Obedience and working disciplines
Think artistic gymnastics for dogs. Everyone does the same exercises, the judge scores to the decimal, and the placings come down to millimetres and the dog's attitude.
About the discipline
In most dog sports obedience gets you somewhere else: to a track, an obstacle, a helper. In Obedience it is the whole test. The team works through a fixed set of exercises in front of a judge, and each exercise gets its own score.
The judge cares about how the command came off as much as whether it did: how straight the position is, how fast the dog drops into it, whether the handler helped with a shoulder, whether the dog is working happily or just going along with it.
So Obedience shows you very clearly where you stand with your dog. A dog that gets everything right with its tail tucked loses points, and it should.
How it works in practice
The exercises change from class to class, but the core looks much the same everywhere.
A full round takes a few minutes in the ring. Getting there means months of drilling each piece on its own before you chain them together.
It's light on the body, so less athletic dogs can do it too. The handler is another matter: you'll need a lot of patience.
From the FCI regulations
The FCI regulations (Rules and Guidelines for Obedience Trials, valid from 1 January 2025) define three classes, 1, 2 and 3, and recommend a national beginners' class. Class 3 is the only one used at international competitions with CACIOB and at FCI world championships.
Each country sets the minimum age, but it cannot be under 10 months for Class 1 and 15 months for Class 3. To compete in the next class the dog must have earned an "excellent" (1st prize) in the current one; moving up and down is regulated by the national organisation, in Romania the A.Ch.R.
| Exercise | Class 1 | Class 2 | Class 3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sitting in a group (handlers in sight / out of sight) | 1 min, in sight · 30 | - | 2 min, out of sight · 20 |
| Lying in a group | - | 2 min, handlers out of sight · 30 | 1 min + recall · 20 |
| Heelwork | 40 | 40 | 40 |
| Positions under march (stand / sit / down) | one · 30 | one · 30 | all three · 30 |
| Recall | 40 | with stand · 30 | with stand / sit / down · 30 |
| Send away into a square and down | 40 | with directing, down and recall · 40 | with directing, down and recall · 40 |
| Directed retrieve | - | 30 | 30 |
| Scent discrimination and retrieve | - | 30 | 30 |
| Distance control | 40 | 40 | 40 |
| Send round a group of cones | and return · 40 | stop and jump · 30 | stop, retrieve and jump · 40 |
| Retrieve and jump over a hurdle | 40 | - | - |
| General impression | 20 | 20 | - |
| Total | 320 | 320 | 320 |
Source: FCI, Rules and Guidelines for Obedience Trials 2025, chapter III "Classes, exercises and coefficients". Each exercise has a coefficient (2-4); the judge's mark (0, 5-10) multiplied by the coefficient gives the points. The coefficients add up to 32 in every class, hence the maximum of 320.
The judge marks each exercise 0 or 5 to 10 in half-point steps; the mark is multiplied by the exercise coefficient. The sum gives the final result out of 320. An exercise marked 0 is failed but the dog continues; below 192 points the trial is "not qualified". In Class 3 cards are used: yellow is a warning and minus 10 points, a second yellow or a red card means disqualification.
| Grade | Share | Points out of 320 |
|---|---|---|
| Excellent (1st prize) | ≥ 80% | 256-320 |
| Very good (2nd prize) | ≥ 70% | 224-255 |
| Good (3rd prize) | ≥ 60% | 192-223 |
| Not qualified | below 60% | below 192 |
Frequently asked questions
Basic training gets you a dog you can live with day to day. Obedience asks for perfect execution of standardised exercises, scored by a judge. If basic training is the alphabet, Obedience is calligraphy.
No. You'll see Belgian shepherds, border collies and retrievers most often, because they learn fast and enjoy repetition. Any healthy, motivated dog can take part, though.
You can build the pieces from the first months, through play. For competition you want a mature dog, both physically and in how long it can concentrate.
The rule figures on this page come from FCI - Obedience, regulamentul claselor 1, 2 și 3. Rules change and federations differ - always check the rulebook of the competition you are entering.
From the same category
A course of signs, each one telling the team which obedience exercise to do next.
Tracking, obedience and protection, worked with the same dog on the same day.
Obedience, jumps and protection, worked on a field dressed up to a theme.
The Belgian ring school: obedience, jumps and protection.
This page is informational. We work in mantrailing, search and rescue and preparation for the TSAC and BH exams - but if you want an honest opinion on what would suit your dog, write to us anytime.