OPEN
Prerequisite: Perfected Novice-level skills, off leash control, plus permission of the instructor. The instructor may require a test of your team’s skills to make sure that you are prepared for the class.
Open is an exciting class! It is the second level of regular obedience competition, leading to a Companion Dog Excellent title (CDX). Open introduces jumping, retrieving, and handler out-of-sight stays. All exercises are performed off-leash, with more precise heeling, fronts and finishes needed. Most dogs love the Open work, since it is what they consider fun. Students will move through the learning, proofing, and trialing stages of Open.
Open may be offered in up to three separate classes: Beginning, Intermediate, and Advanced. One or more of these levels may be combined, depending upon the number of students training at the Open level.
Beginning Open introduces the exercises:
- Drop on Recall --- a moving down with emphasis on immediate response
- retrieves - take and hold the dumbbell, short retrieves
- jumps -- high jump, broad jump up to full height
- out-of-sight sit and down stays
- perfecting of heeling and Figure 8
Intermediate Open requires that the team perform the exercises to at least the Graduate Novice level plus having a short retrieve. Skills are polished to “show quality.” The goal is performance consistency, enabling the team to enter and qualify in Open at trials.