Competitive obedience has come a long way since the late 1950`s early 60`s when the competition was about the bestdog who could perform "tricks"  at the St. Patrick`s Day Show held at the RDS in Ballsbridge to the  5 Obedience Clases  - Beginners - Novice - Graduate - Limit - and Open which come under the Regulations of the Irish Kennel Club today.These classes are progressive from the Beginner which is confined to Handlers and Dogs who have not won 4 firstprizes and the exercises are  Heel on Lead, Heel off Lead, Recall, 1 min Sit and 1 min Down  to the Open Class where Distant Control, Heel off lead at 3 speeds, Retrieve any object provided by the Judge and to pick out the Judges Scent Cloth from 9 others. Any dog pedigree or notmay compete in obedience competition and can  become an Obedience Champion by winning 5 green stars.It is a great achievement for handler  and his/her pet to enter the ring and complete the above exercises whether they are placed or not.  The plus side of Obedience is that you do not needa lot of expensive equipment but loads of patience and of course high value  treats or toy to reward the dog.   Most of the training takes place in your own home/garden and weekly classes.In the past training methods were not as kind to the dog as present day training which is both kind and rewarding.  Check collars are no longer allowed at WTCI.Don`t be afraid to come and join the Comp Obed Group - you have nothing to loose, no need to feel self conscious we all started at some timeand made mistakes and if we are honest we still make them.Mary