Yankee Field Classes and the WC/WCX Test
by Andrea Fisher

Originally printed in the YGRC Newsletter, "Finish Lines", January/February 1997. © 1997 Andrea Fisher and Yankee Golden Retriever Club, all rights reserved

The Yankee Golden Retriever Club's Annual Meeting and Dinner has been for me, and others as well, I suspect, the halfway point, or a sort of beacon burning in the long, dark New England winter. Some of us successfully keep the winter blues at bay by filling our spare hours with obedience training, or by taking advantage of the late Canada goose season. And, we look forward to the Annual Dinner. Now we can see that spring is on its way. So, with the Annual Dinner under our belts, so to speak, the Field Chairs of Yankee now turn their attention to Yankee's own harbinger of spring - the Yankee Spring Field Classes.

Some of our newer members or members that have not yet participated in these classes may wonder what these classes entail, the goals of the classes and why this program is a very important feature of the Yankee Golden Retriever Club. These members may puzzle over what exactly a WC (Working Certificate) is, and the differences between the WCX Working Certificate Excellent. The AKC Hunt Test program has been a smashing success, and the newcomers to the field endeavors may wish to investigate the requirements for their prospective Junior, Senior or Master Hunter. A decision to give one of the classes a try and to begin your involvement in field work for your Golden Retriever will be one you will not regret. On the contrary, you will wonder why you did not give it a go sooner.

So folks, fasten your seat belts, for I promise that your days spent in the field will be the most rewarding, exciting and worthwhile times you share with your beloved Golden friends. You will learn things about yourself and your dogs that will be new, and the doors and avenues that are revealed will allow wonder upon wonder to emerge. Your dog will have a new spring in his step and you will make new friends. Your travels will take you to places that will leave beautiful memories behind in a special place in your heart. The journey is rough at times, tiresome, tedious, hot and dry, or cold and wet. But when you witness the fire and mettle your dog exhibits flushing his first pheasant, making a fine retrieve, and then gently offering the bird to you as a beautiful and precious gift, you will then know why we own these retrievers. Or perhaps, why they own us.

Yankee offers the field classes primarily to introduce handlers and their dogs to the various field pursuits that exhibit and test essential elements and characteristics of our breed. Members may choose to enroll in the class to pursue a title, train their hunting dog, or to simply have a grand time. The members who enroll in the classes recognize the importance of maintaining the hunting and retrieving instincts that are inherent in the Golden Retriever breed. Sound, working lines should be an important part of every breeder's program. And the dogs just love it! Shame on the Golden Retriever owner that has all kinds of sporting paraphernalia hanging about such as duck decoys or upland bird art, yet has never tried field training! It is never too late to mend your ways, so listen up: here's how to start. The classes generally begin at the end of March, and each level includes six class sessions. Our class levels currently are as follows: Fundamentals, WC/JH, WCX/JH, and Advanced. One, of course, must start at the beginning and progress through the levels using the abilities of the dog as an indicator of the appropriate class level for the dog.

Basic obedience is taught in the Fundamentals class. This is an essential element of field training. The dog must learn to come when called, heel, sit, stay, and move with the handler. The dog is introduced to gun shots, first using a starter pistol, then shotguns. This is done very carefully so as not to produce a gun shy dog. The dogs are introduced to birds, decoys, boats, et cetera in an incremental fashion, each class reinforcing previous lessons, and maintaining good forward progress. The yard work or obedience is stressed. Without it, one cannot succeed in any type of field work. Someone once said that a field trial is an obedience trial with birds. Obedience and control are essential. Your dog may be working several yards away from you, as the handler, or up to several hundred yards away. The lessons must be broken down and learned in a systematic manner. Practice and hard work every day are the precursors of success. The dogs in the Fundamentals class are taught simple single retrieves, back to back singles, and if ready, a simple double land retrieve. The object of the class is to keep the dogs happy, motivated, and always wanting more!

Once the basic obedience and other basic elements are mastered, and not before, the dogs and handlers are ready to enroll in the WC class. The WC is a degree offered by the Golden Retriever Club of America. The GRCA WC, or Working Certificate is a degree indicating that the dog has, in a test situation, performed a land double retrieve, and back to back single retrieves in the water. For the WC, the dog is brought to line on lead, and may be gently restrained by the handler while the birds are being thrown, and then released upon instruction from the judges. The rules state that the dog does not have to deliver to hand, meaning that he does not have to hold the bird in his mouth upon completion of a retrieve until the handler takes the bird from the dog, but experience dictates that this is a good habit to encourage right from the beginning, as this is the only time the dog will not be asked to deliver to hand.

The land double consists of two identical (species) upland birds (pigeon, pheasant, or others) falling approximately 40 to 50 yards from the line and at least 90 degrees apart in moderate cover. The sequence is: one bird is thrown preceded by a popper shotgun blast; there will be then another blast, and the second bird goes down. One, two, with a few seconds between. The dog retrieves the second bird down first (the diversion bird), returns to the handler and delivers the bird, and the handler encourages the dog to remember the "memory" bird by facing and lining the dog up to that area and sending the dog for the bird when the dog shows some sign of "Oh yeah! I get another one!" If all goes well, the dog runs out, retrieves the bird and returns to the handler. If those two tasks are carried out successfully, per the rules, the dog will be invited to join the festivities at the water.

Ducks are used for the back to back singles for the water portion of the test. The single retrieves are approximately 25 to 30 yards out in swimming water, falling in light cover. Again, the dog may be restrained gently while each bird is thrown, and is not sent to retrieve until released by the judges. The persons out throwing the birds (the "guns") are wearing white shirts or jackets, making them entirely visible to the dogs in both the land and water series.

The WC indicates to the judges the natural ability of the dogs - the inherent qualities of marking (memory), nose, drive, and determination. These are simple tests, and not intended to require intensive training, once the basics are mastered. The WC is not a test where dogs are ranked and judged against one another as in the breed ring. It is simply a pass/fail test. It is however, a little bit of a test of the handler, who can help out the dog by performing his or her responsibilities properly.

The WCX or Working Certificate Excellent test is another pass/fail test and further tests the handler's talents. It is similar to the WC except the intensity is cranked up a bit. The test consists of a land triple, a water double, and an honor. And the dog has to be entirely off leash for the whole thing, or without any handler restraint. The dog must learn to be steady while his birds are going down, and must learn to honor, or witness another dog being sent to retrieve an additional pair of ducks, after he has successfully retrieved his own pair of ducks in the water. All this off lead! This is why the obedience is so critical. The handler must remain in control, so his dog does not believe every bird being thrown is for him. The dog must heel to and from the line under the handler's control, and no voice commands are allowed once the action begins and the birds are thrown. The land triple consists of three birds thrown between 60 and 100 yards away and approximately 60 degrees apart. Try to imagine a spread-out baseball diamond for this formation - you and the dog are at home plate, and the birds are thrown to land on first, second and third bases. This is an oversimplification of the configuration, but will give you the idea. The third bird down, and the first one to pick up is a live flyer. This is extremely exciting for the dogs and a further test of control. Again, if the three birds are picked up per the rules, the handler will be asked to move to the water portion of the test. The water double consists of two birds thrown between 45 and 60 yards out and at least 60 degrees apart. Swimming water is preferred for both, but is a requirement for at least one. One bird must land in open water, and the memory bird should fall in moderate cover such as weeds or grass growing in the water. The diversion bird may be a duck flyer. Decoys are placed in the water, but not in a direct line to either of the falls. Once these birds are retrieved, the handler and dog must move to a spot designated by the judges, off to the side of the line, where the honoring dog can witness the two birds for the next dog go down, and he must remain at his handler's side while that dog is sent to retrieve. The judges will then say, "You are excused," and the handler will heel his dog away from the line under control. If none of the rules were violated, then the dog has completed the requirements for the WCX.

The GRCA rules for the WC and WCX Tests are available from the GRCA and are included as standard material given to Yankee class members. The AKC Hunt Test rules are also distributed to class members. Those requirements are different, and the table below illustrates the differences between the WC, WCX and Junior Hunter tests in a compact form.

So as the days lengthen and our thoughts turn to Spring and Summer, why not give the Yankee classes a try this year? It will change your perspective on many things, and you will be part of a team that is working to maintain the retrieving instincts of these Golden Retrievers. It could change your life by exposing possibilities you never dreamed existed and you will spend many happy hours with your Golden Retriever. Guaranteed!

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