Forward Progress Clock Clarification; Other Beagle News

Full Circle

July 13, 2017

Source: Allen Gingerich

UKC Policy Change Notices

Officials and participants, please take notice of the following policy changes that will take effect on July 1, 2017. The following policy changes will be reflected in applicable rulebooks at the next opportunity when they are updated.

1) Application for Permanent Registration. Any dogs that are litter registered with UKC receive what are commonly referred to as puppy papers. The breeder (usually the dam owner), will then receive a certain number of puppy papers that reflects the total number of males and females in the litter that was registered. These are the papers that the breeder would then give to the puppy owner/buyer to be completed with a registered name for the dog, along with owner information that would be reflected on the dogs Permanent Registration Certificate.

In the past, a dog that was litter-registered but not yet permanently registered was not eligible to be entered in a UKC Licensed Event. If they were entered, they were considered as an ineligible entry. Keep in mind that a dog that has puppy papers-only does not have its own unique record at UKC.

Effective July 1, 2017, a UKC policy change will make entering a dog on puppy papers eligible to earn points, under the following provisions.

The owner of any dog that is entered on puppy papers, that places in the event, is given 60 days to get the dog permanently registered. Any championship points earned will be processed and awarded to the dog if the dog is permanently registered within those 60 days. Any championship points earned expire if the dog is not permanently registered within 60 days after the event. However, the owner may request the expired points be reinstated after the dog has been registered by submitting a copy of any win receipts, along with a fee of $50 to UKC Field Operations.

This policy will allow for litter-registered dogs to be entered in an event in the same manner as dogs that are single registered and listed as pending. More specifically, in the exact manner as non-registered dogs as outlined under Event Entry Requirements in the Hunting Beagle and Performance Pack rulebooks.

2) Easy Entry™ Card Photos. Current rules do not allow for any copies of a dogs Registration Certificate to be used for event entry purposes. Photos of a dogs Easy Entry Card on a smart phone would fall under the umbrella of a copy as well, and was not allowed. A change in policy will now allow participants to enter their dog(s) using a photo of the dogs Easy Entry Card on their phone. This policy change will also take effect on July 1, 2017.

3) Applying Championship Points for Single Registered Dogs Listed as Pending. The process for applying points to dogs that were single registered on the day of an event, or who are listed as pending until they are registered, can easily create a hassle in Field Operations at UKC when it comes to applying points after those dogs are registered. Especially, when those dogs are not registered soon after an event where they may have earned Championship points.

Effective July 1, it will now be the responsibility of the registered owner to retain all win receipts the dog earned while registration for the dog is pending. After the owner receives the dogs Permanent Registration Certificate from UKC, it is the owners responsibility to submit all win receipts to Field Operations in order for those points to be processed. This goes for any dogs that were single registered and listed as pending when entered in an event, dogs entered on puppy papers, or dogs that were entered as a non-registered dog.

Again, the owners of a dog that earned any points while the dog is pending Permanent Registration, will have 60 days to get the dog registered. If the dog is not registered and/or win receipts are not submitted within those 60 days of the event, it will result in those points earned to not be awarded. However, any win receipts submitted after 60 days of the event will be processed provided the owner includes a $50 processing fee. Any win receipts or event placement information should be mailed to Field Operations with attention to Hannah Spencer. They can also be emailed directly to Hanna Spencer at hspencer@ukcdogs.com.

Forward Progress Clock Clarification

Q: It seems like we have some judges who dont understand how the progress clock is supposed to work. Im seeing where some judges are obviously confusing it with the check clock, and are not running a progress clock so long as they have a dog opening. In other words, they will always stop the progress clock whenever a dog opens and would not minus dogs for not making forward progress unless no dog opens for a period of three minutes. Its one that needs to be addressed.

A: It seems like we recently covered forward progress in some form in this article, but it wont hurt to touch on it again. Yes, the check clock and the forward progress clock are two separate items, although they do sometimes run concurrent with each other. The check clock is used for the purpose of a timeline and a criteria for when a track is considered as temporarily lost. If no dog opens for a period of one minute, then all struck dogs are minused 20 points. The dog that opens first, resulting in the track being recovered to a runnable state again, is awarded 20 recovery points (plus). The dogs must recover this track to a runnable state within three minutes (includes the exact time when the check clock was started) or the track is considered dead and all dogs are scored accordingly.

This is where the check clock and the progress clock may run concurrent. However, the progress clock does not stop simply because a dog opened and broke the check clock. The progress clock should continue to run until the dogs are considered to have made forward progress on that track. That should further be considered as forward progress AND the track is back to being runnable as it was prior to any clock having been started.
The progress clock is for the purpose of a criteria that considers a track as being dead after any three-minute period during the hunt when dogs are declared struck on a track that is just not going anywhere (judges decision). This means that a progress clock could, in essence, be running without a check clock ever having been started. Or as mentioned earlier, the progress clock may in fact be running simultaneously with a check clock. Regardless, the two clocks serve their own sole purpose. Hopefully, this will help clarify that the check clock and the forward progress clock serve their own purposes and that a dog opening breaking the check clock does not automatically break the forward progress clock.

Opportunity to Recover Track After Hunt Time Expires

Q: Recently, I was in a cast where my dog was the only dog left competing in the cast for the last 15 minutes of hunt time. In the last three minutes of the hunt, she struck in on a track. She ended up breaking down on this track with 1:10 left in hunt time. The check clock ended up getting her, and she was minused 20 points. Ten seconds later, the hunt was over, and that was that. My question is, why do the rules not allow the dog the opportunity of a hunt time extension to recover the track to earn those ten points back?

A: Im not sure how to respond appropriately that makes good sense, in opposition to that logic, but Ill take a stab at it anyway. First, the check points awarded accurately award minus points to the dog when she temporarily lost that track during hunt time. Secondly, the dog that recovers a track, after a check has been awarded (minus points) does not technically give those points back. The minus points will forever stay on the scorecard unless it is eventually determined that the track ended in a hole or in a place of refuge. Thirdly, recovery points are not always a guarantee for any one of the dogs regardless of giving a whole pack two more minutes to get it done. Its how it works. Is it fair?

If the rules allowed the dog three extra minutes to recover the track, but the dog did not recover it, would you be willing to take a bigger minus for losing the track altogether? Regardless, I dont see your situation as unfair because we record the positive along with the negative during the allotted hunt time only. In your case, the dog didnt recover a track before hunt time expired.

Lets look at another situation. With three minutes remaining in the hunt, all dogs strike in on a track. Before hunt time expires, a line is marked and called; however, hunt time expired before any dogs came across that line. Is that fair? How about we gave the dogs in this situation a hunt time extension, but they broke down and went into a check before they scored the line? Would we be willing to eat those minus points? Im thinking the majority would not be in favor of an extended hunt time, regardless of the situation. Dogs are scored for what transpires during hunt time and not given any time extensions for any situations. When hunt time expires, you have what you have. Everyone is playing by these rules so it should be as fair as fair can be.