Deciding if Your Dog Is Ready to Enter a TD or TDU Tracking Test

• Can the dog do a track that is over an hour old? (TD or TDU tracks can be aged 30 minutes up to 2 hours in a test)
• Can the dog successfully handle a 500 yard long track?
• Can the dog work in changes of cover?
• Can the dog cross a mowed path or a dirt track?
• Will the dog continue to work with distractions such as people near the track or
animals, bicycles, cars, planes, loud noises or stray flags?
• Can the dog work in the rain, snow and heat?
• Can the dog handle going up, down and across mild slopes?
• Can the dog continue to work through puddles?
• Can you complete a “blind” track successfully?
• Does the dog stay on the track consistently?
• Can the dog handle turns effectively? (TD or TDU tracks have 3-5 turns, both left and right, and may also include “open” turns wider than 90 degrees.)
• Does the dog actively search if he has lost the track, and regain it?

If you can honestly answer “yes” to the above questions, then you’re ready to get certified.

Certification

A written statement (“certification”)  must be submitted with your entry form if your dog has not previously passed an AKC TD or TDU tracking test. Certification statements are completed by either an AKC tracking judge or someone who has handled a dog to a TDX or VST title within the last ten years, and verify that your dog has demonstrated they are ready to enter AKC Tracking Tests by having successfully completed  a certification track of equivalent complexity. You’ll receive  four originals of the certification statement, good for 24 months, and one must be submitted with your entry form.  When contacting someone to certify your dog,  make sure to ask if they charge for their travel and/or time.

Lenape Tracking Club currently has two AKC  tracking judge members:  President Gina DeAlmedia and Board Member Anne Rosenberg.  Both are listed below in a  chart of AKC tracking judges that are located in New Jersey and neighboring states.  (A listing of all AKC tracking judges is available at AKC Judges Search and Directory.)