Hunting Tests
Field Trials
Tracking Tests (AKC)
Simulate upland and waterfowl hunting situations.
Judged against a standard, so are pass/fail.
AKC has three levels:  Junior Hunter (JH), Senior Hunter (SH), Master Hunter (MH).
HRC has three levels: Started, Seasoned/Hunting Retriever (HR), Finished/Hunting Retriever Champion (HRCH). HRC also has an Upland Hunter (UH) title, which is considered at the intermediate to advanced level.
NAHRA  also has three levels (I am not familiar with these)
In Started and Junior, there are two land marks and two water marks.  The dog can be on lead at the line.
In Senior and Seasoned there is a land double, a water double, a water blind, and a land blind.  There may also be a diversion bird.  In Seasoned there is a walkup with a short bird.  In Senior there is an honor of a working dog.  The dog is run off lead and must be steady in both Senior and Seasoned.
In Master there are three series and one honor. Usually one series is a land triple, another will be a land/water multiple mark, and another will be a water multiple mark.  Additionally, there may be three blinds and a diversion bird.  In Finished, there is a land triple, water double, an honor, a diversion bird, a land and a water blind.  The dog is run off lead and must be steady.
Click Working-Retriever Central to learn more!

Competitive events based on hunting, but with greater distances than hunting tests.
Dogs are awarded placements based on the judges' scores.
There are different divisions for amateur handlers, young dogs and an open division open to both professional and amateur handlers.
Click Working-Retriever Central to learn more!
Designed to test a dog's ability to follow human scent to find an article or articles.
There are three levels:  Tracking Dog (TD), Tracking Dog Excellent (TDX), and Variable Surface Tracker (VST).
TD title usually requires a 400 to 500 yd track which is between 1/2 hour and 2 hours old with a glove at the end.  The dog needs to retrieve or indicate the article.
A TDX title usually requires a track of well over 500 yds which is 2 to 4 hours old and has multiple articles.
A VST title requires the dog follow the track on ground, asphalt and concrete, up and down steps, and locating articles of metal and plastic.
Click Southwest Tracking Association to learn more!
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