There are many ways to enjoy your Leonberger and one great way is to do obedience trials with your dog. There are many CKC obedience trials held every year throughout Canada. Competitive obedience is fun for you and fun for your dog and helps develop a relationship that is based on love, understanding and a strong bond.
There are three obedience titles you can obtain in Canada and they include:
- The Companion Dog (CD) – Novice Title
- The Companion Dog Excellent (CDX) – Open Title
- The Utility Dog (UD) – Utility Title
The work involved with the CD is standard obedience training including doing heal work, a recall and a sit and down stay along with other exercises. A qualified trainer can help you develop a relationship to excel in the sport of obedience. There have been several Leonbergers that have been awarded CD titles.
The CDX is significantly more challenging and involves jumping, dumbbell work and a down on recall along with many other exercises. For trainers and dogs obtaining a CDX is a huge accomplishment and makes both dog and handler very proud. To obtain a CDX a very strong relationship is needed between the canine and human partners.
The UD is the most difficult of the three obedience levels and is reserved for the true obedience enthusiast.
To date, as of July 1, 2020, only one Leonberger in Canada has obtained a CDX title since breed recognition! That dog was Ygor-Sam v. Vilenburg UD, TDX, BH, FH, TDI, TT, CGC way back in 1992! In the same year Sam went on to obtain the convented UD title along with several other working dog titles. A truly incredible Leonberger and a truly incredible working dog!
