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Types of AKC Competitions
In Dog Shows, Obedience Trials, and Agility Trials, competitors can win points leading to an AKC title. A Match, on the other hand, is a practice event that emulates a real show, but doesn't award points. A Members Match means the competitors are all members of the club hosting the event. An AKC Sanctioned Match is still a practice event, but more formal than a Members Match and it's open to anyone with a dog registered with the AKC.
The Westminster Kennel Club event on TV is an example of an All-Breed Dog Show. Dogs first compete against others of their own breed. The winners from each of the breeds then compete against each other, with the ultimate winner being awarded Best-in-Show. All-breed shows, like Cape Cod KC's September event, are a great way to see LOTS of dogs and LOTS of different breeds.
A Specialty means a club is hosting an event limited to dogs of a specific breed.
When a Specialty is held on one day of a multi-day all-breed event, the host club typically encourages its entrants to compete on the other days. A breed-specific club may also encourage its members to enter an all-breed show. In either case, it's called a Supported Entry.
Junior Showmanship offers children between the ages of 10 and 18 the opportunity to compete with others of their own age. The children are judged on how well they handle and present their dogs (versus the conformation classes where it's the dogs that are being judged).
Obedience Trials and Obedience Matches test a dog's ability to work with its owner and perform a prescribed set of exercises. In the Novice classes, dogs are scored on how well they heel, sit, down, and come when called. In the advanced classes, the dogs perform increasingly-difficult retrieving and jumping exercises. The dog scoring the highest number of points during the day receives the High-in-Trial or High-in-Match award.
Agility Trials and Agility Matches test a dog's ability to work with its owner and successfully complete a course that requires the dog to jump different types of obstacles, weave though a set of upright poles, and climb obstacles of different heights and widths...all while running off-leash and at top speed. As the classes become more advanced (from Novice to Open to Excellent), the courses become longer and more complex. In all the classes, dogs are divided into different height groups, so a Corgi isn't competing against a Great Dane.