Obedience describes quite well what this popular dog sport is all about. In short, you give your dog certain commands that he must execute as quickly and correctly as possible.
In the following, you will learn which exercises are common in obedience, whether the sport is also suitable for your dog and which requirements you have to fulfil in order to take part in competitions. We will also explain why the right diet is so important for dogs that are active in obedience and what you should pay attention to when feeding them.
Like many other dog sports, obedience has its origins in the UK. There the exercises were first part of a 1919 introduced examination of the British breeding association for German Shepherd dogs.
However, it did not take long for obedience to arouse the interest of other dog owners and then, around 1951, to finally become a recognised dog sport.
Obedience is all about smooth communication between you and your dog. Your four-legged friend must trust you and be able to execute commands quickly and reliably.
This does not mean that you should make your dog submit blindly. Nevertheless, a consistent upbringing and good obedience are basic requirements for a successful obedience training.
In the end, however, it is all about having fun. With all ambition you should therefore never put your four-legged friend under too much pressure with the obedience, but instead make sure that he follows you voluntarily and gladly listens to you.
Obedience includes a series of different obedience exercises. These include, for example, common commands such as seat, place and foot, which you are probably already familiar with from the companion dog test.
In addition, however, there are various other exercises in which your dog must prove his ability.
As you can see, all these exercises do not require excessive skill. Instead, the most important thing in obedience is that your four-legged friend concentrates well and executes all commands as fluently as possible. A pronounced team ability as well as a close connection between humans and animals are crucial for this.
Obedience has long since developed into a competitive sport. At international tournaments the examination regulations of the FCI apply.
In order for your dog to be allowed to compete in a higher performance class at the next tournament, his performance in the lower class must have been awarded the best mark "Excellent". In addition, the successful completion of a companion dog test is a mandatory requirement for admission to obedience competitions.
Depending on the performance class, 10 to 11 different exercises must be completed for obedience tests. The performance judge evaluates the quality of the exercise and deducts a certain number of points if there are deficiencies.
A maximum of ten points can be awarded and the minimum score is five. Failed obedience tests will be evaluated with zero points.
In addition to the performance of the exercise, the social behaviour of the dog and the relationship between man and animal are also evaluated. For the latter, for example, it is observed during the entire test whether the dog completes the exercises with pleasure.
Unlike most other dog sports, obedience is actually suitable for almost any dog and can also be operated by owners or quadrupeds with handicaps. Because obedience requires neither extraordinary strength nor a distinctive sportiness of the participating teams.
As long as your dog listens to you and you as a team understand each other well, you can easily try your hand at obedience and spend time together practicing together.
Of course you don't have to run obedience at competition level. You can also limit yourself to using regular training as a common leisure activity.
For this purpose, you can either dare to do the exercises on your own or attend courses at a dog school near you. The latter certainly has the advantage that you will be supported there by an experienced dog trainer and the social component of obedience for your four-legged friend is not neglected.
But basically it doesn't matter how you decide. As long as you make sure that the Obedience training is fun in the foreground, both you and your dog will enjoy this dog sport.
Sportingly active dogs have special nutritional needs. This also applies to four-legged friends, who run obedience with their owners. A need-based feeding is here not only for the health, but also for the preservation of the efficiency of crucial importance.
We therefore recommend you to pay attention to a high quality and digestible ingredients when choosing the dog food, so that your four-legged friend is optimally supplied with all important nutrients. With natural dog food from Bellfor you are guaranteed to make the right choice for this purpose.
For a balanced nutrition of sporty active dogs, it is usually not sufficient to rely exclusively on a good food and sufficient fresh water to drink.
In addition, you should pay particular attention to a sufficient supply of high-quality protein. Because proteins are indispensable for your dog's organism. Among other things, they serve as a building material for all cells, contribute to a functioning immune system and also support regeneration after physical strain.
For this reason, we recommend a dietary supplement with Bellfor Fitness Powder for all four-legged friends who practice dog sports such as obedience. The natural preparation with insect protein provides your dog with all essential amino acids as well as valuable vitamins and minerals from white chia seeds and dried bananas.
Bellfor Fitness Powder is therefore ideal to support your four-legged friend through his daily diet in obedience and to improve his well-being.