Agreeing to Split Strike Positions Reminder; Other Beagle News

Full Circle

April 12, 2017

Source: Allen Gingerich

Q: In last months Full Circle, I saw where UKC changed the apprenticeship program for Performance Pack Judges. I like the idea of the second phase where an apprentice judge is involved in the scoring, but must be paired with a licensed judge for x number of casts before a license is issued and the individual is permitted to judge by themselves. I recently got my Performance Pack Judges License, but before this change was made. While I will do my very best to judge dogs fairly and as I understand the rules, I would have rather had the opportunity to judge with an experienced judge for a little while first before judging by myself. Is there any way that I could request to judge with another judge for a while to gain a little more experience, or am I now subjected to judge alone because I already have my license?

A: Im glad you asked. We did discuss this very thing when it comes to new judges who were recently licensed under the previous apprenticeship program. Yes, absolutely! Wed much rather work with you and allow you to gain the experience to the point where you feel comfortable before you judge by yourself.

Heres what you need to do. Simply contact the Judges Committee Advocate in your region and let them know that you were just recently licensed, but would like a little more experience judging before judging by yourself. They will be more than happy to accommodate your request and work with you! If you dont know who that Advocate is, contact the UKC office and we will get you all the information you need.

UKC is well aware that there are several new judges who were recently licensed under the previous apprenticeship program. For those who are not completely confident and would like for the Judges Committee to work with them a little while, by all means please contact your advocate and they will accommodate you. Matter of fact, we strongly encourage it. If any new judges have any reservations or are not 100 percent comfortable judging on their own, then it will be very beneficial to do so.

Rules Change Year for Performance Pack Format

Consideration is given every three years for any new rule changes. The most recent rules changes for Performance Pack came in 2015. That means next year (2018) is a rule change year. Any proposals that are passed will be implemented in 2018.

Its time to start thinking about any rule changes. Any proposals should be sent to UKC Field Operations no later than July 15. All proposals will be considered by the Rules Committee, and those that pass will then go into effect in 2018.

Time In = Strike Positions Always Open

Q: On the first turn-loose of the morning, we had all dogs struck in on a rabbit. The dogs ran this rabbit under a nearby barn, which is where we called time out and handled them. From there we walked back out to the field and turned them back loose again, only to have Dog A go back towards the barn. Meanwhile, the other three hounds were working in the direction we wanted them to go. The handler was granted permission to call Dog A back towards the other three hounds and was calling the dog when he struck another rabbit close to the barn. Dog A was called struck first. The rabbit popped out into the field in the same direction of the other dogs and all dogs struck in.

Heres the question. When a handler is in the process of calling a dog in an attempt to get the dog to join the rest of the pack, and in the direction the cast is wanting to hunt, do strike positions remain open or should they be closed temporarily until the judge decides that Dog A gets is where we want him to be? Please address this scenario in Full Circle. Thank you.

A: This is a great question. Its one where some judges do in fact temporarily close strike positions while a handler is verbally calling a dog in for the purpose of keeping the pack somewhat together and hunting in the direction the cast wants to hunt. Other judges do not. Which is correct? Obviously by rule, handlers must have the permission of the judge to verbally call a straying dog in to the cast or to get the dog to hunt in the direction the cast wants them to be hunting in.

Ive done a little research and found nothing that showed up in terms of this topic addressed in the past. Its likely that it has been, but my search resulted in nothing. One thing for sure, the rules do not specifically answer this question. Rather than just taking it upon myself to decide one way or the other, I made a couple phone calls and discussed this topic with outside advisors. Like most anything, its important to consider the pros and cons that might come with it, which is what we did with this topic. After discussing various scenarios, the consensus and conclusion was unanimous and clear.

We can use the scenario given above as one to debate this topic. What if it was Dogs B, C or D that struck a rabbit while Dog A was being verbally called in by the handler? Those dogs were where the cast wanted them to be and were on the clock and being judged. Many would argue that it wouldnt be fair to have strikes temporarily closed with regard to those dogs. What if you had Dog A out in an open cornfield, and the handler sees that the other dogs are working a gamey looking thicket somewhere else, and the handler sees this as a loophole to temporarily close strike positions until Dog A is in a better geographic position to take something better than last strike? Theres a lot of different scenarios to think about. Many of which might allow too much manipulation by a handler, if we allowed the idea of temporarily closing strike positions, in an attempt to better suit the situation of their dog.

First, the rules do not mention the idea of temporarily closing strike positions for and situation while hunt time is in. Secondly, considering the pros and cons, its been determined that its in our best interest to not allow the idea of temporarily closing strike positions while a handler is verbally handling a dog. Therefore, it is UKCs position to keep strike positions open even while a handler is given permission to verbally handle (call) a dog. This means that the only time strike positions are closed is when time out has been called. Makes it pretty simple.

Agreeing to Split Strike Positions Reminder

Rule 10 (a) allows for strike positions to be split in the event of handlers inadvertently jumping a rabbit. It further clearly states that that if a majority of the cast saw the rabbit then points may be split; if the majority of the cast agrees to split strike points. Easy enough. However, it also states that if a majority did not see the rabbit then it must be a unanimous decision (everyone) to split strike points.

The reminder here is that when you agree to split points and put dogs on a seen rabbit, you MUST live and die by the result. In other words, ALL dogs are on the card and considered to be struck in regardless of making them making bark or not. Theres no, Oh, that didnt work out so well so lets grab them and forget that it happened, or My dog never made a bark so I should not get penalized when they couldnt run it. If they cant run it, they cant run it, just like any other bad track. Regardless, the clock and the rules are in play the minute you put the dogs on that track, just like any other situation.