“A” section of the AGII class:

a) Any licensed or professional dogtrainer.

b) Any person licensed to judge agilityin UKC or any other organization.

c) Any agility instructor, regardless ofthe person’s status as an amateuror professional.

d) Any handler other than the owneror an eligible member of theowner’s immediate family.

e) Any dog that has earned a UnitedAgility II title. Once UKC has notifiedthe owner of a dog that the dog hasearned a UAGII title, that dog mustno longer compete in this section.

b. Section B. Eligible competitors. TheAgility II-B class (AGII-B) must be opento all eligible dogs and handlers.

3. Agility III class. The Agility III class mustbe open to any eligible dog that has earnedthe UACH title or higher.

C. Non-Licensed Classes. Total Dog Award. Aclub offering conformation and at least oneperformance event may apply to offer theTotal Dog. The requirements for Total Dog canbe found in the UKC Conformation Rulebookor on the UKC website.

XIX. Official agility size divisions. Entries are sep-arated into three size divisions based on the heightat the withers of each individual dog. A. Wicket. It is recommended that a wicket be

used to determine height and size division. B. Determining a dog’s size division. A dog’s

height is determined by drawing a straight line

approve inclusion of a Division 2dog in the 16-inch crawl tunnelcategory. Dogs in this categorymay be judged at the beginningor the end of the Class.

**4) Veteran dogs. Veteran dogs inDivision 2 shall have the hurdleheight, hoop (tire) jump and tableheight set at Division 1 height andthe crawl tunnel set at 16 inchesand may be judged at the before orafter that division. As of 07/01/11crawl tunnel obstacle has beeneliminated.

d. Division 3. Division 3 is for dogs whoseheight at the withers is over 20 inches.1) Hurdle and Hoop (Tire) jump height.

The height must be set at 20 inches.2) Pause table height. The table height

must be set at 20 inches.**3) Crawl tunnel heights. As of

07/01/11 crawl tunnel obstacle hasbeen eliminated.

a) 16-inch crawl tunnel. Dogswhose depth of chest is over 10inches up to and including 14inches must have the crawl tunnelset at 16 inches.

b) 20-inch crawl tunnel. Dogswhose depth of chest is over 14inches must have the crawl tunnelset at 20 inches. The judge priorto the start of judging mustapprove inclusion of a Division 3dog in the 20-inch crawl tunnelcategory. Dogs in this categorymay be judged at the beginningor the end of the Class.

**4) Veteran dogs. Veteran dogs inDivision 3 shall have the hurdleheight, hoop (tire) jump and tableheight set at Division 2 height andthe crawl tunnel set at 20 inches andmay be judged at the before or afterthat division. As of 07/01/11 crawltunnel obstacle has been eliminated.


2) Pause table height. The table heightmust be set at 8 inches.

**3) Crawl tunnel height. As of07/01/11 crawl tunnel obstacle hasbeen eliminated.

a) 8-inch crawl tunnel. Dogs whosedepth of chest is up to and includ-ing 7 inches must have the crawltunnel set at 8 inches.

b) 12-inch crawl tunnel. Dogswhose depth of chest is over 7inches up to and including 10inches must have the crawl tunnelset at 12 inches. The judge, priorto the start of judging, mustapprove inclusion of a Division 1dog in the 12-inch crawl tunnelcategory. Dogs in this categorymay be judged at the beginningor the end of the Class.

**4) Veteran dogs. Veteran dogs inDivision 1 shall have the crawl tun-nel set at 12 inches. Dogs in thiscategory may be judged at thebeginning or end of the Class. As of07/01/11 crawl tunnel obstacle hasbeen eliminated. And, Veteran dogsin Division 1 shall have the hurdleheight, hoop (tire) jump and tableheight set at the Division Toy height.

c. Division 2. Division 2 is for dogs whoseheight at the withers is over 14 inches upto and including 20 inches.1) Hurdle and hoop (tire) jump height.

The height must be set at 14 inches.2) Pause table height. The table height

must be set at 14 inches.**3) Crawl tunnel heights. As of

07/01/11 crawl tunnel obstacle hasbeen eliminated.

a) 12-inch crawl tunnel. Dogswhose depth of chest is over 7inches up to and including 10inches must have the crawl tunnelset at 12 inches, except for veter-an dogs, which shall have thecrawl tunnel set at 16 inches.

b) 16-inch crawl tunnel. Dogswhose depth of chest is over 10inches up to and including 14inches must have the crawl tunnelset at 16 inches. The judge priorto the start of judging must

Upon arrival, the exhibitor should check into determine what the dog’s number is andthe order of judging.

2. Ring conflicts. If the trial is large enough torequire two or more rings, and the scheduleappears to create a conflict due to oneexhibitor showing multiple dogs, multipleclasses, or in multiple events, the gate stew-ards should be notified so that accommoda-tions can be made. A club offering a trial withmore than one ring will anticipate the likeli-hood of conflicts, and will be prepared todeal with them, but the exhibitor must alsobe flexible enough to deal with the require-ments likely to result from multiple entries.

3. Items worn by the dog. a. Course familiarization. 1) Collar. The dog must wear a properly fit-

ted collar as defined in Section XVI.B.1. 2) Leash. Course familiarization is done

with the dog on leash as defined inSection XX.A.6.c.

b. Scored performance. 1) Collar. The dog may run without a

collar, but if it wears a collar, it mustwear a properly fitted collar asdefined in Section XVI.B.1.

2) Leash. The scored performance isrun with the dog off-leash.

3) Small ribbons or rubber bands.See section XVI.B.3.

***4. Judge’s briefing. The briefing must beheld at the start time, or as soon there-after as practical. The Judge will informthe handlers of the Assigned CourseTime (ACT), which sides of the pauseobstacle are correct for entrance andexit, whether the pause will be a sit ordown (in Agility II A & B), (as of 01/01/18)and other details which may not beobvious concerning the course. Theexhibitors will have an opportunity toask questions at this time.

5. Handler walk-through without the dog.Immediately following the Judge’s briefing,a period of approximately five (5) minutes isallowed for all handlers (from all three sizedivisions of the classes [example: AGI-A &AGI-B]) to walk the course without dogs tofamiliarize themselves with the course andto plan handling strategy.

6. Course familiarization with the dog. a. Purpose. The purpose of Course famil-

Div

isio

n

H

eigh

t at

with

ers

H

urd

le

P

ause

**C

hest

dep

th

**C

raw

l

hei

ght

tabl

e

tu

nnel

h

eigh

t

hei

ght

**To

y

Up

to a

nd in

clud

ing

10"

4"

4

"

N/A

N

/A

Div.

1

O

ver 1

0” a

nd u

p to

and

incl

udin

g 14

"

8"

8

"

U

p to

and

incl

udin

g 7"

8

"

Over

7" u

p to

and

incl

udin

g 10

"

1

2"

**O

ver 1

0" u

p to

and

incl

udin

g 14

"

8"

8"

N/A

N

/A

Vete

ran

4"

4"

N/A

N

/A

Div.

2

Ove

r 14"

up

to a

nd in

clud

ing

20"

14

"

14

"

O

ver 7

" up

to a

nd in

clud

ing

10"

12"

Over

10"

up

to a

nd in

clud

ing

14"

1

6"

Vete

ran

8"

8"

Ov

er 7

" up

to a

nd in

clud

ing

10"

16"

Div.

3

Ove

r 20"

2

0"

2

0"

Over

10"

up

to a

nd in

clud

ing

14"

1

6"

Over

14"

20"

Vete

ran

14"

14"

Ov

er 1

0"

2

0"

**As of 07/01/11 crawl tunnel obstacle has beeneliminated.


XX. Rules applying to exhibiting at UKC agility trials. A. At the trial and before the judged performance. 1. Checking in. The exhibitor is expected to

know when the trial starting time is sched-uled, and to be present prior to that time.

course familiarization must be penalizedby an amount consistent with the infrac-tion. Handlers may opt to take theirdogs through the entire course, mayrequire their dogs to negotiate only cer-tain obstacles, or may walk the coursewithout their dogs. Course familiariza-tion is not mandatory for exhibitors, andanyone absent when it takes place mayforfeit his/her opportunity to participate.

B. Performance in the ring. 1. Knowing the rules. The entry application

signed by the exhibitor specifically states thatthe exhibitor is familiar with the UKC rulesand regulations. Every exhibitor is expectedto know the rules before competing and to beready and able to abide by them.

2. At the start line. *a. Starting position. On direction of the

gate steward the handler, with the dogon lead, proceeds to the starting line,where the handler should remove thelead and position the dog to start. Thelead may be left near the gate, handedto the gate steward, or placed in thehandler’s pocket. When the handlerindicates he is ready to start, the han-dler’s hand must be off the dog, or aminor handler fault must be assessed.The Judge or time steward will give thehandler permission to begin. The han-dler may leave the dog in a sit, down orstand, and may move onto the courseahead of the dog, or may start with thedog running at the handler’s side. Thehandler must NOT take a position fac-ing the dog over or at the end of anyobstacle, resembling the traditionalposition used in a recall or a minimum5-point handler major fault must beassessed. This rule does not apply topause obstacles. A handler is not con-sidered to be making a recall, when thehandler is moving and turned awayfrom the dog, even though the handleris on the other side of the obstacle. Thehandler may pet or praise the dogbefore the start of the performance, butmay not make any kind of physical cor-rection or enforcement of the stay com-mand before starting. Assessment ofany amount of faults may be made forsuch conduct.

iarization is to allow the dog close con-tact with obstacles that may be differentin materials, color or design from otherspreviously experienced. It provides thedogs an opportunity to go over, under orthrough the obstacles used before theperformance. It is not a training session,and only one attempt is allowed for eachobstacle. More than one attempt at anyone obstacle must be assessed adeduction from the final score.

b. Course familiarization is availableonly for certain dogs. Course familiar-ization must not be allowed for theAgility I-B, Agility II-B and Agility III class-es, except that a dog in AGI-B which hasnot earned an AG I title, and a dog inAGII-B which has not earned an AGIItitle, shall be permitted a course familiar-ization in that class, notwithstanding thatthe handler would be ineligible to enterthe respective AG I-A or the AGII-Aclass. The handler walk-through isimmediately followed by the coursefamiliarization (on-lead walk through) forhandlers and dogs in the first size divi-sion to be judged. This course familiar-ization must be provided and conductedas described below, for each height divi-sion, at each trial. The Judge mustobserve the course familiarization toenforce the rules and to help “direct traf-fic”, but it is the handlers’ responsibilityto control their dogs.

c. Leash requirements. The handler mayrelease the lead (but not remove thelead) when a dog enters tunnels orweave poles; but the dog must beregained before proceeding to the nextobstacle. The handler may release thelead only for the dog to go through a tun-nel or the Hoop/Tire Jump, through theweaves, or over hurdles with wings oruprights too high for the handler to reachover. Failure to control the dog on leadmay result in a deduction from the finalscore under “Additional Deductions”Course familiarization is NOT to be usedas a practice run-through.

d. Conduct. Handlers are permitted toguide dogs with leads or to touch dogsand obstacles, but lead corrections andtraining must not be allowed. Any han-dler making training corrections during


Line at any other time during the perform-ance does not conclude the performance.

5. Scoring. a. Comparing each performance to an

ideal performance. Judges must evalu-ate each performance by a team to anideal in which the dog performs precise-ly and willingly for a handler that is gen-tle and at ease. Lack of precision orsigns of fear or unhappiness on the partof the dog must be penalized, as mustharshness or roughness on the part ofthe handler.

b. Maximum points per run. The maxi-mum number of points that may beearned in any agility run is 200.

c. Qualifying score. 1) Agility I and Agility II. A dog earns a

qualifying score when it: a) Earns a score of 170 points or

greater, and, b) Successfully completes all obsta-

cles assigned to that particular classin accordance with the performancerequirements in these rules.

2) Agility III. A dog earns a qualifyingscore when it:

a) Earns a score of 196 points orgreater, and,

b) Successfully completes all obsta-cles in accordance with the perform-ance requirements in these rules.

d. Deductions. Fault deductions arededucted from a perfect 200 score. Thetypes of deductions are:

1) Fault deductions made by the Dog. a) Major fault. Deduction of 5 points

up to the remaining value of theobstacle. During the scored per-formance a major fault requiresthe dog to make a repeat attemptin accordance with these rulesand regulations.

b) Minor fault. Deduction of 1 pointto 4 points.

2) Faults deductions made by theHandler. Faults made/caused by thehandler are assessed against thedog’s score either on a specificobstacle or as “Additional Faults”.The dog DOES NOT make a repeatattempt in this situation.

a) Handler major fault. Any deduc-

b. Time starts. 1) The running time is started when any

part of the dog’s body crosses thestarting line or a line that extends oneither side of the starting line. A clear-ly visible line made with maskingtape, chalk, etc., is recommended toassist the handler, judge, and time-keeper to determine when the per-formance has actually started.

2) When a club uses electronic timers.When electronic timers are used, thefirst and last obstacles may becomethe start and finish lines. Alternatively,the timing sensors may be placed areasonable amount of distance in frontof the first obstacle and beyond thelast obstacle in which case the sensorsbecome the start and finish lines.

3. Judge’s calls and counts. Once the per-formance begins, the Judge will speak tothe handler only to count while the dog per-forms the pause obstacle (except the plat-form jump) and to call “Fault” if the dog failsto successfully perform an obstacle.

a. Fault. The “Fault” call will notify the han-dler that he must return the dog to theobstacle and reattempt it, except if thefault is so obvious that the handler initi-ates the repeat attempt before the call ismade. Examples of major faults that maynot be obvious to the handler mayinclude missing any contact line, miss-ing a Weave Pole, exiting the side of theHoop Tunnel, placing fewer than all fourfeet on the Sway Bridge, etc.

b. Pause time counts. Either the Judge orSteward must count out the 5-secondpause time. This is to be done preciselyin the following manner: 1, 2, 3, 4, GO or5, 4, 3, 2, GO. Hand signals accompany-ing the count are permissible, but notrequired. There is no additional hesitationbetween the last number and GO, nor isthere an “and” between the numbers.

4. Finish line. The dog completes its perform-ance and stops the running time when anypart of the dog (not the handler) crossesthe Finish Line or an imaginary extension ofit. The Finish Line is in effect only after thedog has successfully completed or hasfailed in attempting to complete the lastobstacle on the course. Crossing the Finish



been eliminated. 6) Hoop Tunnel. *b. Hurdle obstacles. Six hurdle obstacles

are required, and at least three shall beother than bar hurdles. The choice ofapproved hurdle obstacles are:

1) Bar Hurdle; 2) Bush Hurdle; 3) High Hurdle; 4) Log Hurdle; 5) Long Hurdle; 6) Picket Fence Hurdle; 7) Rail Fence Hurdle; 8) Spread Hurdle; 9) Window Hurdle; 10) Water Hurdle. c. Pause Table. The pause table is required. *2. Agility II Class (AGII-A & AGII-B). The

Agility II class consists of 16 to 17 obsta-cles. Obstacles in this class include:

a. Non-hurdle obstacles. A total of sevennon-hurdle obstacles are required.1.) Required obstacles. All obstacles

a) through e) must be used and anytwo may be used twice.**a) Crawl Tunnel or *Hoop Tunnel.

As of 07/01/11 crawl tunnelobstacle has been eliminated.

b) Hoop (Tire) jump;c) Swing Plank;d) Sway Bridge;e) Weave Poles.

2) Optional obstacles. Either or bothof the optional obstacles may beused once.a) Open Tunnel;**b) Crawl Tunnel. As of 07/01/11

crawl tunnel obstacle has beeneliminated.

*b. Hurdle obstacles. Eight or nine hur-dle obstacles are required, chosenfrom the hurdles listed under Agility I,provided that at least three shall beother than bar hurdles.

c. Pause Obstacle. One pause obstacle isrequired.

1) Pause Box; 2) Platform Jump. 3. Agility III Class. The Agility III Class con-

sists of 16 to 17 obstacles. Obstacles in thisclass include:

a. Non-hurdle obstacles. Seven non-hurdleobstacles are required as outlined below.

1) Weave poles.

tion equal to or greater than 5points. A handler major fault on aspecific obstacle does not requirethe dog to make a repeat attempt.

b) Handler minor fault. A deductionof 1 point to 4 points.

3) Time Faults. Time fault deductions,are equal in points to the number ofseconds and hundredths of secondsin excess of the ACT required by thedog to complete the course.

XXI. Agility ring/course requirements. A. Ring Requirements. 1. Size. Agility rings must be at least 3,000

square feet for the Agility I course, and4,000 square feet for the Agility II and AgilityIII courses.

2. Surface. The surface of an indoor agilityring must be adequate to provide a firm andsafe footing for dog and handler. The sur-face of an outdoor agility ring must be flat.Grass surfaces must be mowed so that thegrass is short.

B. Course design. The same course designmust be used for all three size divisions of thesame class of a given trial.

C. Course Length. Measuring the typical efficientdog’s path through the course determines thecourse length. Tunnels are measured on theoutside when determining course length.

1. Agility I class. The length of the course forthe Agility I class should be at least 100yards, but no more than 200 yards in length.

2. Agility II & III classes. The length of thecourse for the Agility II and III classes mustbe at least 120 yards, but no more than 200yards in length.

D. Obstacles required and permitted at eachlevel.

***1. Agility I Class (AGI-A & AGI-B). TheAgility I class consists of 12 to 13obstacles (as of 01/01/18). Obstacles inthis class include:

a. Non-hurdle obstacles. All six of the fol-lowing non-hurdle obstacles arerequired:

1) A-Frame; 2) Dog Walk; 3) Teeter-Totter; 4) Open Tunnel; ***5) Closed Tunnel (Chute); As of

01/01/18 closed tunnel (chute) has



tution of an obstacle must be made. 1. Equipment safety. An occasion may arise

where on the day of the trial, the Judgedetermines that one of the non-hurdleobstacles may be unsafe. In such situations,an attempt should be made first to repair theobstacle or if at all possible, substitution ofthe same type of obstacles should be made.If repairing the obstacle can not be done ina reasonable time, the course must beredesigned in such a way as to repeat oneof the non-hurdle obstacles twice.

2. Substitution of hurdle obstacle.Substitution of one hurdle obstacle foranother may be done at any time prior to thestart of judging, or during judging if onebecomes unusable. If at all possible, substi-tutions of the same type should be made if ahurdle becomes unusable during judging.

3. Pause Table. If the Pause Table is found to beunsafe at the required heights, an arrange-ment may be made to use the top of the Tableat a lower height. Adjustments in the coursedesign should be made rather than cancelingor allowing the trial to become a non-qualify-ing trial. A report of such situations must bemade by the Judge to be included with thetrial results when sent to UKC.

G. Handling challenges at each level. There isno required course design at any level.Course design is the responsibility of theJudge, so course design possibilities includeinfinite variety, within the limits of these rules.Challenges presented should increase in diffi-culty as the class level and experience of thecompeting dogs increase.

1. Agility II. The Pause Obstacle and WeavePole Obstacle must have a delimiting box(indicated by lines) or delimiting lines drawntwo (2) feet away from each of the foursides (using tape, chalk or any other suit-able method) in the form of a squarearound the Pause Box or rectangle aroundthe Weave Pole obstacle or Platform Jump,provided that the obstacle may be closerthan two (2) feet to a wall or barrier. Thehandler must not step on or over the delim-iting box from the time the dog exits theobstacle just prior to the Pause or WeavePole obstacles until the dog successfullycompletes or fails the obstacle in question.The handler may ignore the lines when thedog is at any other position on the course.

2) Choose two of the following obstacles: a) Dog Walk; b) Teeter-totter; c) A-Frame. 3) Select either the Swing Plank or

Sway Bridge. 4) Choose three non-hurdle obstacles

from the following list or choose twofrom the list and any one from the listmay be used twice, or another non-hurdle obstacle may be used as thethird obstacle:

***a) Closed Tunnel (Chute); As of01/01/18 closed tunnel (chute) hasbeen eliminated. It may be replacedwith a hurdle obstacle.

**b) Crawl Tunnel; As of 07/01/11crawl tunnel obstacle has beeneliminated.

c) Hoop Tunnel; d) Open Tunnel; e) Hoop (tire) Jump. *b. Hurdle obstacles. Eight or nine hurdle

obstacles, chosen from the hurdles list-ed under Agility I, provided that at leastthree shall be other than bar hurdles.

c. Pause obstacle. One pause obstacle isrequired. Select from:

1) Pause Box; 2) Pause Table; 3) Platform Jump. d. Trap Obstacles. Trap obstacles may be

used in AGIII Courses, but are not required. E. Placement of obstacles. 1. Minimum distance between hurdle obsta-

cles and the A-frame approach is 15 feet. 2. Minimum distance between other non-hur-

dle obstacles may be as low as 12 feet, but18- to 25-feet spacing is preferred.

3. Two obstacles positioned parallel to oneanother with their openings facing the samegeneral direction must not be closer than 10feet in the Agility I class, 6 feet in the Agility IIclass and 2 feet in the Agility III class.

4. Water Hurdle. When used in a course, thewater hurdle is required to be the lastobstacle in the course.

***5. Closed Tunnel (Chute). As of 01/01/18closed tunnel (chute) has been eliminated.When used in a course with electronictimers, the closed chute may not beused as the last obstacle in the course.

F. Procedures to be followed when the substi-


3. See above for general rules for challenges. H. Course Time (ACT). The Assigned Course

Time is the maximum number of secondsallowed for a dog to complete the coursewithout incurring time fault deductions.

1. Determination of ACT. a. Division 2 and the “non-giant” breeds

in Division 3. The Judge will set theACT by first measuring the typical effi-cient dog’s path through the course,preferably with a surveyor’s measuringwheel for accuracy. He will then dividethe course yardage by a yards-per-sec-ond (YPS) factor that he feels is reason-able, considering the complexity of theobstacle arrangement. RecommendedYPS range from “A” (the simplest coursepath) to “E” (the most complex), with“C” as an average, as follows:

A (extremely simple) 2.00 YPS B (fairly simple) 1.85 YPS C (average difficulty) 1.70 YPS D (fairly complex) 1.60 YPS E (very complex) 1.50 YPS The resulting ACT will be assigned to all

dogs in Division 2 and the “non-giant”breeds in Division 3.

**b. Division 1 dogs and Division Toy asof 07/01/11. An additional 5 secondswill be added to the Division 2 ACT toarrive at the Division 1 dogs ACT andDivision Toy as of 07/01/11. Theadjusted assigned course time isrecorded on the dog’s score sheet.

*1) Class placements. See SectionXXIV.F.1.

2) High In Trial. When the Division 1dog completes the course at orunder the normal ACT, its runningtime is subtracted from the normalACT when determining running timefor High In Trial.

c. “Giant” breeds in Division 3. An addi-tional 5 seconds will be added to theACT for Division 2 to determine the“giant” breeds ACT. The adjustedassigned course time is recorded onthe dog’s score sheet.*1) Class placements. See Section

XXIV.F.1.2) High In Trial. See Section XXIV.F.23) Giant Breeds defined. Mixed-Breed

dog: the Judge may, at his discre-

2. Agility III. The Pause Obstacle and WeavePole Obstacle must have a delimiting box(indicated by lines) or delimiting lines drawnsix (6) feet away from each of the four sides(using tape, chalk or any other suitablemethod) in the form of a square around thePause Table or Box or rectangle around theWeave Pole obstacle or Platform Jump, pro-vided that the obstacle may be closer thansix (6) feet to a wall or barrier. The handlermust not step on or over the delimiting boxfrom the time the dog exits the obstacle justprior to the Pause or Weave Pole obstaclesuntil the dog successfully completes or failsthe obstacle in question. The handler mayignore the lines when the dog is at any otherposition on the course. Course path mustcontain two areas requiring right side han-dling of the dog.

CHALLENGES IN COURSE DESIGN AT DIFFERENT CLASS LEVELS

AGILITY I(Beginner dogs) Relatively simplerunning path

Obstacleentrancesspaced at least10' apart toavoid difficultdiscriminationchoices.

Turns betweenobstacles maybe up to 90 degree: andup to 150degrees, if thedog is notrequired towrap aroundthe obstacle.

Course pathallows handlerto work dog onhis left sidethroughoutcourse. Thehandler may optto handle on theright side.

AGILITY II(More advanced dogs)Moderate toslightly complex path.

Obstacleentrances maybe as close as 6'apart to presentmore obstaclediscriminationchoices.

Turns betweenobstacles maybe up to 270 degree.

Course pathmay containareas whereright side handling offersdistinct advantages.

AGILITY III(Most advanced dogs)Complex path.

Obstacleentrances maybe as close as -to 3' testadvancedobstacle discrimination.

Turns betweenobstacles mayexceed 180 degree.

Course pathmust containtwo areasrequiring rightside handling


the Division 3 ACT to determine theDivision 3 Veteran Dog ACT. veterandogs that are entered as veterandogs. The ACT is recorded on thedog’s score sheet.

5) Determining class division place-ments. See Section XXIV.F.1.

6) Determining High In Trial. SeeSection XXIV.F.2

2. Determination of Assigned Course Timesfor handicapped persons. Handicappedhandlers may, in the judge’s discretion, havethe assigned course time adjusted to givethem a fair opportunity to compete. Prior tothe start of the class, the judge times the han-dler as he/she negotiates the course withoutthe dog at as brisk a pace as safely possible,after which the Judge will adjust the time ashe/she sees fit for that handler and dog. Theadjusted assigned course time is recordedon the dog’s score sheet. The Judge’s deci-sion is final. When a handicapped handler’sdog completes the course at or under thenormal ACT, its running time is subtractedfrom the normal ACT when determining therunning time and class placements.

Section XXII. Judging Procedures. A. Who may judge a UKC Licensed Agility

Trial. No person may judge a UKC LicensedAgility Trial unless he/she holds a current UKCJudge’s license for agility and is in goodstanding with UKC.

B. Judge’s authority in the ring. The Judge mayuse whatever reasonable procedures he/shedeems necessary to evaluate each dog’s per-formance in an effective and efficient manner.The same procedures will be used to Judgeeach dog in a class. The judge should alwaysconsider the safety of both the dog and thehandler, and the judge may take such stepsdeemed necessary, including, but not limitedto, substitution and/or omission of obstaclesotherwise required, if weather or other condi-tions indicate that performance of those obsta-cles cannot be evaluated without risk.

C. Report on agility equipment and ring. Thelicensed club is responsible for providingrings and equipment that meet these Rulesand Regulations. The Judge is responsible forensuring that the agility equipment and ringare in compliance with the UKC rules. At thetrial conclusion, the judge must sign the offi-

tion determine whether the mixed-breed dog resembles the followingbreeds and should be in the “giant”category. Giant breeds include onlythe following breeds:

Anatolian Shepherd DogBernese Mountain DogBlack Russian TerrierBloodhoundBorzoiBouvier des FlandresBullmastiffCaucasian OvcharkaCentral Asian Shepherd DogDogo ArgentinoDogue De BordeauxGiant SchnauzerGreat DaneGreat PyreneesGreater Swiss Mountian DogIrish WolfhoundKangal DogKomondorKuvaszLeonbergerMaremma SheepdogMastiffNeapolitan MastiffNewfoundlandOwczarek PodhalanskiPerro de Presa CanarioSaint BernardScottish DeerhoundTibetan MastiffTosa Ken

d. Veteran dogs. The ACT is recorded onthe dog’s score sheet. Eligible veterandogs that are entered and running as aveteran shall have their ACT deter-mined as follows:**1) Division Toy. As of 07/01/11

Division Toy Veteran Dogs ACTshall be the same as stated inparagraph 1.b. above.

2) Division 1 Veteran Dogs. Division 1veteran dogs ACT shall be the sameas stated in paragraph 1.b, above.

3) Division 2 Veteran Dogs. An addi-tional 5 seconds will be added tothe Division 2 ACT to determine theDivision 2 Veteran dog ACT.

4) Division 3 Veteran Dogs. An addi-tional 5 seconds will be added to

for unsportsmanlike behavior in the ring bydeducting points or by filing a misconduct com-plaint. A Judge who observes a handler abus-ing a dog in the ring must excuse the handler,give the dog a non-qualifying score and file amisconduct complaint with the Event Secretary.

M. Allowing an exhibitor to redo an obstacleor run. A Judge may allow an exhibitor toredo an obstacle or the entire run only whenthe dog’s performance was unfairly hinderedby extraordinary circumstances over whichthe handler had no control. Judges must onlyallow this when it will not give an unfair advan-tage to the dog or handler.

N. Prohibitions. 1. Judges may not ask an exhibitor any

unnecessary questions regarding the dogin the ring.

2. Judges may not judge a conformation showand a performance event on the same day.

3. No Judge may judge more than 200 entriesper day, regardless of whether he/she offici-ates one or two trials.

4. No Judge may officiate for more than eighthours total per day, regardless of whetherhe/she officiates one or two trials.

5. No Judge may be required to judge formore than four hours without a break.

6. A prohibited dog of the Chief Judge eligibleto participate as stated in Section XI.G.2.must be judged by the Backup Judge, andshall be ineligible for any class placementsand overall awards.

XXIII. Judging Criteria. A. Standards of performance. Willingness and

enjoyment on the part of the dog are impor-tant in the performance of this sport. The han-dler must exhibit knowledge of the rules andgood sportsmanship. The dog and handlertogether are to demonstrate good teamworkand smoothness in negotiating both individualobstacles and the overall course.

B. Comparing each performance to an idealperformance. Judges must evaluate each per-formance by a team to an ideal in which thedog performs precisely and willingly for a han-dler that is gentle and at ease. Lack of precisionor signs of fear or unhappiness on the part ofthe dog must be penalized, as must harshnessor roughness on the part of the handler.

C. Fault deductions during CourseFamiliarization. It is the Judge’s responsibility

cial trial report indicating that the agility equip-ment and ring meet the current requirementsor report deficiencies that were not rectifiedbefore the trial began.

D. Responsibility for supervising trial stew-ards. The Judge is responsible for supervisingand instructing all trial stewards. Prior to thestart of the trial, the Judge must instruct thestewards regarding their responsibilities.

E. Judge’s decisions. The Judge’s decision onthe day of the trial are final. All questions ordisputes occurring at an agility trial shall beresolved by the Judge, and his/her decisionshall be final.

F. Discussion of scoring with exhibitors. UKCJudges are encouraged to discuss their scor-ing with exhibitors.

G. Score sheets. The Judge is required to keepall score sheets on file for a period of one yearafter the judging assignment.

H. Course Designs. 1. There is no required course design at any

level, however, there are required elementsfor each class level. It is the responsibility ofthe Judge to design courses that conformto the specifics of each class, as well as theintent of these Regulations.

2. The same course may not be used morethan once in any set of consecutive trialsand/or any trial weekend.

3. The judge shall mail all course designs tothe Event Secretary not later than 14 daysprior to the trial.

I. Judge’s book. Judges are responsible for theaccuracy of the information in their Judge’sbooks, but may rely on the accuracy of calcu-lations and scores as posted by the recordingsteward and/or the trial secretary. Each Judgemust sign his/her Judge’s book upon the com-pletion of a judging assignment and return it tothe Event Secretary.

J. Judging a dog out of sequence. A Judge hasthe discretion to allow a dog to be judged out ofsequence. Dogs judged out of sequence nor-mally should be judged at the end of the division.

K. When judging begins. Judging does notbegin until the handler states that he/she isready, but a Judge may deduct points for ahandler’s inability to control the dog or formisbehavior from the moment the dog andhandler enter the ring until they exit.

L. Deducting points for unsportsmanlikebehavior. A Judge may penalize an exhibitor


allowed for that obstacle in that class.(Missing a contact zone is one example.)

2. Minor faults. a. Minor faults of 1 to 4 points are assessed

for imperfect performances of obstaclesthat do not, however, require a repeatattempt. Entering a contact zone fromthe side of the obstacle or running pastit and returning to enter it are examplesof minor faults.

b. When the club uses electronic timers. Adog that fails to trigger the timing sensoreither by running past the first obstacleor outside of the start line sensor mustbe assessed a fault. Also, an additionalfive seconds must be added to the dogsrun time for a delayed start, but the timeotherwise starts and is recorded fromwhen the timing sensor is started.

3. Only the amount required for the failedattempt (this may vary with the obstacleand class) may be assessed for each failedattempt. Example: in the Agility I class, thedog makes a successful entry to the DogWalk but is assessed a minor deduction forside entry, but then exits the obstacleabove the contact line resulting in a failureto complete the attempt, only the 5 pointsfor the failed attempt may be assessed. Theminor deduction for the side entry of theramp is not included in the score.

4. Handler faults. Deductions may be minoror major faults depending on the deviationfrom a normal performance. Handler faultdeductions are assessed under a specificobstacle or under “Additional Faults” anddo not require the repeat of an obstacle.

a. Handler faults resulting in a non-qual-ifying score. The following handlerfaults must be scored as non-qualifying:

1) Handler intentionally touches the dog. 2) Handler intentionally touches any

part of any piece of equipment. 3) Handler intentionally breaks the restric-

tion of the delimiting box or delimitingline prior to completion of the obstacle.

***b. Handler major fault deductions: 1) Placing the dog in a stationary posi-

tion while moving on the course. Afterthe dog leaves the starting position(XX B.2.a.) the handler must notplace the dog in a stationary position,leave the dog and then while the han-

to personally supervise Course Familiarizationand make note of any infractions of theRegulations by handlers or dogs. Faults duringFamiliarization are deducted from the dog’sscored performance as “Additional Faults”.

1. Misconduct of Handlers. a. Non-qualifying or major fault deduction.

At the Judge’s discretion major deduc-tions or non-qualification of the perform-ance shall be assessed for the followingactions: corrections, excessively loud orharsh commands, derogatory remarksor unsportsmanlike conduct exhibitedby the handler.

b. Major fault deductions. Attemptingmore than once to complete an obstacle.

c. Major or minor fault deduction. 1) Failure to control the dog on-lead shall

be assessed a major or minor deduc-tion consistent with the infraction.

2) Training correction must be assesseda major or minor deduction consis-tent with the infraction.

2. Misbehavior of dogs. a. Disqualified. A dog that bites or

attempts to bite a person (includes thehandler) or that bites or attacks anotherdog must be disqualified immediately inaccordance with Section XXXI.B.

b. Non-qualifying. A dog that demonstratesaggressiveness to any person or dog dur-ing the course familiarization course mustbe excused. Section XXXI.A.

c. Major fault deduction. A dog that elim-inates, spits up, or vomits in the ring dur-ing the course familiarization must beassessed a 10-point fault.

d. Minor fault deduction. A judge mustassess a minor fault when a dog leavesthe ring during the course familiarization.

D. Fault deductions during judged performance. 1. Major faults. a. Major faults are assessments of five

points or more up to the entire obstaclevalue. The judge must call “Fault” whena major fault occurs, to alert the handlerof the need to repeat the obstacle,except if the fault is so obvious that thehandler initiates the repeat attemptbefore the call is made.

b. Each unsuccessful attempt to negotiatean obstacle is assessed a 5-point majorfault, up to the number of attempts


third attempt the score must be non-qualifying. Any major faults committedprior to the third attempt result in 5 pointdeduction(s).

b. Agility II. All obstacles in AGII must becompleted successfully by the secondattempt. If the obstacle is failed on thesecond attempt the score must be non-qualifying. Any major faults committedprior to the second attempt result in 5point deductions(s).

c. Agility III. Only one attempt is allowed tocomplete each of the obstacles. If theobstacle is failed on the first attempt thescore must be non-qualifying.

d. Refusals. Refusals include hesitating orpausing before initiating an attempt tonegotiate an obstacle, rather than pro-ceeding smoothly and confidently.Refusals do NOT include hesitationsresulting from making an adjustment inposition for a better approach to theobstacle, either independently by thedog, or under the direction of the han-dler. Example: when a sharp turn isrequired in the approach to an obstacle,the handler may need to virtually stopthe dog in order to gain proper positionto enter he obstacle. However, the dogcannot be put into a stationary sit ordown directly in front of an obstacle.Scoring. Refusals will be assessed whena dog stops and/or backs away from anobstacle, or intentionally runs past theend of the obstacle.

1) Minor Faults. When the refusal isvery short, a minor deduction of 1 or2 points is assessed.

2) Major Faults. When the dogattempts the obstacle (by touching itwith a foot or extending the head intoor on a Tunnel or between WeavePoles), then withdraws, the refusalbecomes a failed attempt.

3) Non-Qualifying. a) The amount of the deduction will

increase with a prolonged refusalup to a possible full value of theobstacle not performed, resultingin a non-qualifying score.

b) If the handler moves the dog awayand returns him to the obstacle,and the dog continues to refuse,additional deductions may be

dler is at or near the exit end of theobstacle call or send the dog over,under, across, or through any obsta-cle. This rule does not apply to thepause obstacles. (see white insert)A handler is not considered to bemaking a recall, when the handler thehandler is moving and turned awayfrom the dog, even if the handler ison the other side of the obstacle.

2) The handler triggers the start or finishsensor when a club uses electronictimers.

3) The handler must not stick his/herhand into any tunnel opening or overthe pause obstacles, contact obsta-cles (except the down side of the A-frame), the swing plank, or into thetire, and must not stick his/her handbetween the weave poles.

4) The handler must not give theappearance of luring his/her dogover or through any obstacle.

5) The handler must not bend at thewaist and hang over any pauseobstacle or the platform jump.

6) The handler must not intentionallyblock the forward progress of thedog, or physically assist it to correctlyperform the course.

7) The handler must not jump the jumps,ramps, tunnels, chute fabric etc.

8) The handler unintentionally violatesthe restriction of the delimiting boxprior to the completion of the obstacle.

c. Handler minor fault deduction. Whenthe handler indicates he is ready to start,his hands must be off the dog, or aminor handler fault must be assessed.

5. Performance Faults while negotiating anobstacle. Major and Minor faults may beassessed for errors made while negotiatingany individual obstacle. The total faults perobstacle cannot exceed 15 points for eachobstacle. Once the fault points equal orexceed 15 points the obstacle is scored asfailed. If total points off are less than 15points for the obstacle, that obstacle isjudged as having been successfully com-pleted.

a. Agility I. All obstacles in AGI must becompleted successfully by the thirdattempt. If the obstacle is failed on the


amount of time exceeding the running timemust be deducted from the dog’s score at arate of one point per second and a fractionof a second will be deducted from one point.

2. When a club uses electronic timers. Adog that fails to trigger the timing sensoreither by running past the first obstacle orthe outside of the start line sensor must beassessed a minor fault. An additional 5 sec-onds must be added to the dogs run timefor a delayed start, but the time otherwisestarts and is recorded from when the timingsensor is started.

G. Additional faults. Fault points assessed dur-ing Course Familiarization, at the start line,while exiting the ring, or handler errors aresome examples of “Additional Faults”, whichaffect the dog’s total score, but not any specif-ic obstacle.

H. Faults on specific obstacles. 1. Contact obstacles. The A-frame, dog walk,

sway bridge and teeter-totter are the con-tact obstacles.

a. General requirements. Ideal perform-ance of a contact obstacle requires thedog to enter the ascending rampstraight-on, move over the contact areaand across to the descending ramp, andexit that contact area straight off, puttingat least one foot into each contact areain the process, except that failure of thedog to put a foot into the contact area ofthe upside of the A-frame shall not be afault. The dog may jump onto or off theobstacle without penalty, as long as heperforms correctly otherwise.

b. Faults caused by the dog. 1) Major Faults. If the dog jumps on or

off a contact obstacle without touch-ing the contact area, except theupside of the A-frame, the Judge willcall “Fault” and assess a 5-pointpenalty. The handler should thenreturn the dog to the entry side andrepeat the obstacle.

2) Minor Faults. Entering or exiting thecontact area by the corners or sides(not straight) is allowed, but must beassessed minor faults of one to threepoints depending on how far alongthe side of the ramp entry or exit thedeviation occurs. It is possible for thedog to lose three points on its entry

made until the dog either entersthe obstacle or completely refusesto do so.

6. Pausing while negotiating. Any pause com-manded by the handler should not be consid-ered a fault on the part of the dog, unless itresults in a fault such as sitting or downing infront of an obstacle before entering that obstacle.

a. Minor Fault. Any pause by the dogwhile in the process of negotiating anyobstacle because of the lack of self-con-fidence or loss of concentration shouldbe assessed a minor fault.

b. A-Frame. The dog may stop to make anadjustment in its position before contin-uing the descent down the off-ramp.Also because of the steepness of theramp, dogs may pause while going upor down to adjust or make sure of theirfooting. In addition, because handlersare allowed to position themselves infront of the off ramp of the A-frame toprevent the dog from jumping off fromhigh up, the dog may stop momentarilyas it descends. Pauses of this nature arenot to be considered faults.

c. Teeter-Totter. Pausing or stopping mayoccur at the pivot point of the Teeter-Totter. Pauses or momentary stops inthis situation are not considered faultsand are not to be penalized.

d. Swing plank and sway bridge. Pausingmay also occur on the Swing Plank andSway Bridge to allow them to stabilize.Pauses or momentary stops in either ofthese situations are not consideredfaults and are not to be penalized.

e. Weave poles. Pauses may occur in theweave poles and are not to be penalized,except if a dog stops for an extendedperiod of time to shift or otherwise losesfocus, a minor fault will be assessed.

E. Faults while moving between obstacles.Faults made while moving between obstacles(for instance: taking a wrong obstacle) are notcharged against any specific obstacle fordetermining whether all obstacles were suc-cessfully completed. These points are deduct-ed separately, and do affect whether the dog’sfinal score is qualifying.

F. Time faults. *1. Dog’s running time exceeds the Assigned

Course Time. If the dog’s running timeexceeds the Assigned Course Time, the



or a paw inside, and then fails tocomplete the obstacle, a 5-pointmajor fault will be called, and a newattempt must be made.

2) If the handler attempts to return thedog to the entry to repeat the obsta-cle, and the dog enters the wrongend of the tunnel, or crosses throughthe sides of the Hoop Tunnel or CrawlTunnel, a second failed attempt willbe called.

3) If the dog makes a proper entrance,turns around when part way through atunnel and returns back out throughthe entrance or exits along the sides ofthe tunnel a major fault is committed.

c. Special requirements/exceptions. ***1) Closed Tunnel (Chute). As of

01/01/18 closed tunnel (chute) hasbeen eliminated. If the dogbecomes tangled in the chutefabric, it is important that thejudge, steward or the handler freethe dog promptly. When theentanglement occurred becausethe chute was not straightenedbefore the run, or because windtwisted it before the dog entered,no penalty will be assessed, andthe dog will be allowed a newattempt. The Judge may stop thetime and have the obstacle reset.

a) Major fault. When the entangle-ment was caused by the dog’sincorrect performance, a 5-pointmajor fault will be called, the chutestraightened, and a new attemptallowed. In this case the timeremains running.

b) Minor fault. If the dog fails toproperly move through the tunnel,becomes partially entangled butfrees itself it must be assessed aminor deduction.

2) Hoop Tunnel. a) Non-Qualifying. If the hoop tunnel

becomes disassembled or movedout of place as a result of the dog’sactions, it cannot be reset, andmust be scored as non-qualifying.

b) Major fault. Because the sides ofthe Hoop Tunnel are open, a faultmay occur when the dog enters or

and three points on its exit, whichexceeds a 5-point major fault, but notbe required to repeat the obstacle.

c. Special requirements/exceptions. 1) Teeter-Totter. In addition to touching

the down contact area, the dog muststay on the teeterboard until it hastouched the ground. The dog shouldalso work the board carefully enoughthat it does not slam down andbounce dangerously.

a. Major Fault. A dog that slams andbounces the teeter board danger-ously may be faulted for a danger-ous performance. If the judge calls“Fault”, the dog must repeat theobstacle.

b. Minor Fault. The Judge mayassess a minor fault for a less thandesirable performance or exces-sive hesitation at the pivot point.

*2) Sway Bridge. This obstacle hasshort ramps that are entirely contactareas. The dog must put at leastone foot on the up ramp and onefoot on the down ramp. The dogmust also put all four feet on thebridge portion of the obstacle whilecrossing it. The dog may walk thebridge slowly, and pause while itstabilizes, without being faulted.Major Faults: Jumping from oneramp to the other, or jumping ontothe bridge from the ground or to theground from the bridge or from theup ramp, will result in a “Fault” callfor a failed attempt, and the dogmust return to the beginning for arepeat attempt.

2. Tunnels. **a. General requirements. The dog must

enter the tunnel (Closed, crawl -as of07/01/11 crawl tunnel obstacle hasbeen eliminated, open and hoop) atthe correct end and continue throughto the exit end without unnecessarypauses. An attempt to perform theobstacle starts when any part of thedog crosses into the tunnel, whether itis a correct entry or not.

b. Faults caused by the dog. Major faultsinclude:

1) When the dog enters the tunnel inany way, including putting his nose


Pause Box, and the Platform Jump. 1) In both Agility I and Agility III, the han-

dler has the option of putting the doginto a sit or down on the Pause Table,and in Agility III in the Pause Box, butthe handler’s first command to thedog commits the dog to that position.Once the handler gives a “Sit” com-mand, a down is no longer an option,and vice versa. If the handler usescommands other than “Sit” or“Down”, he must announce his com-mand to the Judge before starting therun. If that command was notexplained to the Judge prior to thestart of the performance, the Judgemust require the handler to take thedog away for a re-entry and the han-dler must explain which of the posi-tions the command used denotes tothe dog. Time will not be stopped toclarify the situation. Any physical con-tact by the dog with the pause obsta-cle is an attempt. (as of 01/01/18)

2) The Pause Obstacle in Agility II andin Agility III must have a delimitingbox or delimiting lines, as stated inXXI.G.1. and 2. The handler must notstep on or over the delimiting box orline from the time the dog exits theobstacle just prior to the Pauseobstacle until the dog successfullycompletes or fails the obstacle inquestion. The handler may ignore thelines when the dog is at any otherposition on the course.

a) Non-Qualifying Score. A handlerwho intentionally breaks therestriction of the delimiting box ordelimiting line prior to completionof the obstacle will receive a non-qualifying score.

b) Major Handler Fault. A majorhandler fault will result if the han-dler unintentionally violates therestriction of the delimiting box ordelimiting line prior to completionof the obstacle.

c) Major or minor Handler Faults.Breaking the plane of the pauseobstacle by leaning over orextending a hand over it, whileattempting to get the dog onto the

exits along the side between thehoops, or crosses sidewaysthrough the tunnel. Any of theseactions, including incompleteattempts to enter or exit, such asputting a foot or head between thehoops, will result in a 5-pointmajor fault call and will require arepeat attempt.

c) Major or Minor Fault. If the dogpulls the hoops from their frame-work while passing through thetunnel, the Judge must assess aminor or major fault consistentwith the infraction.

**3) Crawl Tunnel. Ideally the dogshould approach the opening ofthe Crawl Tunnel, drop down (usu-ally at the handler’s command)and enter the opening in one con-tinuous, smooth movement. If alarge dog lifts the obstacle slightlyoff the ground while making a nor-mal attempt to crawl it will not beconsidered a faulted performance.As of 07/01/11 crawl tunnel obstaclehas been eliminated

a) Non-Qualifying. If a dog rises upwhile under the Crawl Tunnel andeither overturns the obstacle orcarries the obstacle some dis-tance, the Judge shall score theobstacle as incomplete (15-pointdeduction) and the performancescored as non-qualifying.

b) Major fault. i. This is another open-sided tun-

nel, which the dog may enter orexit incorrectly, requiring arepeat attempt.

ii. Occasionally, a dog may alsojump on top of the tunnel frameor may attempt to stand uprightwhile inside, lifting or upsettingit, both of which are also failedattempts.

4) Open Tunnel. When an excessiveamount of time is taken by the dog toget through the tunnel, a minordeduction may be made.

***3. Pause obstacles. a. General Requirements. The pause

obstacles are the Pause Table, the

c. Pause Table. This pause obstacle isrequired in Agility I and is optional inAgility III.

1) General Requirements. a) The side of the Pause Table closest

to the previous obstacle is the cor-rect entry side, and the side closestto the next obstacle is the correctexit side, which the dog must useto receive full credit for the Table. Itis possible that the entry and exitwill be the same side, dependingon the course design. The Judgewill inform the handlers of the cor-rect entry and exit sides during thebriefing. The Judge will inform thehandlers during the briefing thatthe dog may be in any positionand does not have to remain sta-tionary. (as of 01/01/18)

b) The Judge will give a 5-secondcount, ending in “Go”, when thedog is in the correct positionwhen all four feet of the dog areon the table. If the dog breaksposition, If the dog leaves thetable, the count will stop, andthen start over when the dog isback in position, with a minor faultassessed for the break on thetable. (as of 01/01/18)

2) Major faults. a) If the dog jumps onto the Table

and off it again before completingthe pause count, a major fault willbe called, regardless of whetherthe dog deliberately jumped offthe Table or slid off from momen-tum. The dog must be re-enteredon the proper side.

b) One foot touching the groundbefore completion of the count isa 5-point major fault and a failedattempt. The dog must be calledoff the table and sent back on fora second attempt.

c) Prolonged refusal could result in afailed attempt.

3) Minor faults. a) If the dog passes the correct entry

side, and enters the Table at a cor-ner or a different side, a minorfault will be assessed. The num-ber of points deducted will

obstacle, or into a sit or downposition, or keeping it in a stay, (asof 01/01/18) will result in a major orminor fault depending on theseverity. A major handling faultdoes not require a repeat attempt.

b. Pause Box. This pause obstacle isoptional in Agility II and Agility III.

1) General Requirements. a) The Judge will inform the handlers

during the briefing in the Agility IIclass whether the dog must beplaced in a sit or down position.that the dog may be in any posi-tion and does not have toremain stationary. (as of 01/01/18)

b) The faults applying to the PauseTable apply to the Pause Box. Inaddition, the dog may drape a footover the Box edge while if (as of01/01/18) in a sit or down. If thefoot touches the floor, it is treatedthe same as the foot touching thefloor from the Pause Table.However, if the foot does not touchthe floor, or if a foot protrudesunder the raised edge of thePause Box, there is no fault.

c) The side of the Pause Box closestto the previous obstacle is the cor-rect entry side, and the side closestto the next obstacle is the correctexit side, which the dog must useto receive full credit for the Box. It ispossible that the entry and exit willbe the same side, depending onthe course design. The Judge willinform the handlers of the correctentry and exit sides during thebriefing. The dog must be takenout of the Box for the repeatattempt. If the dog moves back intothe Box without leaving the Box, anew attempt has not started.

d) The judge will give a 5-secondcount, ending with “Go”, when thedog is in the correct positionwhen all four feet of the dog areinside the box. If any of thedog’s feet leave the box breaksposition. The count will stop, andthen start over when the dog isback inside the box position, witha minor fault assessed for thebreak. (as of 01/01/18)


approach this obstacle as it would anyof the hurdles and take the jump withouthesitating. Because of its construction,and because its use is limited to Agility IIand III, this obstacle is not included inthe “hurdle” classification.

1) Non-Qualifying. If the hoop/tire jumpis knocked over, it cannot be reset, andmust be scored as non-qualifying.

2) Major faults. A 5-point major fault andfailed attempt will be called when:

a) The dog touches the obstacle butdoes not complete it.

b) The dog’s head or foot goes com-pletely or partly through the tire orthe space between it and theframe, but he does not go throughthe tire.

c) The dog runs through the framebeside or under the tire, but notthrough the tire.

d) The dog jumps through the tire inthe wrong direction.

e) The dog jumps onto the tire andpushes off from it rather thanclearing it.

3) Major or minor fault. When a dog’shead or foot touches the tire whileclearing the jump a major or minordeduction consistent with the infrac-tion must be assessed.

4) Handler faults. Inserting a hand intothe tire opening is a major fault;intentionally touching the obstacle isa non-qualifying score.

b. Swing Plank. Ideally, the dog shouldstep onto the narrow end of the Plankand walk across it, then step off the otherend. One or more of the dog’s feet musttouch the Plank. The dog may slow orstop to control movement of the board.The dog may not enter or exit from eitherlong side of the obstacle. When a repeatattempt is required, the Judge or a ringsteward should stop the board’s move-ment before the dog’s second attempt.

1) Major fault. A 5-point major fault andfailed attempt will be called when:

a) The dog enters or exits incorrectly. b) The dog jumps over the Plank. 2) Major or minor fault. When the dog

jumps off, causing the Plank to swingexcessively, the Judge may call a

depend on how far from the cor-rect side the dog enters the table.

b) If the dog exits the table at a placeother than the correct exit side, aminor fault will also be assessed.

c) Delayed response to the sit ordown command may result in aminor fault.

d) If the dog breaks the position dur-ing the count, a minor fault shallbe assessed. (as of 01/01/18)

d. Platform Jump. This pause obstacle isoptional in Agility II and Agility III.

1) General Requirements. a) Correct performance of this obsta-

cle requires the dog to step ontothe first platform over any sideexcept that next to the hurdle, sit,jump the hurdle bar to the secondplatform, and sit again, beforeleaving the obstacle on any sideexcept that next to the hurdle.

b) Repeat attempts. The dog mustbe taken off the platform and therepeat attempt requires the dog tostep onto the first platform fromthe ground. If the dog moves backand forth between the platforms, anew attempt has not started.

2) Non-qualifying. Knocking down thehurdle shall be scored as a failure tosuccessfully complete the obstacle.

3) Major fault. A 5-point major fault andfailed attempt will be called when:

a) The sequence of behaviors is bro-ken by the dog touching theground, even with only one foot,before completing the sequence.

b) Entering or exiting the platform onthe side next to the hurdle.

c) Entering the platform then step-ping off, even with only one footbefore or after sitting but beforejumping the bar.

d) Jumping the bar without first sitting. e) After jumping failure to sit before

stepping off the second platform,even with only one foot.

4) Minor faults. Minor faults may bemade for slowness in responding to thehandler’s commands to sit or jump.

4. Other “non-hurdle” obstacles. a. Hoop/Tire Jump. Ideally the dog should


must have a delimiting box (indicat-ed by lines) drawn two (2) feet awayfrom each of the four sides (usingtape, chalk or any other suitablemethod) in the form of a rectanglearound the Weave Pole obstacle,except for sides near a wall or barri-er. The handler must not step on orover the delimiting box from thetime the dog exits the obstacle justprior to the Weave Pole obstacleuntil the dog successfully com-pletes or fails the obstacle in ques-tion. The handler may ignore thelines when the dog is at any otherposition on the course.

b) Agility III. The Weave Pole Obstaclemust have a delimiting box (indicat-ed by lines) drawn six (6) feet awayfrom each of the four sides (usingtape, chalk or any other suitablemethod) in the form of a rectanglearound the Weave Pole obstacle,except for sides near a wall or barri-er. The handler must not step on orover the delimiting box from thetime the dog exits the obstacle justprior to the Weave Pole obstacleuntil the dog successfully com-pletes or fails the obstacle in ques-tion. The handler may ignore thelines when the dog is at any otherposition on the course.

d. Hurdles (Jumps). Hurdle obstaclesinclude the Bar, Bush, High (Vertical),Log, Long, Picket Fence, Rail Fence,Spread, Water and Window Hurdle.Ideally the dog should approach thehurdle with confidence and jumpsmoothly between the hurdle uprights.The handler may also adjust the dog’sangle to the jump, including by makingpivots on the approach, without penalty.Proper execution of the Water Hurdle,which includes entrance and exit ramps,may be performed by the dog usingeither or both of the ramps as contacts,or by jumping over the ramps.

1) Non-qualifying. If the hurdle, isknocked over, it cannot be reset, andmust be scored as non-qualifying.

2) Major fault. a) If the dog makes physical contact

with the jump without completing

major fault or assess a minor fault,depending on the extent of the error.

c. Weave Poles. The dog must enter theline of poles with the first pole at its leftshoulder, and weave through the linewith all the other odd-numbered polesalso on its left. Ideally, the poles shouldbe completed in one fluid movement. If afailed attempt occurs while the dog is onthe side of the poles opposite the han-dler, the dog may cross through thepoles to return to the handler withoutbeing assessed another fault.

1) Major fault. A failed attempt resultsin a 5-point major fault requiring arepeat attempt, in which the dogmust return to the beginning andcomplete the entire set of nine polescorrectly without a major fault. Amajor fault and failed attempt will becalled when:

a) The dog enters the poles at anyother place than described above.

b) When any part of the dog’s body,head or feet crosses between twopoles out of the correct sequence.

c) Weaving backward through thepoles while being returned to thebeginning for a repeat attempt.

2) Minor fault. a) If the dog passes a correct space

in the sequence, but the handler isable to bring the dog back to thecorrect space without the dog’scrossing the line between twoincorrect poles, a minor fault will beassessed. If, however, the dog’shead has passed the last pole, afailed attempt has occurred.

b) If the dog pauses or stops for anextended period of time to shift orotherwise loses focus, a minorfault will be assessed.

3) Handler faults. The handler may directthe dog through the weave poles fromeither side of the line of poles (unlessthe weave poles are a designated righthandling obstacle in Agility III), and mayuse any combination of verbal com-mands and hand signals. A handlingmajor fault does not require a repeatattempt.

a) Agility II. The Weave Pole Obstacle



ing being excused from the course. 2. Stopping the dog between obstacles. On

a complex course, with a sharp turnapproaching an obstacle, the handler mayneed to stop the dog momentarily in astanding position or pivot to position thedog for a correct entry to an obstacle,which should not be penalized.

3. Stopping a dog when running off course.When a dog runs off-course, requiring thehandler to call it back, the handler may stopthe dog by commanding it to sit or down.Although a penalty must be made for the dogrunning off course, additional points shouldnot be taken off for the handler stopping thedog for the purpose of regaining control.

4. Moving the dog in “heel position”.Although pivoting and moving the dogaround tight turns may have to be donewith the dog in close to the handler, and thedog should be responsive to the handler’scommands and signals, the dog must notbe moved through the course in a “heel”position as required in obedience. The dogshould be focused primarily on the obsta-cles rather than on the handler. A dog whois handled as though performing obstacleswhile heeling, such as in an exaggerated“wrap” around the handler’s leg, must beassessed a non-qualifying score. However,in situations where a dog is called back tothe handler and for an instant assumes a“heel” position before moving forward, adeduction should not be made.

5. Handler “luring” dog through the course.The dog which must be coaxed through thecourse, whether by the handler’s pretend-ing to have food in his/her hand or other-wise, or that repeatedly jumps up towardthe handler’s hand as though looking for atoy or a treat, must receive a deductionconsistent with the infraction.

6. Dog’s failure to respond promptly to han-dler’s commands. Failure of the dog torespond promptly to the handler’s com-mands must be assessed a minor deduc-tion consistent with the infraction. This mayoccur, for instance, when recalling the dogfor a repeat attempt on an obstacle, orwhen the dog is running off-course.Although the handler should recall the dogfor a repeat attempt after a “fault” callbefore the dog reaches the next obstacle, itsometimes may be difficult to do so. If, in

it, extends his head over it, goesunder it, jumps it backward, orknocks down any displaceablepart of the hurdle, except a bottombar or plants from a bush hurdle,but including any displaceablewings, a 5-point major fault mustbe called, if the hurdle was notknocked down.

b) Jumping wings of the jump is a 5-point major fault.

3) Minor fault. a) A hesitation, halt, or refusal to take

the jump results in a minor fault,although a slight pause to adjustposition should not be faulted.

b) Ticking the tops of the hurdlesincurs a minor fault.

c) If the bottom bar drops off leavingthe other bar intact, or if plants froma bush hurdle are knocked off, aminor fault must be assessed.

I. Handler major or minor faults. Depending onthe circumstance handler major or minor faultsmust be incurred when the handler extendshis/her arm over the top of the hurdle as thoughguiding the dog over the hurdle. Merely “break-ing the plane” of a hurdle, however, is not a fault.

J. Faults occurring between obstacles. Faultsmade while the dog is moving between twoobstacles or while returning to an obstacle fora repeat attempt are not deducted from thescore of any obstacle, but are computed in thefinal score of the performance under“Additional Deductions”.

1. Running past an obstacle (run-by). A “run-by” occurs when any part of the dog’s bodygoes past an imaginary line perpendicular tothe beginning point, approach side or open-ing of any obstacle. For example: passingthe end of the ascending ramp of any con-tact obstacle, the opening to any tunnel, orthe approach side or leading edge of anyNon-hurdle, Hurdle or Pause obstacle.Scoring. A run-by will usually be assessedas a minor fault. If the dog runs a very shortdistance (e.g. a few feet) past the entrance tothe obstacle, but returns immediately oncommand, he/she will incur a 1-point minorfault deduction. If the dog fails to returnpromptly on command, the dog will receivea 2- or 3-point minor fault deduction. Forcontinuing to run for an extended time, thefault may be assessed any amount, includ-



However, it is not a fault for the handler toapproach an obstacle directly in line with it,as long as the handler does not physicallyblock the dog in an attempt by the dog to goaround the obstacle. The handler may indi-cate the obstacle with a hand signal but maynot touch the obstacle.

10. Knock-down of obstacles. Obstacles can-not be repositioned during a performance.That obstacle must be scored as failedeach time the dog is required to negotiate itlater in the course if the condition of theobstacle was the fault of the dog or handler.

11. Interruptions of the performance. If, inthe Judge’s opinion, the dog’s perform-ance was prejudiced by unusual condi-tions, the Judge, at his/her own discretion,may re-judge the dog over the remainderof the course, or in extenuating circum-stances, may re-judge the dog over theentire course. It is extremely important thatthe stewards be properly instructed in howto respond to such situations.

XXIV. Agility Obstacles – Descriptions andSpecifications. See Pink insert for most currentobstacle descriptions and specifications. A. Non-Hurdle Obstacle 1. Contact Obstacles. a. A-Frame. This obstacle consists of two

panels (ramps) connected together atone end and positioned to form a struc-ture that simulates an A-Frame.

1) Contact zones. For both panellengths, the top edge of the contactline is located 42 inches, with a ¼-inch(+/-) tolerance from the bottom edgeof the panel. The color of the contactzone must contrast with the rest of thepanel but must not be white, black orbrown. It is recommended that theentire contact zone be painted a con-trasting bright yellow. The color of thecontact zone is to be extended aroundthe edges of the board, in order to bevisible from the side. It is permitted tohave a slat on the contact line.

2) Construction. **a) Panels. The panels may each

measure 6 feet 8 inches or 8 feetor 9 feet in length and 30 to 49inches in width. They may beconstructed from wood or awood like substance attached to

the Judge’s opinion, it would have takenmore than a normal response for the dognot to enter the next obstacle, there shouldbe no penalty. Moreover, the handlershould not attempt to call the dog off anyobstacle from a position that may riskinjury, as could occur if the dog wereencouraged to jump from the horizontalplank of the Dog Walk, for instance. In fact,if a handler endangers his dog, a handlerfault penalty must be assessed.

7. Running off-course and attempting anobstacle out of sequence. When a dogruns off-course, it may or may not attempt toenter a wrong obstacle, including a trapobstacle in AGIII, out of sequence. If a dogruns off-course toward a wrong obstacle, butthen responds quickly to its handler’s com-mands to return in the proper direction, aminor deduction may not be required. If thedog runs off course with little focus as towhere it is going and responds poorly toreturn to the proper course, then a minordeduction, in an amount consistent with thedegree of the fault must be made. If anobstacle is entered out of sequence, twoseparate faults must be assessed: a) for run-ning off course; and, b) for entering thewrong obstacle. Unless the dog is runningout of control, each of those faults should beevaluated as minor deductions. Entering anobstacle out of sequence is considered afault committed while running betweenobstacles, so deductions are not to beassessed against the performance of nego-tiating any obstacle but as “AdditionalFaults” which affect the dog’s score. When adog takes an obstacle out of correctsequence, any error that normally would beconsidered a fault in negotiating that obsta-cle is not scored. Even if the out-of-sequenceobstacle is knocked down, an additionaldeduction for knocking down the obstacle isnot made since the performance on thatobstacle is not to be scored at that time.

8. Crossing from one side of dog to theother side. Crossing in front of the dog isallowed, but this must be done only when itdoes not interfere with the dog’s progressor serve to “block” the dog.

9. Handler’s approach to an obstacle.Ideally, the handler should move in a posi-tion well out from in line with the obstacles.


tact zone be painted a contrastingbright yellow. The color of the contactzone is to be extended around theedges of the board, in order to be visi-ble from the side. It is preferred, butnot required, to have a slat on theupper edge of the contact zone.

2) Construction. a) Planks. All sections may be 8 feet

(with a 3-inch tolerance), or 12feet long and must be 12 incheswide (with a 1-inch tolerance). Allthree planks may be made fromsolid 2-inch x 12-inch lumber orconstructed as hollow coreplanks. Hollow core planks areeasily made and have manyadvantages over solid lumber:they are much lighter and do nottend to warp out of shape. If theDog Walk and Teeter-totter areconstructed at the same time, theeight pieces of plywood requiredfor the upper and lower surfacesof the four planks (three for theDog Walk and one for the Teeter-totter) may be cut from two 4-footx 8-foot sheets of ¼-inch plywood(each plank is 12 inches wide).Solid 2-inch x 2-inch lumber isglued and nailed along the sidesof three of the 8-foot x 12-inchsections cut from the ¼-inch ply-wood. The 2-inch x 2-inch piecesmust extend the full length of theplywood in order that the fixturesused to attach the ramps to thehorizontal plank are best secured.Approximately 8-inch lengths of 2-inch x 2-inch boards are then fixedin place at each end between the8-foot sidepieces. Measure andcut these end pieces after thesidepieces have been fixed inplace, as the exact length of theend pieces will depend on theexact width of the 2-inch x 2-inchside pieces. Strips of rigidStyrofoam cut to the thickness ofthe 2-inch x 2-inch side and endpieces are placed on the inside tosupport the center of the plywoodsurfaces. The strips of Styrofoamare glued in place along the cen-

a metal or wooden frameworkrigid enough to withstand theimpact of large dogs jumpingpart way up on to the panels.The panels are connected alongone end by hinges. An insertmust cover any gap betweenthe two panels at the apex. Achain or other brace is attachedapproximately halfway up on theinside of each panel to securethe proper angle to the panelswhen set up for use. The apexfor the 6 foot 8 inch panel is set49 to 50 inches vertically aboveground, while the 8-foot panel isset at 59 inches vertically aboveground, and the 9-foot panel isset at 63 inches vertically abovethe ground. As of 07/01/11 theapex for the A-Frame will be setto: 6 foot 8 inch panel is set 42inches vertically above ground;8 foot panel is set 48 inches ver-tically above the ground; 9 footpanel is set at 50 inches vertical-ly above the ground.

b) Slats. Slats are approximately 3/8of an inch to 1inch thick and ¾ ofan inch to 1½ inches wide and cutto extend the width of the panels.The slats are attached 12 inchesapart with a 2-inch tolerance.Slats must be rounded or beveledso as to not be sharp.

c) Surface. The entire surface ispainted with a non-skid material.Alternating layers of sand and flatlatex paint or paint with granulatedchips applied over the top, arerecommended. The use of rubbermatting and carpet are prohibited.

b. Dog Walk. This obstacle consists of ahorizontal center plank section and tworamp sections.

1) Contact zones. The ramp sectionseach have a contact zone. Contactzones are located with their upperedges 42 inches, with a ¼-inch toler-ance from the bottom edges of theramps. The color of the contact zonemust contrast with the rest of the panelbut must not be white, black or brown.It is recommended that the entire con-


1) Contact zones. The entire entranceand exit ramps are the contact zones.

2) Construction. a) Bridge. The Bridge portion is con-

structed of 2-inch x 2-inch (2½inches) wooden or PVC boards 24inches long. Holes are drilledthrough the center of theseboards 2 inches from each end.The boards are connected byinserting a cable or non-stretchrope through the holes of theboards, with ½-inch spacersbetween each board. The spacersprevent the boards from pinchingtogether as the dog walks acrossthe bridge. Ends of the cable orrope may be attached to the sup-port structure with turnbuckles toensure that the bridge portiondoes not have too much slack.

b) Support structure. The supportstructure on which the bridge por-tion is suspended may be con-structed of steel (i.e., 1-inchsquare tubing), or wood. Theends of the bridge are attached tothe support structure approxi-mately 18 inches high so that thebridge hangs freely in a shallowarc over the 6.5-foot to 8-footlength of the support structure.

c) Ramps. Entrance and exit rampslead up to and away from the endsof the bridge. Ramps are 36 to 48inches long and 24 inches wide.

d) Surfaces. The ramps and a bridgemade out wood must be finishedwith non-skid material. Alternatinglayers of sand and flat latex paintare recommended. If the bridge isconstructed from PVC it must alsobe finished with a nonskid materi-al. The use of rubber matting andcarpet are prohibited.

d. Teeter-Totter. This obstacle consists of aboard supported on a base that allows theboard to pivot freely at the center point.

1) Contact zones. Contact zones arepainted on each end of the teeter-board. The color of the contact zonemust contrast with the rest of the

ter of the space between the twosidepieces; the Styrofoam doesnot need to fill the entire centerspace. A second piece of the ply-wood is then glued and nailedover the top to form the top sur-face of the plank.

b) Support legs. The support legsmay be constructed of steel pipe,square steel tubing, PVC pipe, orwood. The legs must raise the hor-izontal center plank 36 inches (witha 2-inch tolerance) above theground when using the 8-foot longplanks, and 48 inches (with a 2-inch tolerance) above the groundwhen using the 12-foot longplanks. The construction must min-imize any movement of the planks.

c) Ramp attachments. Attachmentof the ramps to the horizontalplank may be done in a variety ofways, for example, heavy doorhinges or specially made hooks.In all cases, gaps between theramps and the horizontal plankthat would allow a dog to catch afoot or toenail must be eliminated.

d) Slats. Slats are not required, butwhen used, they should conformto those described for the A-Frame. There is no required spac-ing for slats, except they shouldbe uniformly spaced.

e) Surface. Surfaces of the planksare to be finished with non-skidpaint. Alternating layers of sandand flat latex paint, or paint withgranulated chips applied over thetop, are recommended. The useof rubber matting and carpet areprohibited.

c. Sway Bridge. This obstacle consists ofa support structure on which a bridge ofslats is suspended. Ramps on each endallow the dog to get on and off of thebridge.



used for licensed events remainacceptable, until replaced. If a 12-foot teeterboard is available, the 12-foot teeterboard is preferred.

2. Non-Contact Obstacles. a. Swing Plank. This obstacle consists of a

wide plank that is suspended at its cor-ners from chains hanging from a supportstructure. The suspended plank is ableto swing horizontally in all directions.

Construction:

1) Support structure. The supportstructure is constructed of 1-inchsquare steel tubing. There are four “Lshaped” pieces, two of which areattached at right angles to each sideof each end of a 4-foot metal spline.The base of the “L-shaped” piecesare 18 inches in length and serve asleg supports to hold the structure inproper position. The upright portionsof the “L-shaped” pieces are 15 inch-es in length and serve as the chainsupports. Steel braces (approximate-ly ¼-inch thick) are placed on each ofthe “L-shaped” pieces. The uprightportions are to be capped for safetyof the dog and the handler.

2) Plank. The plank may be made from¾-inch plywood or constructed as ahollow core plank in the same manneras described for the dog walk. Theplank is 4 feet long and approximately20 inches wide. Four chains of suit-able length are required to hold theplank approximately 3 inches abovethe ground. The end links of each endof each chain are cut to form hooks.One end of each chain is hooked tothe tip of each upright while the otherend is attached to metal brackets at

panel but shall not be white, black orbrown. It is recommended that theentire contact zone be painted a con-trasting bright yellow. The color of thecontact zone is to be extendedaround the edges of the board, inorder to be visible from the side.Contacts are located with their upperedges 42 inches from the ends of the12-foot teeter board.

2) Construction. a) Teeterboard. The teeterboard shall

be 12 feet in length and 12 inches(with a 1-inch tolerance) wide. Theteeterboard may be made of solidwood, hollow core construction, orother suitable material. For direc-tions on building hollow coreplanks, see the Dog Walk.

b) Base. The teeterboard is support-ed on a base of metal, wood, orPVC that allows the board to pivotfreely at the center point. The boardis attached to the base by means ofbrackets through which a pivot rodis inserted. The pivot point for the12-foot board it is 24 inches abovethe ground. These dimensions pro-vide for an angle of incline ofapproximately 20 degrees. Oneend of the board is to be weightedor offset so that following the exit ofa dog, the board will return to itsoriginal position with the entranceend down. The plank should bebalanced so that it hits the groundin less than 3 seconds, when a 3pound weight is placed 12 inchesfrom the raised end.

c) Slats. Cross slats are not requiredor recommended. When used,slats should conform to thosedescribed for the A-frame.

d) Surface. The surface must be fin-ished with non-skid paint.Alternating layers of sand and flatlatex paint, or paint with granulat-ed chips applied over the top, arerecommended. The use of rubbermatting and carpet are prohibited.

3) Grandfathered obstacles. The 8-foot and 10-foot teeterboards now



vent the nuts from becoming loosewhen the poles are inserted andtaken out of the caps.

3) Poles. The poles are made from PVCup to 1.5 inches in diameter and 36inches or 48 inches in height. Thepoles are 21- to 24 inches apart andshould flex slightly at the base so thatthe dog may push the poles side-ways while moving through theseries of poles. Poles must not havetoo much flex which can cause thepole to spring back and strike thedog. It is recommended that thepoles be striped with colored tape orpaint to appear more visible to thedog. While not preferred, plain polesare allowed.

c. Tunnels. ***1) Closed Tunnel (Chute). As of

01/01/18 closed tunnel (chute) hasbeen eliminated. This obstacleconsists of a short open section towhich is attached a collapsedcloth chute through which the dogmust push its way to the outside.Construction:

a) Entry Section. The open entrysection is a rigid plastic or metalbarrel 24 inches (+/- 2 inches) indiameter or box constructed fromwood 24 inches square and 24 to36 inches in length. The “floor” ofthe entry must have a non-skidsurface, and any sharp edgesshould be padded to protect thedog. The barrel must have a baseor braces (sand bags may beused) to keep it from moving outof position. The top edge of theopening should be padded to pre-vent dogs from scraping theirback when entering.

b) Tunnel (chute). The collapsed orclosed portion of the tunnel ismade with a dark colored medi-um- weight fabric (not too heavy orbulky for the very small breeds topush through), approximately 6 to10 feet long. (The overall length ofthe entire obstacle is approximate-ly 9 to 13 feet). The cloth is sewninto a tapered tube that fits around

the corners of the plank. The plank isthen suspended over the centralspline and able to swing in all direc-tions. A bungee check cord isattached to the two corners of eachend of the plank and to the splineabout 8 inches from the ends. Thebungee cord is stretched tightly toprevent the plank from moving toorapidly as the dog moves over it.

3) Plank Surface. The surface of theplank must be painted with a non-skidmaterial. Alternating layers of sandand flat latex paint, or paint with gran-ulated chips applied over the top, arerecommended. The use of rubbermatting and carpet are prohibited.

***b. Weave Poles. This obstacle consistsof six, nine, or twelve (as of01/01/18) poles that are attached toa base runner or individual holdersthat are stuck in the ground.Construction:

1) Base runner. The base runner isconstructed of 1/8-inch (or ¼-inch) x1.5-inch (or 2-inch) inch steel orwood that may be divided into two orthree sections of convenient length.Leg braces (12 to 14 inches long) areattached at right angles to each sec-tion of the base runner to hold thepoles vertically upright. The surfacebetween the poles must be smoothwithout a raised strip of more than ¼of an inch in height. A thick rubberwasher and PVC cap (the same sizeas the PVC poles used) are bolted tothe base runner. Alternately, a rigidupright, no greater than 4 incheshigh, may extend from the base, overwhich the poles may be placed.

2) Single pole holder. Single pole hold-ers that have a 5- to 6-inch spike thatis stuck in the ground may be used attrials held outdoors. The top of thespike must have a flat steel plate onwhich a rubber washer and PVC capto hold the pole are attached. A thickrubber washer and PVC cap (thesame size as the PVC poles used)are bolted to the steel plate on thesingle pole holders. Lock-tight nutsshould be used on the bolts to pre-



the uprights from being pushedforward or backwards, the crosspieces connecting the two sides atthe top, may be connected at theircenters the length of the tunnel bythree 24-inch lengths of PVC pipe.The sections of PVC pipe that con-nect the uprights along the baseare also 24 inches in length. Analternative is to connect theuprights of each side section neartheir tops with 24-inch lengths ofPVC pipe. This would match theexact pattern of the runner at thebase of the uprights.

b) Cloth. Type A is preferred overtype B.

i. Type A. The cloth is approximately30 inches wide and is recommend-ed to be sewn into the headings oneach end, so that when the crosspieces at each end of the obstacleare inserted through the uprightsand the headings, the cloth isstretched tight over the two centercross pieces. It is recommended tohave a club logo or design on theheader. The cloth is then stretchedacross the tops of the cross piecesto create crawl spaces of differentheights. The cross pieces shouldbe inserted above the material sothat a dog can not raise up and getcaught between the cross pieceand the cloth. Stretch-type clothmaterial is best, because it can bestretched to prevent sagging.

ii. Type B. The cloth is approximately30 inches wide and is thenstretched across the tops of thecross pieces to create crawlspaces of different heights. Thecross pieces should be insertedabove the material so that a dogcan not raise up and get caughtbetween the cross piece and thecloth. Stretch-type cloth material isbest, because it can be stretchedto prevent sagging. For type B it isrecommended that the emptyheader space (the space betweenthe top of the cloth and the top ofthe frame) be filled with rails.

the entry on one end and expandsto at least 86” in circumference onthe exit end. If the chute is to beused outside under windy condi-tions, it is suggested that a pocketbe sewn onto the underside of thechute near the end into which asmall sandbag can be inserted tohelp prevent the fabric from blow-ing and tangling. As of 01/01/18closed tunnel (chute) has beeneliminated.

**2) Crawl Tunnel. The overall dimen-sions of the obstacle are approxi-mately 30 inches wide, 30 incheshigh, and 6 feet long. As of 07/01/11crawl tunnel obstacle has beeneliminated. Construction:

a) Framework. Framework. Theframework of this obstacle, whenbuilt of PVC, should be construct-ed of Schedule 40 (thick wall), 1.5-inch PVC. Only the cross piecesthat support the cloth to form theceiling of the crawl space may bemade from Schedule 20 PVC. Twobase runners, each with fouruprights spaced approximately 24inches apart, form the two sides ofthe tunnel. The sides are held in avertical position by cross piecesthat connect two uprights locateddirectly across from each other,across the top of the tunnel. Thesecross pieces are 30 inches inlength, thus providing an openinginto the tunnel that is30 incheswide and 30 inches high. Eachupright must be able to hold cross-pieces at heights of 8, 12, 16, 20and 24 inches. The crosspiecessupport a fabric cover approxi-mately 30 inches wide. To prevent

store may be used. A total of 8hoops are attached and set atalternating angles of approximate-ly 60 degrees to one anotherforming a zig-zag pattern whenviewed from above. Hoops aresecured to the supporting frameusing elastic bands, Velcro,screws, etc. The hoops shouldrest on the ground.

4) Open Tunnel. The Open Tunnel is acylindrical tube that may be length-ened, shortened, or curved in variousways. Construction: The Open Tunnelis a cylindrical tube formed from a coilof heavy wire covered with cloth orplastic fabric. The overall length whenexpanded should be approximately15 feet to 20 feet, and the diameter ofthe opening approximately 24 inches(+/-2inches). The tunnel must be ableto bend or curve so that when a dogenters it cannot see the opening atthe exit end. Supports or tie-downswith straps or bungee cords keep thetunnel from rolling out of place orpulling together when in use. Tunnelholders that are underneath the tun-nel shall not be more than 1½ inchesthick. When additional tunnel sup-ports (other than the beginning andend) are used they shall not have arigid upright that is capable of fittingbetween the ribs of the tunnel. Tunnelcloth must be made using a light col-ored or opaque material. Dark col-ored material or double lined darkmaterial must be avoided.

d. Pause Obstacles. 1) Pause Box. The inside measurement

of the box is approximately 48 inches(+/- 2 inches) square. Construction:

a) The walls may be constructed ofwood or PVC pipe with an overallheight of 4 to 6 inches. Inside meas-urements are 48 inches. The wallsare made from lengths of PVC andfour elbows that make an excellentbox that is lightweight and can bedisassembled for storage.

b) Each side of the Box must be paint-ed or striped a different color, or witha different number or letter for easy

3) Hoop Tunnel. This obstacle consistsof hoops that are held in place by aPVC pipe or wood framework. Thehoops are set at alternating angles toform a zig-zag pattern when seenfrom above.

Construction:

a) Frame. The framework pictured isconstructed from 1-inch Schedule20 (thin wall) PVC pipe. Similartype materials may be used for thesupport structure. There are twobase runners: one with fouruprights and one with fiveuprights. The uprights are 32 inch-es high and spaced 30 inchesapart on each runner. The two sec-tions of runners and uprights areheld in a vertical position by crosspieces of PVC pipe 30 inches inlength, that connect the upperends of four of the uprights of onesection to the tops of the fouruprights of the other section; oneupright on the 5-upright sectionwill be free-standing. Whenassembling the obstacle, theuprights of the short section (fouruprights) are positioned so thatthe uprights are directly acrossfrom the midpoint of the spacebetween two uprights of the longsection.

b) Hoops. The hoops may be madeof flexible pipe ¾ of an inch to 1inch in diameter, with each hoopapproximately 30 inches in diame-ter, or “hula hoops” from a toy


e. Tire/Hoop Jump. Construction. 1. Framework. The supporting

framework may be constructedfrom PVC pipe or wood. The dis-tance between the uprightsmust be at least 48 inches. Theheight of the uprights is not criti-cal as long as it is sufficient tosuspend the hoop at the 20-inchjump height. When constructedof PVC pipe, the uprights areconnected at both the top andbottom by cross pieces of 48inches. The uprights are heldvertically in position by 12-inchleg supports that extend forwardand backward from the base ofthe uprights. This same designfor the PVC pipe framework isused for the Window Hurdle.Provisions must be made toadjust the height of the hoop sothat the inside surface at its low-est point may be set at 8, 14 and20 inches.

2. Hoop. The hoop has anapproximately 24- to 30-inchinside diameter, and is con-structed from material such asblack plastic drain pipe that is atleast 3 inches in diameter. Itshould be painted or taped withbands of a contrasting color toprovide maximum visibility tothe dog. The hoop may be sus-pended from the upper cross-piece by a cord, while bungeecords or flat elastic bands maybe used to hold the hoop inplace at the sides.

B. Hurdles. Construction of the Hurdle obstaclesmay be of PVC (schedule 40 is preferred;however, schedule 80 is acceptable, andschedule 20, while not recommended, isacceptable), wood, or combinations of theseand other materials. All hurdles must bebetween 42 and 48 inches in width, withuprights 36 to 48 inches in height, which maybe separate, supported on their own bases, orconnected by a cross piece between theuprights at ground level. The Bush, Log andLong Hurdles, which do not have uprights asa normal part of their construction, require

identification of a particular side. 2) Pause Table. Construction: a) Table Top. The tabletop is 36 to 42

inches square, with a nonskid sur-face. Rubber matting or carpeting(with short, tight nap) is accept-able. Synthetic turf is prohibited.

b) Table. The table is adjustable toheights of 8, 14 and 20 inches. It isrecommended that the four sidesof the table be painted differentcolors for identification purposes.

3) Platform Jump. This obstacle con-sists of two low platforms with a hurdlemidway between them. Construction:

a) Platform. The platforms are con-structed of wood with surfaces 3feet wide and 4 feet long and 4 to6 inches high.

b) Platform Surface The surfacesare to be painted with a non-skidsurface material. Alternating lay-ers of sand and flat latex paint, orpaint with granulated chipsapplied over the top, are recom-mended. The use of rubber mat-ting and carpet are prohibited.

c) Platform Position. Each platformis positioned with the 3-foot widthnext to the hurdle and at distancesof 6, 8 and 10 inches away fromthe center of the bar. Total dis-tances between the platforms are12, 16 and 20 inches for size divi-sions 1, 2, and 3 respectively.

d) Bar Hurdle. The bar hurdle maybe constructed from 1-inch PVCpipe as described for the SingleBar Hurdle, except that the legsupports are shorter (approxi-mately 4 inches) to allow the hur-dle to tip over easily if hit whenjumped. The bar must be non-dis-placeable to prevent the acciden-tal knockdown by a dog’s tail. Thebar should not extend more than2 inches on either side of the plat-form (+/- 1 inch).

e) Bar Hurdle Position. The heightof the bar must adjust to 6, 8 and10 inches above the surface of theplatforms (not the ground) for sizedivisions 1, 2, and 3 respectively.


again is turned with the notch down,over the crosspiece. Four additional sec-tions are added (a total of five), makingthe hurdle height 20 inches.

b. Wood Obstacle. The wood obstacle isconstructed similar to the high jumpused in obedience.

3. Log Hurdle. The log hurdle is constructed of10 sections of 4-inch PVC pipe 42 to 48 inch-es in length. Ten sections will provide pyra-mid stacks of 3, 6, or 10 pipes for Divisions1, 2, and 3, respectively. Maximum heights atthe peak when stacked in a pyramid areapproximately 7, 10.5 and 14 inches respec-tively for Divisions 1, 2, and 3. Small sand-bags placed along the base at the front andback will keep the pyramid in place.Separate uprights, one on each side, placedin the middle of the stack are required for thishurdle. Painted or taped stripes may beplaced to increase visibility.

4. Long Hurdle. This jump is similar to thebroad jump used in obedience.Construction. The long hurdle may be con-structed of PVC or wood materials. Twoboards or pipes are used for Division 1dogs, three for Division 2 dogs and four forDivision 3 dogs.

a. PVC Construction. The PVC long hurdleis constructed using 4-inch diameter PVCpipe 42 to 48 inches long. Small sand-bags or other supports must be placedunder each end of each pipe, but mustnot raise the pipes more than 2 inches.Four uprights, 3 to 4 feet in height arerequired at each corner. Stripes should beplaced on the pipe to increase visibility.

b. Wood Construction. This obstacle maybe constructed of 4- to 5-inch widewooden boards 3.5 to 4 feet long. Theboards must conform to the designused for the obedience broad jump.Four uprights, 3 to 4 inches in height arerequired at each corner. Stripes may beplaced vertically on the boards toincrease visibility.

c. Jump Lengths. The boards or pipes arespaced to create jumping lengths of 16,28 and 40 inches for Divisions 1, 2, and3 respectively.

5. Picket Fence Hurdle. This hurdle resem-bles a picket fence. Construction. This hur-dle may be constructed from 1-inch x 2-

separate uprights. The Hurdles may be paint-ed in bright colors, while the top surfacesshould be painted with stripes or contrastingcolors to improve visibility to the dog. Wingsmay be provided with the hurdle obstacles,either as part of their construction, or separatefrom the hurdle.

1. Bush Fence Hurdle. This hurdle may holdlive plants, branches cut from leafy shrubsor artificial decorative plants, and havingthe appearance of a fence or solid hurdle.

a. Construction. Various types of designsare acceptable such as a basic wood“Planter box” that holds plants with thetotal height being 8 inches, or anydesign giving appearance of beingsolid. Two additional box frames, each 6inches in height may be placed underthe 8-inch box with the plants to providethe 14-inch and 20-inch requiredheights. Uprights of 3 to 4 feet in lengthare attached to the end of the obstacleto define the jump space.

b. Height requirements. Tips of the plantsmust reach approximately 8, 14 and 20inches from the ground for Divisions 1,2, and 3, respectively.

2. High (Vertical or solid) Hurdle. This hurdleis similar to the High Jump used inObedience. Construction. This obstaclemay be constructed of PVC or woodenboards.

a. PVC obstacle. Framework consisting ofa pair of uprights on each side with sup-port legs as needed may be made of 1-inch PVC to support stacked 4-inch PVCsections as a vertical wall. The bottomsection of 4-inch pipe must be notchedto fit over the bottom support pipe of theframework on both ends, so that thepipe rests on the ground, resulting intwo 4-inch pipes to form the 8-inch hur-dle. To form the 14-inch hurdle, the bot-tom section of pipe is turned so thenotch is on the upper side, and the fulllength of the pipe rests on the crosspiece of the framework which is 3½ to 4feet wide. When the three 4-inch PVCpipes are placed on top of the cross-piece, the height of the hurdle is approx-imately 13.5 inches high, which isacceptable. For the 20-inch Division 3height, the bottom section of 4-inch pipe


upright to the opposite of the other upright.This will allow for the easy displacement ofthe bar from either side of the hurdle.

8. Spread Hurdle. Construction. This hurdleconsists of 2, 3 or 4 displaceable bars thatare separated both vertically and horizon-tally. All bars are 6 inches apart horizontally.The hurdle heights are:

a. Division 1. Two bars are used. The firstis 4 inches high, the second 8 inches,and the two bars are 6 inches apart.

b. Division 2. Three bars are used. The firsttwo are left in the same positions as forDivision 1, while the third is 14 incheshigh and 6 inches from the second bar.

c. Division 3. Four bars are used. The firstthree are left in the same positions as forDivision 2, while the fourth is 20 incheshigh and 6 inches from the third bar.

9. Water Hurdle. a. Water box. The water box (water pool) is

approximately 48 to 50 inches x 28 inchesand is made from 2 x 2s. The water boxshould be lined with heavy plastic andmust hold at least 1.5 inches of water.

b. Platforms and ramps. Two platformswith ramps are constructed in such away that the platforms can be positionedon each side over the water box. Theramps are 3 feet wide and approximate-ly 12 inches long. The platforms use 2 x4s on edge to support the ¾-inch ply-wood platforms on three sides. Theopen side of each platform would then

inch or 1-inch x 3-inch wooden picketsspaced approximately 2 inches apart toresemble a picket fence. Ends of the pick-ets are rounded or flattened, but not point-ed. Three sections of pickets of differentheights (8 inches, 14 inches, 20inches),supported by a wooden or PVC framework,is the most practical way to build this hur-dle. A cross piece at or near the top will pre-vent a dog’s leg from being caught by slip-ping between the pickets.

6. Rail Fence Hurdle. This hurdle has severalcross rails held between two uprights.Spaces between the rails give the appear-ance of a rail fence.

a. Construction. Several cross rails madeof PVC pipe or narrow wooden boardsare held between two uprights. It is pre-ferred that the rails may be displaceable,however non-displaceable is allowed.PVC pipe rails may be held by insertingthem through holes drilled through theuprights, or by means of cupped sup-ports attached to the inside of theuprights. The cupped supports shouldbe shallow enough to allow for the easydisplacement of the pipe rails.

b. Hurdle Heights. The number of railsmay vary, but there must be a minimumof one for the 8-inch hurdle, two for the14-inch hurdle, and three for the 20-inchhurdle. If small diameter pipes are usedas the rails, 2, 4 and 6 rails may be usedfor the three heights.

7. Single and Double Bar Hurdle. This hur-dle resembles the bar jump used in obedi-ence. Construction. This hurdle has one ortwo displaceable bars that are moved toserve for all three-jump heights. Theuprights and bar may be constructed of1.5-inch Schedule 40 PVC pipe or wood.The height of the uprights is 36 to 48 inch-es. The displaceable bars are held on theuprights by pins through the uprights or bycup-like supports attached to the inside ofthe uprights. The cupped supports must beshallow enough to allow for the easy dis-placement of the bar. When pins are usedto hold the bar, and the hurdle must bejumped from both sides in a given coursedesign, the pins must be inserted fromopposite sides of the two uprights so thatthe bar is crossed from one side of one


tory. Ribbons awarded for all other wins may beany other color or combination of colors.

Agility: 1st place – blue 2nd place – red 3rd place – green 4th place – yellow High In Trial-Junior Handler – gold and purple High In Trial – purple, gold and white Qualifying score – blue

*F. Placements.1. Determining class division placements.

The Judge shall give up to four placements,where possible, in each size division of eachclass, based on the dog’s qualifying score. a First place must be awarded to the dog

with the highest qualifying score, secondplace to the dog with the next-highestqualifying score, and so forth.

b Ties. If two or more dogs earn the samescore in the same division, the winnershall be the dog running under its divisionACT with the greatest difference betweenits running time and its (normal or adjust-ed) division ACT except as outlinedbelow. If dogs remain tied, the tie shallstand and shall be reported as a tie on theJudge’s summary sheet. If an award, tro-phy or prize is to be presented, the tieddogs should have a runoff on any avail-able agility course, to determine the win-ner of the award, trophy or prize.

c When the veteran dog, giant breed inDivision 3 and handicapped handler’sdog completes the course at or underthe normal division ACT. When the veter-an dog, giant breed in Division 3, andhandicapped handler’s dog completes thecourse at or under the normal divisionACT, the dog’s running time is subtractedfrom the normal division ACT when deter-mining the greatest time difference forplacements. For example, when a Division2 veteran completes the course at orunder the normal Division 2 ACT, its run-ning time is subtracted from the normalDivision ACT, not the adjusted Division 2Veteran ACT to determine the greatesttime difference for placements.

2. High In Trial. The High In Trial award ismandatory and is given to the dog that has

slip back and forth over the water box todistances of 10, 20 and 30 inches, forDivisions 1, 2 and 3 respectively. Theopen end of the platforms could thenhave a length of 2 x 4 about 2½ feet longattached as the other three 2 x 4 sup-ports but with a gap left at each end toallow the sides of the water box to passthrough as the platforms are set over thewater box. The 2½-foot support 2 x 4would set in the water box.

10. Window Hurdle. a. Framework. The PVC framework is con-

structed exactly the same as that usedfor the Tire/Hoop Jump.

b. Panel. Overall dimensions of the panelshould be approximately 42 to 48 incheswide with an opening 14 to 18 incheswide and 30 inches high. Provisions toadjust the bottom of the opening to 8, 14and 20 inches for Divisions 1, 2 and 3,respectively, must be provided. Thepanel with the opening may be made ofwood or heavy cloth such as denim orcanvas. When made of cloth, a 4-inchsleeve may be sewn along each of thevertical sides so that the cloth can beheld in place by slipping the sleeve overthe uprights. In this case, changes inheights may be made by pushing thecloth panel up or down over the uprights.

XXV. Awards, trophies, ribbons and placements. A. Cash prizes. UKC clubs may not offer cash

prizes, which includes but not limited to: cashawards, gift cards and gift certificates, withoutwritten authorization from UKC.

B. Awards and trophies. Clubs may give suchawards and trophies as they choose. Clubsmay accept trophies donated by individuals orother organizations and these trophies maybe designated for specific breeds, for veterandogs, or for specific accomplishments.

C. Announcing qualifiers and placements. Classplacements may be announced after eachclass, division or when the trial is completed.

D. Total Junior Agility. All clubs hosting a UKCLicensed agility trial must offer High In TrialJunior Handler.

E. Ribbons and Rosettes. All ribbons and rosettesmust include the UKC Seal of Merit. The follow-ing ribbon colors and combinations are manda-



should always be neat and professional. 4. Judges must not only avoid impropriety but

also the appearance of impropriety. In asport where Judges are often exhibiting andnot officiating at the trial, it is important thatthe judge remain an exhibitor and refrainfrom critiquing runs or calls made by theofficiating judge to friends and othersexhibiting at the trial. In such cases Judgesshould be cordial to all exhibitors whilemaintaining a professional distance.

5. When not judging, Judges are encouragedto participate in UKC events as spectators,exhibitors, workers, and club members. Insuch situations, however, Judges must bemindful that people give extra attention totheir words. Judges should refrain from gos-sip and be cautious about discussing dogsthey have judged.

6. Judges may exhibit in a trial when two trialsare held on the same day provided it doesnot interfere with the trial in which the judgeis officiating.

7. When a club has scheduled a Chief Judgeand a Back-up judge for the trial as pub-lished in the UKC Upcoming Events listingan officiating Judge’s dog may be exhibitedby the Judge or another handler in the trialunder the Back-up Judge.

XXVII. Planning UKC Events. For additional infor-mation on planning events refer to the UKC EventManual (which can be found at ukcdogs.com). A. Appointing an Event Committee. At least one

year prior to any event, the club shall appointan Event Committee. When the club Secretaryreceives the Event Application for a ScheduledWeekend (approximately nine months prior tothe corresponding date for a club’s event), thepackage will also include information regard-ing the upcoming event. The package must besent to the Event Chairperson. The ClubSecretary is responsible for ensuring thatthese forms are promptly sent to the appropri-ate Event Committee members.

B. Event Committee positions. The EventCommittee shall consist of a minimum of twopersons: the Event Chairperson and the EventSecretary.

C. Requirements for Event Chairperson andEvent Secretary. Both the Event Chairpersonand the Event Secretary must be in goodstanding with UKC.


the highest qualifying score of all dogs com-peting in the trial. When two dogs competingin the trial have the same score, regardlessof the class or division in which it wasearned, the winner of the High In Trial awardshall be the dog running under the normalACT with the greatest difference between itsrunning time and the normal (not adjusted)Assigned Course Time. If dogs remain tied,the tie shall stand, and shall be reported asa tie on the Judge’s summary sheet. If anaward, trophy or prize is to be presented, thetied dogs shall have a runoff on any avail-able agility course, to determine the winnerof the award, trophy or prize.

3. High In Trial Junior Handler. Any JuniorHandler (a UKC Total Junior Member or ahandler that is eighteen years of age oryounger on the day of the trial) competing ina UKC Licensed agility trial who earns aqualifying score will be eligible to competefor High In Trial Junior Handler. The JuniorHandler whose dog earned the highestscore shall win the High In Trial JuniorHandler. Ties will be broken in accordancewith the UKC High In Trial agility rules.Junior handlers are required to follow thestandard UKC agility rules.

XXVI. Agility Judge Rules and Guidelines. A. Applying to become a UKC Licensed Agility

Judge. Information on the requirements andprocedure to apply can be found within theJudge’s Handbook found on the UKC website.

B. Judges’ Code of Ethics. UKC Judges areapproved on the basis of their knowledge ofdogs, their understanding of the UKC rules, theirdedication to the sport of purebred and perform-ance dogs and their integrity. Judges are the rolemodels for our sport and, as such, are expectedto adhere to the highest standards of conductboth in and out of the ring. Judges must adhereto the following guidelines when judging:

1. Remember that Judges’ decisions play akey role in determining future breedingstock. Conformation decisions must bebased strictly on the UKC standard and per-formance placements on the UKC rules.

2. Remember that performance Judges mustbe sure they make every effort to be consis-tent when scoring each dog.

3. Judges should dress appropriately for theevent and the weather. A Judge’s appearance


club officials holding the event are responsi-ble for ensuring that the agility equipmentmeet the requirements outlined elsewherein this rulebook. The judge must approvethe equipment before the start of judging. Atthe completion of the trial, the judge mustreport to UKC any substandard conditionsor equipment.

5. Information required by Judges. TheEvent Secretary shall send the licensedjudge(s) a description of the trial site and alist of the obstacles available for use indesigning the courses. The event Secretaryshall notify the judge of any handicappedhandlers who need an adjusted ACT.

6. Judges. The Event Chairperson is responsi-ble for hiring Judges who are properlylicensed by UKC to judge agility trial events.Judges must be hired sufficiently in advanceof the event so that their names and assign-ments can be included on the EventApplication for a Scheduled Weekend. EachJudge’s contract must be in writing andsigned by the Event Chairperson and theJudge. The Event Chairperson must keep theJudges’ contracts on file for at least onemonth after the event.

7. Motels. The Event Chairperson is responsi-ble for appointing a member of the hostclub to serve as a representative to the localmotel managers and for notifying localmotel managers how to contact this repre-sentative with complaints about exhibitors.

XXVIII Planning UKC Licensed Agility Trials. A. Appointing an Event Committee. At least one

year prior to any event, the club shall appointan Event Committee.

B. Event Committee positions. The EventCommittee shall consist of a minimum of twopersons: the Event Chairperson and the EventSecretary.

C. Requirements for Event Chairperson andEvent Secretary. Both the Event Chairpersonand the Event Secretary must be in goodstanding with UKC.

D. Timekeepers and Stewards. The EventChairperson is responsible for ensuring that thefollowing categories of agility timekeepers andstewards are assigned to assist the Judge in allclasses and divisions. Any duties assigned in thisrulebook to a timekeeper or steward may also bedone by the Judge at the Judge’s discretion. The


D. Event Committee information on the EventApplication for a Scheduled Weekend. Thenames, addresses, telephones and e-mailaddresses (when applicable) of the EventChairperson and the Event Secretary must belisted on the Event Application for a ScheduledWeekend.

E. Prohibition against Event Chairperson andEvent Secretary serving as Judge. No per-son may serve as a Judge for the host club atany UKC Licensed event held on the sameweekend when that person is serving as EventChairperson or Event Secretary.

F. Presence of Event Chairperson and EventSecretary at events. The Event Chairperson andthe Event Secretary must be present during eventsat which they are serving in these capacities.

G. Replacing Event Chairperson or EventSecretary. Once an application to hold an eventhas been approved by UKC, the club may notreplace the Event Chairperson or the EventSecretary unless the change has been requestedin writing to and approved by UKC. If circum-stances prevent the Event Chairperson or theEvent Secretary from serving on the day of theevent, the club President or other club officermust appoint a replacement. The Event Secretarymust include notice of the replacement with a writ-ten explanation of the reasons for the changewhen submitting the event results to UKC.

H. Event Chairperson Responsibilities. TheEvent Chairperson is responsible for planningand conducting the event in accordance withUKC rules. The duties of the Event Chairpersoninclude, but are not limited to:

1. UKC paperwork. The Event Chairperson isresponsible for completing and submittingthe Event Application for a ScheduledWeekend on time and with the required fees.

2. Event Committee. The Event Chairpersonmay appoint additional committee mem-bers to assist with such duties as he/shemay delegate.

3. Event site. The Event Chairperson isresponsible for procuring a suitable trialsite. This includes the responsibility for exe-cuting all contracts and acquiring all permitsthat may be required by local jurisdictions.The Event Chairperson is responsible forensuring that mats are available for indoorshows when the surface is not suitable forthe planned activity.

4. Equipment. The Event Chairperson and


handlers, such as relaying the Judge’ssignals to a hearing-impaired handlerwhen necessary. See Section XXI.H.2.

4. Gate steward and ring steward(s.) a. Ensure the next dog and handler are

ready to enter the course as soon as theprevious performance has been com-pleted or when the judge has requestedthe next team to enter the course.

b. Checks the entry number on each scoresheet to ensure it is the correct sheet forthe team that is ready to enter the course.

c. Delivers the team’s score sheet to theJudge unless the judge has the scoresheets.

d. Receives the partially completed scoresheet for the prior performance from theJudge and delivers it to the table steward.

e. Should be aware of any omissions orchanges in the sequence of entry num-bers and inform the handlers so theymay be ready when called to the ring.

f. It is recommended the gate steward havea chart to help keep handlers apprised oftheir position in the running order andwhich teams have already run.

g. Checks the course, after each perform-ance, for any adjustments that need tobe made such as an obstacle that needsadjusting or straightening and eithermakes the adjustments or alerts anothersteward of the need for an adjustment.

5. Table Steward. a. Receives the partially completed score

sheet from the gate steward after eachperformance.

*b. Converts the official running time toseconds and hundredths of seconds (ifthe Judge or timekeeper has notalready done so) and records it on thescore sheet.

c. Subtracts the ACT from the official run-ning time to determine time faults, if any,and records time faults in the “box score”section on the score sheet.

d. Records the total performance faultsfrom the Judge’s scoring marks (if theJudge has not already done so) in the“box score” section of the score sheet.

e. Based on the Judge’s marks, recordsany “additional faults” in the “box score”section of the score sheet.

f. Adds together performance faults, time


steward may not change any figures on theJudge’s Score sheet, but notify the Judge of anyerrors he/she discovers. The Judge is responsi-ble for supervising the trial stewards.

1. Chief Ring Steward. The Chief RingSteward assigns an appropriate number andtype of stewards to each ring and ensuresthat each ring is properly equipped.Equipment should include such items aswickets, calculators, paper, pens or pencils,stop watches and a current agility rulebook.Where possible each ring should include thestewards as described below.

2. Primary Timekeeper. To ensure consisten-cy the same steward should perform thisduty for an entire class.

a. Times each dog’s official running time,using electronic timing equipment, or adigital stopwatch that records time to1/100th of a second. A digital stop watchwith a stop and restart mode shall beused in timing Agility performances.

b. Timing is started when any part of thedog’s body passes the starting line or aline that extends on either side of thestarting line.

c. Timing is stopped when any part of thedog’s body crosses the finish line or a linethat extends on either side of the finishline, after the last obstacle is completed.

*d. Reports the running time to the Judge inthe following manner: minutes, secondsand hundredths of seconds, as thejudge directs.

e. Upon instruction by the Judge, watch thedog’s performance at all times and beready to stop the running time should anobstacle be out of position or some dis-turbance occur. Refer to Section XXIII. J.11. Interruptions of the performance forthis procedure.

3. Back-up Time Keeper. a. If electronic timing equipment is not

being used, or if requested by the judge,the back-up time keeper times eachdog’s running time, using a digital stop-watch that records time to 1/100th of asecond. This time shall be used in casethe primary timekeeper makes an error inrecording the official time. One examplewould be a stopwatch malfunction.

b. May also be required to assist the Judgewhen judging physically handicapped


which must be written on the entry form,score sheets and in the Judge’s book.

5. Event license. Approximately six weeks priorto an event, UKC will mail the Event Licenseto the Event Secretary, who is responsible forbringing the license to the event. Anyexhibitor at the event who wishes to see thelicense must be allowed to do so.

6. Preparing score sheets. Not later than 14days prior to the event the Judge must sendthe Event Secretary a master copy of thecourses. The Event Secretary is responsiblefor duplicating the appropriate master scoresheet at the rate of 1 score sheet for eachentry in each class or 2 score sheets foreach entry when an apprentice judge isapprenticing at the trial. The EventSecretary must record the armband num-ber, breed of dog and Judge name on thescore sheet. The score sheets should bearranged in numerical order by Classes andDivisions for use at the trial. The EventSecretary must not share the coursedesigns before the day of the trial. TheJudge’s courses must not be divulged priorto the day’s event.

7. Preparing and receiving Judge’s Books.The Event Secretary is responsible for prepar-ing Judge’s Books by writing all of therequired information of each dog in theappropriate class. Immediately followingjudging, each Judge will return his/her signedJudge’s books to the Event Secretary.

8. Submitting event results. All event resultsmust be received at UKC within 10 businessdays of the event. The Event Secretary isresponsible for submitting the results usingthe forms provided by UKC for each event.Clubs shall be fined $20 per month perevent for late event reports.

9. Recording fees. The Event Secretary isresponsible for ensuring that the correctrecording fee of $1.50 per entry in eachlicensed agility class is paid when the eventresults are submitted to UKC.

10. Rulebook. The Event Secretary is respon-sible for bringing a current copy of theOfficial UKC Agility Rules & Regulations tothe event.

XXIX. UKC Policy on Show Site Changes. Clubs mustnotify UKC in writing if they must change their show site.UKC will require the club to include the reason for the


faults, and additional faults to determineand record the final score.

g. Marks the score sheet whether the per-formance was qualifying or non-qualifying.

6. Recording Steward. a. Receives the completed score sheet from

the table steward and checks to makesure the faults are added correctly.

b. Displays the entry number, final score andrunning time to handlers and spectatorsusing the means provided by the sponsor-ing club for announcement of scores.

c. Records the final score and running timein the Results Form/Judge’s Book.

d. Clearly indicates in the Results Form/Judge’s Book all non-qualifying scoresby circling the score and marking it NQ.

e. Completes the Judge’s Summary Sheetby listing all entries with qualifying scoresand determining placements for awards.

f. Gives all completed paperwork to theTrial Secretary, who will obtain theJudge’s final approval.

E. Trial veterinarian. A veterinarian must be inattendance or on call for each UKC event.Where local laws require that a veterinarian bein attendance, the Event Chairperson is respon-sible for ensuring that the club is in compliance.

F. Trial photographer. Clubs are encouraged toprovide a photographer to take photos at events.

G. Event Secretary responsibilities. The EventSecretary is responsible for:

1. Announcement of scores at the trial. Achart listing the armband numbers in thesequence they are to exhibit, along withspaces for scores and running times,should be prepared for use at the trial.Should a chart not be available, scores andrunning times must be announced throughthe use of a “white board”.

2. Armbands. The Event Secretary is respon-sible for ensuring that the club has an ade-quate supply of numbered armbands forexhibitors to wear while participating in agili-ty trials. Stickers or labels may be used asarmbands.

3. Catalogs. If the club elects to offer a cata-log of exhibitors, the Event Secretary isresponsible for preparing the catalog.

4. Entry taking. The Event Secretary is respon-sible for accepting only completed andsigned entry forms. The Event Secretaryassigns an armband number to each entry,


been processed by UKC will receive a refundequal to the license fees less $20 per event.

C. A club that cancels its event after the event infor-mation has been published in BLOODLINESDog Event News magazine and/or on the UKCwebsite shall receive no refund of license fees.

D. In addition to the rules regarding licensingfees, and depending on the individual circum-stances, UKC may also require the club to takethe following action(s):

1. The club must reimburse scheduled Judgesfor all expenses incurred on behalf of theclub for the canceled event.

2. An Event Committee member must stay atthe event site during the previously- sched-uled event hours to inform all exhibitors orspectators that the event was cancelled.

3. The club must return all Pre-Entry ONLY andPre-Entry fees.

4. The club must mail an event cancellation let-ter to each person that received PremiumList or other advertisement of the event.

5. The club will be assessed additional fees forexpenses incurred as a result of late changesto BLOODLINES Dog Event News magazine.

6. A club that cancels their event without UKCapproval will be subject to disciplinary action,which may result in the loss of privileges.

7. A club that shows a pattern of schedulingand canceling events may lose its status asa UKC Licensed club.

XXXI. Dog Temperament and Behavior. Owners ofUKC Registered dogs are responsible for the behaviorof their dogs at UKC events. Dogs participating in UKCevents are expected to have stable temperamentsappropriate to their breeds and to be sufficiently welltrained so that no dog’s behavior interferes with theJudge’s ability to evaluate the dog or its performance.Owners or designated handlers are expected toensure at all times that their dogs present no threat topersons or other dogs attending the event.

A. Excusing a dog for temperament or behaviorin the ring. A Judge may excuse a dog whenthe dog’s behavior significantly interferes withthe Judge’s ability to evaluate the dog or withthe ability of other exhibitors to show theirdogs. This includes, but is not limited to, suchbehavior as not standing for examination orrefusing to walk. A Judge must excuse a dogwhen the dog’s demeanor gives the Judge rea-son to believe that the dog may not safely beexamined by the Judge. In such cases, the


show site change. When a club has to change their loca-tion after it has been published in the Upcoming EventsListing of BLOODLINES Dog Event Newsmagazine or onthe UKC website. The following procedures must be fol-lowed to assure adequate notice of the change is givento all exhibitors that may attend the event. A. New Show Site. As soon as a new show site

is procured, the United Kennel Club DogEvents Department must be notified so theappropriate change can be made to theUpcoming Events listings. The club must pro-vide UKC with the new site location (includingaddress, City & State), driving directions.

B. Exhibitor Notification. 1. The club must notify all exhibitors who have

pre-entered the event of the change of locationand include directions to the new show site.

2. Clubs must send out notification of theevent site change to all exhibitors who weremailed a Premium List for the event.

C. Postings. The club may be required to havesigns posted at the old show site directingexhibitors to the new location. Additionally, theclub should, if at all possible, provide some-one at the old show site to direct exhibitors tothe new location.

D. Extension of Entry and Show Times. Because ofthe change of location, it is possible that exhibitorsmight miss the Day of Show entry deadline time.To accommodate these exhibitors, the club mustbe prepared to extend the Day of Show entrydeadline and the show start time. Driving timebetween the old and new locations should beused as a guideline in setting the new entry dead-lines and show start times. The club must post asign with the extended entry times and start ofshow times at both the old and new locations.

E. Refunds. Clubs must refund any pre-entryfee(s), upon the exhibitor’s written request,made prior to or at the show, for any dog thatwas not exhibited due to the change in location.

XXX. Canceling a UKC Licensed Event. Clubs mustnotify UKC in writing of their intention to cancel anapproved event. A club wishing to cancel an eventmust receive permission from UKC before doing so.The decision to refund license fees in whole or in partshall be based on the following criteria. A. A club that cancels its event before the applica-

tion deadline date and before the application hasbeen processed by UKC will receive a full refund.

B. A club that cancels its event before the applica-tion deadline date but after the application has


finding of facts and determine the penalty,and this ruling shall be final. The owner ofthe dog shall be notified of the outcomewithin 30 days of receipt of the owner’sresponse. Owners of dogs that are barredfrom registration privileges are required toreturn the dog’s UKC registration certifi-cate within 14 days of notice that the dogis barred. Failure to promptly return theregistration certificate can result in loss ofUKC privileges. Dogs barred from registra-tion privileges may not be transferred. Thename, breed and owner of a dog barredfrom registration privileges shall be pub-lished once in the first issue of BLOOD-LINES magazine after the owner is notified.

XXXII. Use of Alcohol and Illegal Drugs at Events.The use of alcohol and illegal drugs at UKC events isprohibited. Violators may be excused from the ring bythe Judge and from the show or event grounds by theEvent Committee or any officer of the host club. Thedecisions of these officials are final. The EventSecretary is to file a Misconduct and Discipline formnotifying UKC in writing of any Judge who is excusedby the host club for violation of this rule.

XXXIII. Misconduct and Discipline.A. Standard of conduct at a UKC event. United

Kennel Club events are intended to be family-oriented recreation for dog lovers and their UKCRegistered dogs. Accordingly, UKC expects thehighest standard of conduct at events.

B. Misconduct. Misconduct may be defined asconduct by a person that is prejudicial to theinterests of the sport of purebred dogs. Thereare three general categories of misconduct: 1. Wrongdoing at a UKC event. This may

include, but is not limited to, threatening,assaulting or battering another individual;falsifying any event-related document;cheating or conspiring to cheat in order toimprove the standing of any dog competingat an event; abusing or neglecting a dog;throwing bait in the ring; littering the ring withbait; using bait or a squeaker in the ringwhen a Judge has prohibited their use.

2. Wrongdoing not associated with a UKCevent. This may include, but is not limited to,falsification of UKC registration papers;misidentification of a dog or the parentage ofa dog; abuse or neglect of dogs; or continuedfailure to keep proper registration records.


Judge must mark the dog “Excused” in theJudge’s book and state the reason for theexcusal. The Judge’s decision in such mattersis final.

B. Disqualifying a dog for temperament orbehavior.1. When the bite or attack occurs in the agility

ring. A Judge must disqualify a dog that bitesor attempts to bite a person, or that bites orattacks another dog. The term “attack” shallbe construed to include unprovoked physicalcontact between the two dogs. If the bite,attempted bite or attack occurs in the ring, theJudge must mark the dog “disqualified” in theJudge’s book and state the reason for the dis-qualification. The Judge’s decision in suchmatters is final. The Judge must complete theUKC “Disqualified for Attacking” report formand report any such incident to the EventCommittee immediately.

2. When the bite or attack occurs elsewhere.Any person who witnesses a dog biting orattempting to bite a person, or biting or attack-ing another dog anywhere on the eventgrounds other than in the ring must report itimmediately to a member of the EventCommittee or the host club. The host clubmust investigate the alleged bite, attemptedbite or attack and the club must file a com-plaint using the procedure outlined in SectionVII of this rulebook. Once the complaint iscomplete, the Event Committee must sendthe complaint to UKC with their Event Report.The dog is considered disqualified in this situ-ation and must not enter or exhibit at any UKCLicensed event until reinstated by UKC, andthe Event Committee must immediately notifyall concerned parties of same.

*3. UKC procedures for dogs disqualifiedunder this section. When UKC is notifiedthat a dog has been disqualified under thissection, the owner of the dog will be noti-fied by certified mail of the Judge’s report(disqualified in the ring) or the disciplinarycommittee’s findings. The owner of thedog shall have 14 days from receipt of thisnotification to show cause why the dogshould not be barred from participating infuture UKC events and from all registrationprivileges. After reviewing any mitigating orextenuating evidence submitted by theowner, a Disciplinary Committee com-posed of UKC staff members shall make a

a UKC event. No dog owned or co-owned by the excused person maycontinue in further competition untilthe matter has been resolved by ahearing. If the excused person is han-dling a dog that he/she does not ownor co-own, that dog may be returnedto competition with another handler.

(3) When a person observes miscon-duct by a member of the EventCommittee or a Judge at an event.Any person who becomes aware ofan act of misconduct by a memberof the Event Committee or a Judgeduring the hours of an event mustfile a complaint in accordance withthis Section. Complaints about aJudge’s placements must be dealtwith in accordance with Section XV,Paragraph A.

b. Upon receipt of a complaint. Uponreceipt of a complaint, the EventChairperson shall provide the complainantwith a UKC Misconduct Report andHearing Form. The complainant must enterthe name of the subject of the complaint(hereinafter referred to as the “respon-dent”) in Section 3, and complete all ofSections 1 and 2, providing the following: (1) Section 1. The club name, location of

the event, the date of the incident, andthe name of the Event Chairperson.

(2) Section 2. The complainant’s name,address, daytime and evening phonenumbers, and the facts and circum-stances of the alleged misconduct,including the specific sections of thepertinent UKC rulebook which haveallegedly been violated. The EventChairperson shall then appoint fromthe officers and directors of the hostclub, two persons who shall serve,with the Event Chairperson, as theHearing Committee, except that noofficer or director who witnessed thealleged misconduct shall serve on theHearing Committee. Additionally, noperson who is related to or living inthe same household as either thecomplainant or any accused personshall serve on the hearing committee.If no officer or director is eligible toserve, then other club members may

3. Uttering a payment with non-sufficient funds.This category refers to paying entry fees viaa check with non-sufficient funds in theaccount, the use of a debit or credit card thatis declined, forged or invalid money orders,or other forms of payment where anexhibitor’s entry fees remain unpaid aftercompeting. Refer to Section VII. E.Procedures for handling an uttering a pay-ment with non-sufficient funds.

C. Jurisdiction. All persons present on thegrounds of a UKC event during the event hoursare subject to the jurisdiction of the UKC. Inaddition, UKC has jurisdiction over any mis-conduct that may occur off the grounds of theevent or outside event hours, provided that themisconduct is reasonably related to the event.This paragraph shall be interpreted as broadlyas is necessary to regulate such off-groundsmisconduct as abuse of motel rooms by per-sons attending the events.

D. Procedures for handling misconduct dur-ing or associated with an event. 1. The complaint.

a. Who must file a complaint. Any personor persons who become aware of an actof misconduct during the hours of a UKCevent, must notify either the EventChairperson or the Event Secretary atany time during the hours of the event. (1) When a Judge observes miscon-

duct in the chute or on-deck area.Any Judge who observes misconductby an exhibitor in the Judge’s ringmust excuse the exhibitor from thering and file a complaint with theEvent Chairperson or Event Secretaryas soon as practicable. The Judgemust note the reason for excusal inhis/her Judge’s book.

(2) When a person is excused for mis-conduct in the chute or on-deckarea. A person excused by the Judgefor misconduct in the ring may notshow in any other class or event untilafter his/her hearing. The club shallnot refund any entry fees unless theHearing Committee makes a findingthat the alleged misconduct did notoccur, that the misconduct was notprejudicial to the interests of the sportof purebred dogs, or that the miscon-duct did not occur in conjunction with


the hearing shall proceed without therespondent.

4. The Hearing. a. Advisement of respondent’s rights.

The Hearing Committee Chairpersonshall advise the respondent of the fol-lowing rights: (1) The right to be present during the

testimony of all witnesses; (2) The right to cross-examine all wit-

nesses; (3) The right to present witnesses on

his/her own behalf; and,(4) The right to testify in his/her own

behalf.b. Witnesses. All witnesses who come

before the Hearing Committee shall tes-tify under oath administered by theHearing Chairperson. Witnesses whoare unable to attend in person may tes-tify by telephone.

c. Order of testimony. The complainantshall present his/her evidence first, fol-lowed by the respondent’s evidence.

d. Cross-examination. Each party shall beallowed to cross-examine the other’s wit-nesses. Members of the HearingCommittee shall also be allowed toquestion the witnesses.

e. Spectators. Spectators shall not beallowed at Hearing Committee hearingsexcept for UKC Field Representativesappointed to attend the hearing onbehalf of UKC or UKC staff.

f. Attorneys. No party shall be entitled tohave an attorney present at the hearing.

5. Findings. At the conclusion of the hearing,the complainant, respondent and all wit-nesses shall be excused. The HearingCommittee shall deliberate and make theirfindings based on a preponderance of theevidence. A two-thirds majority is sufficientto make findings. The findings shall bereported as follows: a. Whether the alleged misconduct was

proven to have occurred;b. Whether the alleged misconduct was

prejudicial to the interests of the sport ofpurebred dogs;

c. Whether the alleged misconductoccurred in connection with a UKC event.In reaching its decision, the HearingCommittee may not consider the

be appointed. The Event Chairpersonshall serve as Chairperson of theHearing Committee and shall set atime and place for the hearing. If theEvent Chairperson witnessed thealleged misconduct, he/she shallappoint, from the officers and direc-tors of the host club, three personswho shall serve as the HearingCommittee and shall also designateone to serve as Chairperson of theHearing Committee. The Chairpersonof the Hearing Committee shallappoint a member to record the notesof the hearing. The place for the hear-ing shall be on the event grounds andthe hearing time shall be set so as togive the respondent adequate time toprepare for the hearing.

2. Notice. As soon as possible after receivingthe complaint, the Hearing Chairpersonshall advise the respondent of: a. The specific conduct that is the subject of

the complaint and the time and place atwhich the alleged misconduct occurred;

b. The name of the complainant; c. The names of witnesses against

him/her; and, d. The time and place of the hearing.

The Hearing Chairperson must enter therespondent’s address and daytime andevening phone numbers in Section 3 ofthe complaint. He/she may obtain thisinformation directly from the respondentor from respondent’s UKC official entryform, if the respondent is an exhibitor. Ifthe respondent cannot be located on thegrounds, the Hearing Chairperson shallselect a date, time and place for the hear-ing and notify the respondent in writing bycertified mail (return receipt requested) atthe mailing address on the UKC officialentry form or the respondent’s last knownaddress, whichever is applicable. Everyreasonable effort shall be made to locateand notify the respondent of the complaintand hearing. Hearings not held on the dayof the event must be held no more than 28calendar day e date of the event.

3. If the respondent fails to appear at thehearing. If, after having been advised of thecomplaint and the date, time and place ofthe hearing, the respondent fails to appear,


a. Invalid Entry. The dog’s record for theevent will be treated as an invalid entrywhen recording the Event Results.

b. The exhibitor must contact the club imme-diately upon notification from their finan-cial institution that the payment was insuf-ficient and resolve the insufficient fundsentry payment to the club. Additionally,the club must make every reasonableattempt to collect sufficient funds.

c. The club may collect a reasonableamount of fees in addition to the entryamount from the exhibitor.

d. When the outstanding debt has beensuccessfully paid by the exhibitor, whichmay include additional charges assessedto the club by their financial institution,the club must notify UKC within 7 days.

3. Appeal. After UKC has been notified by theclub or Event Manager that the uttering hasbeen successfully paid, the exhibitor maymake an appeal to re-instate the dog’spoints to the Disciplinary Committee. Anappeal must be filed not later than 30 daysfrom the date the uttering has been suc-cessfully paid to the club. The Decision ofthe Disciplinary Committee shall be final.

4. Habitual uttering. The UKC DisciplinaryCommittee may place on Probation,Suspension or Barring any exhibitor orowner for repeated instances of uttering asdescribed in the Penalties section below.

F. Misconduct by an Event-giving club. Whenany person or persons become aware of an actof misconduct by an event-giving club, its eventofficials, any person acting in an official capac-ity or acting event manager during the hours ofa UKC event must make written notification ofthe violation by the club to UKC within 7 days ofthe event.

G. Penalties. The appropriate UKC DepartmentHead shall review all Hearing Committee find-ings and staff investigation results with the UKCDisciplinary Committee. If a HearingCommittee’s findings of prejudicial misconductare upheld, the Disciplinary Committee shallimpose one or more of the following penalties: 1. Probation. Probation can last for a period

up to three years. During the period of pro-bation, the individual shall be closely moni-tored by UKC. Any further instances of mis-conduct may result in an immediate sus-pension or barring of the individual at the

respondent’s general reputation or sta-tus in the sport of purebred dogs, prioracts of misconduct, nor the extent of therespondent’s investment in dogs. Thesole consideration must be the specificinstance of misconduct with which therespondent is charged.

6. Completing The UKC® MisconductReport And Hearing Form. The HearingCommittee Chairperson shall completeSections 4, 5 and 6 of the Misconduct Reportand Hearing Form as follows: a. Section 4: The name, address and

phone number of each witness and asummary of each witness’s testimony.This summary shall include all pertinentfacts provided by the witness. If thespace on the form is insufficient, addi-tional sheets of paper may be used torecord the summary.

b. Section 5: The date and time thatrespondent was notified of the hearingand the names, addresses and daytimeand evening phone numbers of theHearing Committee members.

c. Section 6: The Hearing Committee’sfindings and recommendations shall beentered in this section. In addition, eachmember of the Hearing Committee shallthen sign the form in the space providedand enter his/her address, daytime andevening phone numbers and e-mail. Within 10 calendar days of the hearing,the Hearing Chairperson shall forwardone copy of the UKC Misconduct Reportand Hearing Form to United KennelClub. The club hosting the event shallalso keep a copy of the completed UKCMisconduct Report and Hearing Form.

E. Procedures for handling an uttering a pay-ment with non-sufficient funds. 1. When the club or Event Manager becomes

aware of an act of uttering in the amount of$100.00 or more, the Treasurer must makea written notification along with proof theviolation and a copy of the dog’s entryform(s) to UKC within 21 days of the event.

2. The appropriate UKC Department Headshall review all such cases. If the findings ofprejudicial misconduct are upheld, the UKCDepartment Head or Disciplinary Committeeshall impose one or more of the followingpenalties:


UKC licensed event.f. No dog registered in the name of a sus-

pended/barred person (joint or individualownership) may be entered or participatein any way in any UKC licensed event normay such a dog receive points or legstoward any UKC title.

g. Appeals. Any person placed on proba-tion, suspended or barred may appealdirectly, in writing, to the UKC President.An appeal must be filed not later than 30days from the date a person is notified ofthe probation, suspension or barring. Thedecision of the President is final.

h. UKC Inherent Rights and Powers.Notwithstanding anything herein andregardless of whether these proceduresare followed, under the Inherent Rightsand Powers, UKC reserves the right toitself and its sole judgment and discre-tion, to investigate any misconduct andto impose such sanctions and penaltiesas deemed appropriate.

INHERENT RIGHTS ANDPOWERS OF UKC

*Revised December 18, 2009

United Kennel Club holds and has reserved to itselfcertain inherent rights and powers in connection with con-ducting its business, registering litters, transferring regis-trations of dogs, licensing events, and awarding titles.These inherent rights and powers include but are not lim-ited to the following:

United Kennel Club has the right to inspect all reports,scorecards and documents related to UKC events. Some,but not all, of the items subject to inspection are:

a) scores; b) disqualifications of dogs for fighting or other reasons; c) errors by the recording person; and d) documentation excluded for any reason.UKC reserves the right to correct any mistakes found

during such inspection whether or not the document hasthe signature of a Judge or Club Officer. UKC reserves theright to itself and in its sole judgement and discretion, totake such actions and impose such sanctions as would:

discretion of the Disciplinary Committee andwithout further due process.

2. Suspension. The Disciplinary Committeeshall impose a minimum three hundred dollarfine and a minimum one-year suspension forprobation violations and for most seriousacts of misconduct. The suspension willbegin immediately upon notification by certi-fied mail (return receipt requested) but thefine must be paid before the time countstoward the sentence. For example, a personmay be notified on January 1 that his penaltywill be a one-year suspension and a fine ofthree hundred dollars. This individual will besuspended as soon as he is notified of thepenalty but the one-year suspension doesnot start until the date the fine is paid. If thesuspended individual waits until March 1 topay his fine, his suspension will actually runfourteen months until midnight of February28 the following year.

3. Barring. The Disciplinary Committee shallbar an individual for an indefinite period oftime for repeat instances of misconduct orfor the most serious forms of misconduct,including cruelty to dogs. The period of bar-ring shall begin upon notification of therespondent by certified mail (return receiptrequested).

4. Privileges lost during suspension or bar-ring. The following rules apply to personswho are barred or suspended: a. A suspended/barred person may not

register any dogs in his/her name (jointor individual ownership).

b. No dog registered in the name of a sus-pended/barred person (joint or individualownership) may be used for breeding andno offspring of such a dog is eligible forregistration with UKC.

c. A suspended/barred person may trans-fer any dogs currently registered inhis/her name (joint or individual owner-ship), except that no dog registered inthe name of a suspended/ barred per-son, regardless of co-ownership status,may be transferred to any member ofthat person’s family.

d. A suspended/barred person may notregister any litters or sign any litter regis-trations in any capacity.

e. A suspended/barred person may notenter or participate in any way in any


the following actions taken against them by UnitedKennel Club and BLOODLINES Dog Event News:

1. All dog registration privileges will be revokedfor life.a. The person(s) will not be permitted to regis-

ter any litters of puppies.b. The person(s) will not be permitted to trans-

fer ownership of any puppies or adult dogsinto their name.

2. The person(s) will be barred for life from partic-ipating in or entering any UKC licensed events.Their dogs will not be awarded any UKCChampionship points or titles even if handledby another person.

3. The person(s) will be barred for life from adver-tising in BLOODLINES Dog Event News or anyother UKC publications.

Anyone aware of any persons currently involvedin such activities as are listed above should reportthem to United Kennel Club.

a) Bar an individual from entering or participating inany way in any UKC licensed event.

b) Bar an individual from transferring or registering anypups or dogs in that person’s name (joint or full reg-istration) or to any member of that person’s family.

c) Bar an individual from receiving Championshippoints for any dog registered in that person’s name(joint or full registration).

By way of illustration, the following constitute some, butnot all, of the situations calling for the above sanctions:

a) Falsification or alteration of a UKC RegistrationCertificate, Pedigree, UKC Easy Entry™ Card or anyother UKC document.

b) Falsification or alteration of any reports of winsissued to UKC

c) Falsification or alteration of receipts issued by UKCJudges.

d) Switching, wrongfully using or attempting to use aUKC Registration Certificate, Pedigree, UKC EasyEntry™ Card or any other UKC document.

e) Selling or attempting to sell a dog with false or incor-rect UKC Registration Certificate or Pedigree.

f) Intimidating, threatening, or injuring a Judge,Club/Association member or official, event partici-pant or spectator, or UKC representative.

The six illustrations given above are only by way ofexample and UKC reserves to itself its inherent right andpower to impose such sanctions in any other circum-stances deemed appropriate by UKC.

Any individual who is found guilty by a court of law ofa crime involving dogs will be barred from United KennelClub for an indefinite period. A person shall be consideredguilty in a criminal proceeding if they are convicted by ajudge, jury, or if they enter a plea bargain or other arrange-ment to plea to a lesser offense, or if their case is dis-posed of by any form of deferred adjudication; a personshall be considered guilty in a civil proceeding if they areheld responsible or liable by a judge, jury, or if a compro-mised settlement is reached between the parties.

UKC POLICY REGARDINGPERSONS ASSOCIATEDWITH FIGHTING DOGS

Any individual or group of individuals known byUKC to promote, support, raise dogs for fighting;knowingly sell, give or trade dogs that will be used infighting; condone or be associated with the facing off,game testing, rolling or pitting of dogs; or arrested forattending and/or participating in a dog fight, will have



NOTES

The Total Dog Registry

United Kennel Club100 E Kilgore Rd

Kalamazoo MI 49002-5584Tel: (269) 343-9020www.ukcdogs.com

[email protected]


ly above ground, while the 8-footpanel is set at 48 inches verticallyabove ground, and the 9-foot panelis set at 50 inches vertically abovethe ground.

b) Slats. Slats are approximately 3/8of an inch to 1 inch thick and ¾ ofan inch to 1½ inches wide and cutto extend the width of the panels.The slats are attached 12 inchesapart with a 2-inch tolerance. Slatsmust be rounded or beveled so asto not be sharp. A slat on the upperedge of the contact zone is permit-ted.

b. Dog Walk. This obstacle consists of ahorizontal center plank section and tworamp sections.1) Construction.

a) Planks. All sections may be either8 feet or 12 feet long (with a 3-inchtolerance), and must be 12 incheswide (with a 1-inch tolerance). Allthree planks may be made fromwood or fabricated material thatcan be properly surfaced.

b) Support legs. Support legs mustraise the horizontal center plank 36inches (with a 2-inch tolerance)above the ground when using the 8-foot long planks, and 48 inches (witha 2-inch tolerance) above theground when using the 12-foot longplanks. The construction must mini-mize any movement of the planks.

c) Slats. Slats are not required, butwhen used, they should conform tothose described for the A-Frame.There is no required spacing forslats, except they should be uni-formly spaced. A slat on upperedge of the contact zone is permit-ted.

c. Sway Bridge. This obstacle consists of asupport structure from which a bridge ofslats is suspended. Ramps on each endallow the dog to get on and off of thebridge.1) Construction.

a) Bridge. The Bridge portion is con-structed of 2-inch x 2-inch woodenor PVC boards 24 inches long.


Revision to the Official UKC Agility RulebookEffective September 1st, 2012

This insert is issued as a supplement to theAgility Rulebook

with the effective date of July 1, 2011

XXIV. Agility Obstacles – Descriptions andSpecifications.

A. Non-Hurdle Obstacle1. Contact Obstacles.

General construction. Except where specified,framework, support legs and structures andbases for contact obstacles may be made fromwood, metal or PVC, of sufficient strength andrigid enough to provide a safe obstacle for allsizes of dogs. Panels must be connected to elim-inate any gaps large enough to fit a dog’s foot ortoe, or an insert must cover any gap between thepanels. The entire top surface of the contactobstacle must be painted or coated with a rough,non-skid material, such as alternating layers ofsand and flat latex paint or paint with granulatedchips applied over the top, or with a rubberizedsurface. The use of rubber matting and carpet areprohibited with the exception of the top of thePause Table. The color of the contact zone mustcontrast with non-contact areas, but must not bewhite, black or brown. It is recommended that theentire contact zone be painted a contrastingbright yellow. The color of the contact zone shallextend around the edges, in order to be visiblefrom the side. The entire entrance and exit rampsof the sway bridge are the contact zones. For allother contact obstacles, the top edge of the con-tact line is located 42 inches, with a ¼-inch (+/-)tolerance from the bottom edge of the board orramp.

a. A-Frame. This obstacle consists of twopanels (ramps) connected together atone end and positioned to form a struc-ture that simulates an A-Frame.1) Construction.

a) Panels. The panels may each meas-ure 6 feet 8 inches, 8 feet or 9 feet inlength and 30 to 49 inches in width.Panels of 8 feet or 9 feet are pre-ferred. A chain or other brace isattached approximately halfway upon the inside of each panel to securethe proper angle to the panels whenset up for use. The apex for the 6 foot8 inch panel is set 42 inches vertical-


foot and 10-foot teeterboards nowbeing used for licensed eventsremain permitted, until replaced. Ifa 12- foot teeterboard is available,the 12- foot teeterboard is pre-ferred.

2. Non-Contact Obstacles.a. Swing Plank. This obstacle consists of

a wide plank that is suspended at its cor-ners from chains hanging from a sup-port structure. The suspended plank isable to swing horizontally in all direc-tions. 1) Support structure. The support struc-

ture is rigid and made up of four “Lshaped” pieces, two of which areattached at right angles to each side ofeach end of a 4-foot spline. The base ofthe “L-shaped” pieces are 18 inches inlength and serve as leg supports tohold the structure in proper position.The upright portions of the “L-shaped”pieces are 15 inches in length andserve as the chain supports. Braces(approximately ¼-inch thick) areplaced on each of the “L-shaped”pieces. The upright portions are to becapped for safety of the dog and thehandler. It is preferred that the sup-port structure be made of metal,however wood is also acceptable.

2) Plank. The plank may be made from¾-inch wood or fabricated material,and is 4 feet long and approximately20 inches wide. Four chains of suit-able length are required to hold theplank approximately 3 inches abovethe ground. One end of each chain ishooked to the tip of each upright whilethe other end is attached to bracketsat the corners of the plank. The plankis then and able to swing in all direc-tions. A bungee check cord isattached to the two corners of eachend of the plank and to the splineabout 8 inches from the ends. Thebungee cord is stretched tightly toprevent the plank from moving toorapidly as the dog moves over it.

b. Weave Poles. This obstacle consists ofnine poles that are attached to a baserunner or individual holders that stuck in


Holes are drilled through the centerof these boards 2 inches from eachend. The boards are connected byinserting a cable or non-stretchrope through the holes in theboards, with ½-inch spacersbetween each board to prevent theboards from pinching together asthe dog walks across the bridge.Ends of the cable or rope may beattached to the support structurewith turnbuckles to ensure that thebridge portion does not have toomuch slack.

b) Support structure. The ends of thebridge are attached to the supportstructure approximately 18 incheshigh so that the bridge hangs freelyin a shallow arc over the 6.5-foot to8-foot length of the support struc-ture.

c) Ramps. Entrance and exit rampslead up to and away from theends of the bridge. Ramps are 36to 48 inches long and 24 incheswide.

d. Teeter-Totter. This obstacle consists of aboard supported on a base that allowsthe board to pivot freely at the centerpoint.1) Construction.

a) Teeterboard. The teeterboardshall be 12 feet in length and 12inches (+/- 1” tolerance) wide.The teeterboard may be made ofwood, or other suitable material.

b) Base. The teeterboard is supportedon a base that allows the teeter-board to pivot freely at the pivotpoint, which is 24 inches (+/- 2” tol-erance) above the ground. One endof the board is to be weighted or off-set so that following the exit of adog, the board will return to its orig-inal position with the entrance enddown. The board should be bal-anced so that it hits the ground inless than 3 seconds, when a 3pound weight is placed 12 inchesfrom the raised end.

c) Slats. Cross slats are prohibited.2) Grandfathered obstacles. The 8-


bulky for the very small breeds topush through), approximately 6 to 10feet long. (The overall length of theentire obstacle is approximately 8 to13 feet). The fabric is sewn into atapered tube that fits around theentry section on one end andexpands to at least 86” in circumfer-ence on the exit end. Pockets maybe sewn onto the underside of thechute near the end to allow smallweights to be inserted to help pre-vent the chute from blowing and tan-gling.

2) Hoop Tunnel. This obstacle consistsof hoops that are held in place by aPVC or wood framework. The hoopsare set at alternating angles to form azig-zag pattern when seen fromabove. Construction:a) Frame. The framework is con-

structed from 1-inch Schedule 20(thin wall) PVC or similar materials.There are two base runners: onewith four uprights and one with fiveuprights. The uprights are 32 inch-es high and spaced 30 inchesapart on each runner. The two sec-tions of runners and uprights areheld in a vertical position by crosspieces of PVC pipe 30 inches inlength, that connect the upperends of four of the uprights of onesection to the tops of the fouruprights of the other section; oneupright on the 5-upright sectionwill be free-standing. Whenassembling the obstacle, theuprights of the short section (fouruprights) are positioned so thatthe uprights are directly acrossfrom the midpoint of the spacebetween two uprights of the longsection.

b) Hoops. The hoops may be madeof flexible pipe ¾ inch to 1 inch indiameter, with each hoop approx-imately 30 inches in diameter, or“hula hoops” may be used. A totalof 8 hoops are attached and set atalternating angles of approximate-


the ground. Construction:1) Base. The base shall be no higher than

½ inch nor wider than 3 ½ inches, andshall be secured to hold the weavepoles vertically upright and to preventmovement on the course. The surfaceof the base between the poles must besmooth and coated with a non slip sur-face. Rigid uprights, no greater than 4inches high, may extend from the base,over or in which the poles may beplaced.

2) Single pole holders. Single poleholders for use at trials held outdoorsare permitted.

3) Poles. The poles are made from PVCup to 1 inch in diameter and 36 inchesto 48 inches in height. The poles are24 inches apart and should flex slightlyso that the dog may push the polessideways while moving through theseries of poles. Poles must not havetoo much flex which can cause thepole to spring back and strike the dog.Poles must be striped with coloredtape or paint to appear more visible tothe dog.

c. Tunnels.***1) Closed Tunnel (Chute). As of

01/01/18 closed tunnel (chute) hasbeen eliminated. This obstacleconsists of a short open entrysection attached to a collapsedfabric chute through which thedog must push its way to the out-side. Construction:

a) Entry Section. The open entry sec-tion is a rigid plastic or metal barrel24 inches (+/- 2 inches) in diameterand 24 to 36 inches in length. The“floor” of the entry must have a non-skid surface, and any sharp edgesshould be padded to protect thedog. The entry section must beweighted or secured to keep it frommoving out of position. The topedge of the opening should bepadded to prevent dogs from scrap-ing their back when entering.

b) Tunnel (chute). The collapsed orclosed portion of the tunnel is madewith rugged fabric (not too heavy or


poses.3) Platform Jump. This obstacle consists

of two low platforms with a hurdle mid-way between them. Construction:a) Platform. The platforms are con-

structed of wood or fabricatedmaterial with surfaces 3 feet wideand 4 feet long and 4 to 6 incheshigh.

b) Platform Surface. The surfacesare to be painted with a non-skidsurface material. Alternating lay-ers of sand and flat latex paint, orpaint with granulated chipsapplied over the top, are recom-mended. A rubberized surface ispermitted, although use of rubbermatting and carpet are prohibited.

c) Platform Position. Each platform ispositioned with the 3-foot widthnext to the hurdle and at distancesof 4, 6, 8 and 10 inches away fromthe center of the bar. Total distancesbetween the platforms are 8, 12, 16and 20 inches for size divisions Toy,1, 2, and 3 respectively.

d) Bar Hurdle. The bar hurdle may beconstructed from PVC as describedfor the Single Bar Hurdle, exceptthat the leg supports are shorter(approximately 4 inches) to allowthe hurdle to tip over easily if hitwhen jumped. The bar must be non-displaceable. The bar should notextend more than 2 inches on eitherside of the platform (+/- 1 inch).

e) Bar Hurdle Position. The height ofthe bar must adjust to 4, 6, 8 and 10inches above the surface of the plat-forms (not the ground) for size divi-sions Toy, 1, 2, and 3 respectively.

e. Tire Jump.Construction: 1) Framework. The supporting framework

is a rectangular frame and rigid. Theheight of the uprights must be sufficientto suspend the tire at the 20-inch jumpheight. The frame uprights are connect-ed at both the top and bottom by crosspieces of at least 48 inches. Theuprights are held vertically in position by


ly 60 degrees to one anotherforming a zig-zag pattern whenviewed from above. Hoops aresecured to the supporting frameusing bands, Velcro, screws, etc.The hoops should rest on theground.

3) Open Tunnel. The overall length of theopen tunnel when expanded should beapproximately 15 feet to 20 feet, andthe diameter of the opening approxi-mately 24 inches (+/-2inches). Thetunnel must be able to bend or curveso that when a dog enters it cannot seethe opening at the exit end. The tunnelmust be supported or weighted to pre-vent rolling out of place or pullingtogether when in use. When tunnelsupports other than the beginning andend are used, they shall not have arigid upright that is capable of fittingbetween the ribs of the tunnel. Tunnelfabric must be light colored or opaquematerial. Dark colored material or dou-ble lined dark material must be avoid-ed.

d. Pause Obstacles.1) Pause Box. The inside measurement

of the box is approximately 48 inches(+/- 2 inches) square. Construction:a) The walls may be constructed of

PVC with an overall height of 4 to 6inches.

b) Each side of the Box must be paint-ed or striped a different color, or witha different number or letter for easyidentification of a particular side.

2) Pause Table. Construction:a) Table Top. The tabletop is 36 to 42

inches square, with a nonskid sur-face. A rubberized surface, rubbermatting or carpeting (with short,tight nap) is permitted. Syntheticturf is prohibited.

b) Table. The table is adjustable toheights of 4 (+4/- 2 inches), 8, 14

and 20 inches. It is rec-ommended that the four sides ofthe table be painted differ-ent colors for identification pur-


be constructed of PVC or wooden boards.3. Log Hurdle. The log hurdle is constructed of

10 sections of 4-inch PVC. Ten sections willprovide pyramid stacks of 1, 3, 6, or 10 pipesfor Divisions Toy, 1, 2, and 3, respectively.Maximum heights at the peak when stackedin a pyramid are approximately 4, 7, 10.5 and14 inches respectively for Divisions Toy, 1, 2,and 3. Painted or taped stripes may beplaced to increase visibility.

4. Long Hurdle. This jump is similar, but not thesame as to the broad jump used in obedience.Construction. The long hurdle may be con-structed of PVC or wood materials. Twoboards or PVC pipes are used for Division Toyand Division 1 dogs, three for Division 2 dogsand four for Division 3 dogs. Four uprights arerequired, one at each corner.a. PVC Construction. The PVC long hur-

dle is constructed using 4-inch diameterPVC. Supports must be placed undereach end of each pipe, but must notraise the pipes more than 2 inches.Stripes should be placed on the pipe toincrease visibility.

b. Wood Construction. This obstacle may beconstructed of 4- to 5-inch wide woodenboards. The boards must conform to thedesign (but not the measurements) usedfor the obedience broad jump. Stripesshould be placed on the boards to increasevisibility. Note: boards for the broad jumpin obedience are normally too wide to beused for the long hurdle in agility.

c. Jump Lengths. The boards or pipes arespaced to create jumping lengths of 8, 16,28 and 40 inches for Divisions Toy, 1, 2,and 3 respectively.

5. Picket Fence Hurdle. This hurdle resem-bles a picket fence.

Construction. This hurdle may be con-structed from 1-inch x 2- inch or 1-inch x 3-inch wooden pickets spaced approximate-ly 2 inches apart to resemble a picketfence, supported by uprights. Ends of thepickets are rounded or flattened, but notpointed. A cross piece at or near the topwill prevent a dog’s leg from being caughtby slipping between the pickets.

6. Rail Fence Hurdle. This hurdle is not thesame as a single bar or double bar hur-dle, and has several cross rails held


a base sufficiently weighted or secured.The height of the tire must allow theinside surface of the tire at its lowestpoint to be set at 4, 8, 14 and 20 inches.

2) Tire. The tire has an approximately 24-to 30-inch inside diameter, and is con-structed from material that is at least 3inches in diameter. It should be paintedor taped with bands of a contrastingcolor to provide maximum visibility tothe dog. The tire may be suspendedfrom the upper crosspiece by a cord,while bungee cords or flat elasticbands may be used to hold the hoop inplace at the sides. Tire may be madeto break away from the framework.

B. Hurdles. Construction of the Hurdle obstaclesmay be of PVC (schedule 40 preferred)wood, or combinations of these and othermaterials. All hurdles must be between 42 and60 inches in width, with uprights 32 to 48 inch-es in height, which may be separate, support-ed on their own bases, or connected by across piece between the uprights at groundlevel. The Bush, Log and Long Hurdles, whichdo not have uprights as a normal part of theirconstruction, require separate uprights of 3 to4 feet in height attached to the hurdle orplaced next to the hurdle to define the jumpspace. The Hurdles may be painted in brightcolors, while the top surfaces should be paint-ed with stripes or contrasting colors to improvevisibility to the dog. Wings may be providedwith the hurdle obstacles, either as part of theirconstruction, or separate from the hurdle. Allhurdles, except the log hurdle, the long hurdleand the water hurdle, shall provide heights of4, 8, 14, and 20 inches from the ground.1. Bush Fence Hurdle. This hurdle may hold

live plants, branches cut from leafy shrubs orartificial decorative plants, and having theappearance of a fence or solid hurdle.a. Construction. Various types of designs

are acceptable such as a basic wood“Planter box” that holds plants with thetotal height being 4 inches, or any designgiving appearance of being solid.

b. Height requirements. Tips of the plantsmust reach the appropriate jump height.

2. High (Vertical or solid) Hurdle. This hurdleis similar to the High Jump used inObedience. Construction: This obstacle may


three are left in the same positions asfor Division 2, while the fourth is 20 inch-es high and 6 inches from the third bar.

9. Window Hurdle.a. Framework. The framework is con-

structed exactly the same as thatused for the Tire Jump.

b. Panel. Overall dimensions of the panelshould be approximately 42 to 48 inch-es wide with an opening 14 to 18 inch-es wide and 30 inches high. Provisionsto adjust the bottom of the opening to4, 8, 14 and 20 inches for Divisions Toy,1, 2 and 3, respectively, must be pro-vided. The panel with the opening maybe made of wood or heavy cloth,although heavy cloth is preferred.

*The water hurdle has been eliminated.


between two uprights. Spaces between therails give the appearance of a rail fence. a. Construction. Several cross rails made

of PVC pipe no larger than ¾ inchdiameter, or narrow wooden boards areheld between two uprights. Displaceableor non-displaceable rails are allowed.PVC pipe rails may be held by insertingthem through holes drilled through theuprights, or by means of cupped sup-ports attached to the inside of theuprights. The cupped supports shouldbe shallow enough to allow for the easydisplacement of the pipe rails.

b. Number of Rails. The number of railsmay vary, but including a bottombrace, there must be a minimum oftwo for the 4-inch hurdle and 8-inchhurdle, three for the 14-inch hurdle,and four for the 20-inch hurdle.

7. Single and Double Bar Hurdle. This hurdleconsists of a single or two displaceable barssupported by supports attached to uprights. Construction. This hurdle has one or twodisplaceable bars that are moved to servefor all four-hurdle heights. The uprights andbar may be constructed of 1 to 1¾ inchdiameter PVC pipe or wood. The height ofthe uprights is 32 to 48 inches The displace-able bars are supported on the uprights bycup-like supports or rigid supports attachedto the inside of the uprights. The supportsmust be shallow enough to allow for theeasy displacement of the bar. Pins or boltsfor supports are not permitted.

8. Spread Hurdle. This hurdle consists of2, 3 or 4 displaceable bars that are sep-arated both vertically and horizontally.All bars are 6 inches apart horizontally.The hurdle heights are:a. Toy Division. Two bars are used. The first

is set on the ground or no higher than 2inches, and the second is 4 inches high,and the two bars are 6 inches apart.

b. Division 1. Two bars are used. The firstis 4 inches high, the second 8 inches,and the two bars are 6 inches apart.

c. Division 2. Three bars are used. The firsttwo are left in the same positions as forDivision 1, while the third is 14 incheshigh and 6 inches from the second bar.

d. Division 3. Four bars are used. The first


Revision to the Official UKC Agility RulebookEffective July 18, 2013


with the effective date of January 1, 2011Temporary Listing (TL) Numbers. TL numbers are

only valid at conformation, performance andPointing Dog events. TL numbers may be purchasedat an event that has been approved to sell TL num-bers. If a club is approved to sell TL numbers it willbe listed with the event information in BLOODLINESmagazine, on the UKC website and in any officialannouncement of the club’s event. If the event isheld on a week day the Temporary Listing numbersmay also be purchased and issued on the same dayby contacting the UKC Dog Events Department with-in normal business hours. All Temporary ListingNumbers are non-refundable, non-transferable, anddo not apply to the cost of permanent registration orLimited Privilege numbers. Temporary Listing num-bers may not be available for purchase for all UKCRegistered breeds. Before purchasing a TL numberbe sure to check with UKC if there are any restric-tions applicable to the breed.

A Temporary Listing (TL) number may be issuedto approved breeds eligible for single registrationwith UKC, not all breeds are eligible. Contact theUKC registration department for the most currentinformation regarding which breeds are approved forsingle registration. Spayed or neutered purebreddogs, mixed-breed dogs and dogs that are eligiblefor a Limited Privilege number may be issued a TLnumber. Dogs that have previously been issued aUKC permanent registration or Limited Privilegenumber will not be issued a TL number.

Temporary Listing Numbers must be assigned onor before the show date. TL numbers that are issuedafter an event will not be valid for that event nor areTL numbers valid for any events that occurred priorto the purchase of the TL number.

There is no limit to the number of licensed eventsthat a dog with a TL number may be entered in beforethe dog is permanently registered/listed with UKC.TL numbers are no longer valid once a dog is perma-nently registered/listed with UKC.

TL numbers included on the application for per-manent registration or the Limited Privilege applica-tion will automatically have any wins, titles earned,Top Ten points, and/or All-Star points applied to thedog’s permanent record. No wins, titles earned, TopTen Points and/or All-Star points will be awardeduntil a dog with TL number has been permanentlyregistered/listed. Temporary Listing numbers are notvalid for any event held under the rules that governlicensed Coonhound or Beagle events.


Revision to the Official UKC Agility RulebookEffective January 1, 2014


with the effective date of January 1, 2011

XI. Rules applying to licensed agility classes.G. Rules Regarding Dogs Owned or Trained

By Judges, Immediate Family Membersand Members of the Same Household asan officiating Judge. 1. No dog owned or co-owned by the offici-ating judge may compete under thatjudge. Performance judges may exhibit adog or have a dog they own or co-ownexhibited by someone else in any eventpreceding the day of their judging assign-ment, the day of their judging assignmentor the day after their judging assignmentat an event in which they have been hiredor in a scheduled weekend.The back-up judge system for perform-

ance events must be in place for anassigned judge to exhibit or have a dogthat they own or co-own exhibited in theevent in which they are judging.No judge may interrupt, disrupt, delay

or reschedule an event in which he/shehas entered a dog in, in order to fulfill orcomplete their judging assignment. Normay a judge interrupt, disrupt, delay orreschedule an event in which he/she isofficiating in order to facilitate exhibitingtheir dog.Judges reported and proven to have

interrupted, disrupted, delayed orrescheduled an event to allow them-selves to exhibit a dog or interrupted,disrupted, delayed or rescheduled anevent in which they are officiating, toexhibit a dog, will face disciplinaryaction which could include the suspen-sion of judging privileges for up to 1 yearand a fine up to $500.Clubs reported and proven to have

interrupted, disrupted, delayed orrescheduled an event to allow a judge toexhibit a dog or allowed a judge to inter-rupt, disrupt, delay or reschedule anevent in which the judge is officiating inorder to exhibit a dog will face discipli-nary action which could include the sus-pension of event privileges for up to 1year and a fine up to $500.Judges accepting assignments in

which they are considering exhibiting a


dog and clubs hiring judges who wish toexhibit a dog at that event must giveutmost thought and care to avoid con-flicts of time. The judge’s primary respon-sibility is to their assignment to judge.Should a conflict of time arise at an eventon a scheduled weekend in which thejudge is forced to choose betweenexhibiting and judging, the judge mustfulfill the assignment the club hired themto fulfill and willingly and knowingly with-draw any entries in any event that pres-ents the conflict.Should a judge find a handler for the

entered dog if there is a conflict of time,the dog may still be exhibited in the eventin which it is entered.Judges exhibiting in any event on the

same day (other than the event they offi-ciate) will be eligible for awards, place-ments, All-Star and Championship pointswhere applicable.Immediate Family/Household.

No dog can be entered under a judgethat has been owned or trained by thejudge, the judge’s immediate family orthat has lived in the Judge’s householdor the household of a member of thejudge’s immediate family, regardless ofownership, within three months of thedate of the event.

The immediate family members of ajudge and members of a judge’s house-hold may exhibit any dog not owned orco-owned by the judge in any event, onany day of a scheduled weekend in whichthe judge has been hired; provided thatthey do not enter or exhibit the dog in thesame event-type that the judge is officiat-ing on the same day, with the exception ofusing the back-up judging system in theperformance events.

Immediate family/household mem-bers may enter any event without restric-tion on any other day the judge is notscheduled to judge.

2. Back-Up Judge SystemThe judge must notify the club in

advance that they wish to enter a dog inan event they are assigned to judge.

The host club must designate a Chief(Head, Lead) judge and a back-up judgeon the event application. The chief judge

shall be the overall authority for judgingthe event.

Dog(s) exhibited by the chief judgemay compete only under the assignedback-up judge. The back-up judge mayonly officiate for the chief judge (and/orimmediate family/household members ofthe judge) and may not officiate for anyother exhibitors entered in that eventwith the exception of the events in whichmultiple dogs are judged at the sametime. (i.e. terrier racing, weight pull, lurecoursing) In that case the back-up judgemay only judge the class/division/race inwhich the judge’s dog(s) are competing.

Judges are prohibited from interruptingtheir judging assignment in order to exhib-it. Judges may coordinate when they willexhibit based on the event specific rules inwhich judges are entered/officiating.

Judges competing in the events inwhich they are officiating will not be eli-gible for placements, awards or All-Starpoints as per the event specific rules inwhich they are entered/officiating.

Assigned back-up judges will be eligi-ble for awards, placements, All-Star andChampionship points.

3. Emergency Replacement of Back-UpJudge.

Should an assigned back-up judge failto appear at an event in which they wereassigned as the designated back-up judgethere will be no emergency replacementof the back-up judge’s assignment if thereis no other fully licensed judge at theevent. In this case, the Chief Judge will for-feit their entry and fulfill their assignment.If an event was published in the UKC’sUpcoming Events and in BLOODLINESmagazine as having a back-up judge and ifa fully licensed judge is in attendance atan event where the assigned back-upjudge did not appear; the judge in atten-dance may serve as the back-up judge.Clubs must note the change in back-upjudges and provide a detailed explanationof the circumstances in their event report.


Revision to the Official UKC Agility RulebookEffective January 1, 2018


with the effective date of January 1, 2011

XXIII. Judging Criteria, D. Fault deductions duringjudged performance. 4. Handler Faults, b. Handlermajor fault deductions. Pg. 52.

1) Placing the dog in a stationary positionwhile moving on the course. After the dogleaves the starting position (XX.B.2.a.) the han-dler must not place the dog in a stationary posi-tion, leave the dog and then while the handler isat or near the exit end of the obstacle call or sendthe dog over, under, across, or through anyobstacle. This rule does not apply to the pauseobstacles However, after the dog is in position ona pause obstacle, the handler may move to anyside of the pause obstacle in anticipation of mov-ing to the next obstacle. This includes standingbetween the dog and the next obstacle.

A handler is not considered to be making arecall when the handler is moving and turnedaway from the dog, even if the handler is on theother side of the obstacle.

BACKGROUND From 1996 Rules Special Issue of Bloodlines

(December 1995) Chapter 7 “Judging the Performance”, Section 4

“Performance Faults”, B. Performance faults thatoccur while in the process of negotiating an obsta-cle”., 5. “Pause Obstacles: Pause Box, PauseTable”, (a).” Handler errors”

(a) Handler errors. As with any obstacle exceptthe A frame, the handler may not be in position onthe opposite side of the obstacle as the dog entersthat obstacle. Neither may the handler extendhis/her hand out behind or to the opposite side asmight be done to prevent the dog from continuingon to exit the opposite side of the obstacle This is amajor fault and the dog must reenter the obstacle.However, after the dog is in position, the handlermay move to any side of the obstacle in anticipationof moving to the next obstacle. This includes stand-ing between the dog and the next obstacle….

The above wording was specific to the discus-sion of the pause box and table.

This wording continued until the 2005 OfficialUKC Agility Rulebook became effective in August 1,2005. That Rulebook reorganized the rules into a dif-

ferent format. The above wording was dropped; theclosest wording to it was in, XXII. Judging Criteria,D. Fault deductions during judged performance. 4.Handler Faults, b. Handler major fault deductions.

2) Placing the dog in a stationary positionwhile moving on the course. The handler mustnot place the dog in a stationary position. As inan obedience type recall, leave the dog and thenwhile the handler is standing at the exit end of theobstacle call the dog over, under, across, orthrough any obstacle. This rule does not apply tothe pause obstacles. The 2005 wording was put in a context of general

obstacle rules discussion rather than in the specificsection discussing pause obstacles.

Wording similar to the 2005 rule is also used inthe 2011 rulebook, now Section XXIII on page 51with an added sentence of “A handler is not consid-ered to be making a recall when the handler is mov-ing and turned away from the dog, even if the han-dler is on the other side of the obstacle.”

Published byUNITED KENNEL CLUB100 East Kilgore Road

Kalamazoo MI 49002-5584Tel: (269) 343-9020www.ukcdogs.com

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