I'm new

Everyone will be willing to help and give you as much info as you need. If it's not raining (doing my no-rain dance tonight) we will be there as well. We can be identified by our Team Rocketdog T-shirts. Feel free to ask any questions and we will od our best to help. I will be the one holding a camera the whole day as well.

Thank you. I'll probably just ask a lot of questions once we get there. I just want to be as prepared as possible.

As "Rocky's dad" said, the toy you bought sounds fine. As long as it floats and has never been alive at any point (meaning, no dead critters, sticks, etc.), then it's fine!

When choosing a toy, keep in mind its visibility and the way it floats in the water. A sharp contrast will help the dog gauge the distance/location. (or at least this is what I've noticed with my mutts.....I've learned to use a dummy or a wubba as opposed to a tennis ball. They'll do anything for a tennis ball, but I think maybe it's hard to pinpoint the small shape. JMO)

Sorry I have been busy getting the event together. Hope to see you there. Jason as far as rain....The weather man promissed me good weather tell 3pm

I really appreciate all of the help and advice. I hope you meet you all on saturday. I'll be the one with the lost look and the overly happy yellow dog that just doesn't know what to do with herself.....

just another quick question.. I had asked about proof of vacinations earlier and just talked to my vet and the only she doesn't have is the bordetella (the one for kennel cough) Is that something I need to have for this weekend? or are there events that require that one???

Oh man, here we go again... Get ready for an interesting "discussion". Vaccinations are a touchy subject for a lot of people here. Especially the Bordatella vaccine.

It's a personal decision... some get it, some don't. We
personally do. It's not usually a required vaccination for
events, but it's often recommended to help lower the risk of
contracting kennel cough (note the term "lower," as it is not 100%
effective, due to the fact that there are TONS of different strains,
not all of which can be covered with the one vaccination).

In my opinion, it's worth it to get it... we also prefer the
intra-nasal as opposed to the injectible. Either way, it's your
choice.

I am not checking for vaccine records at this event. I am using the honor system. that everyone atleast has what the state law requires. Past that "I" would recommend dhlpp and bordetella. Again it is a personal choice. I do bordetella because I go places with my dog where there are rescue and AC dogs (petsmart for instance or this weekend their will be dogs there for adoption) For me I think it lowers the risk.

Thank you.. My vet recommeded it. But said it doesn't take effect for 2 weeks. I just wanted to make sure it wasn't required for this weekend. I showed horses growing up and most places require certain things, so that's why I wanted to make sure I didn't need anything specific for this weekend...

What all is involved in earning UAD Titles? Where do you go from there? Once you have a title, do you get to jump in the semi-finals for that division? Can you explain the titles and divisions a bit better for me... I get how the divisions are split up by division so that you are competing against like talented dogs... but what else?
We are just getting started, and this was very confusing for us...
Thanks so much!!
Jessica

Jumping in Finals has nothing to do with having a title or not (with one exception)... you can qualify for Finals at an event even if it's your first event ever... as long as your dog has one of the top five jumps for your division.

The one exception is Ultimate Air Games (UAG - Nationals). For that, you must have a title in order to compete in Semi-Finals. Then, the top dogs from Semi's go on to the Finals.

You earn a title once you have five jumps within one division. You can earn one jump (Q) per Splash and one for Finals if you make it in (even though you get two jumps each, only the biggest one counts). If you earn another five Qs, then you would have a second title in that division. Each additional title in a division adds a Roman numeral to the title, to indicate how many of that title has been earned. For example... if your dog earns six Junior titles, they would have a UAJ.VI title. Three Senior titles? UAS.III. Etc. Also, title counts and Qs restart each year and Qs earned from previous years do not carry over from year to year.

For UKC, the titling system is a bit different. You earn one base title (five Qs in a division) and then go on to earn a Ch title and a GrCh title, based on points you earn. The number of points earned per Q is dependent on the distances jumped. Breakdowns can be found here: http://www.ultimateairdogs.net/Competitor_Rules.php and are listed under Section IX. Unlike regular UAD titles, UKC Qs do carry over from year to year.

Just a quick question???? If it rains tomorrow will the event still be on? is there anything inside? It's been raining all day here, and it's heading that way, so just wondering. I know my dog doesn't care, but I don't want to be out in the rain all day..

Okay, more newbie questions for someone please. I think that I understand the title process now, but could someone please help me understand our score from Woods n Waters? We placed 2nd in the Junior category in both Splash 1 and Splash 2. We did not come back for the rest of the weekend, because we didn't think that we could. Could we have jumped again?? (In the finals or semi-finals??) Just wondering for next time... so that we are better prepared! Thanks for all your help... all your answers are really helping to understand how UAD works... we look forward to jumping more next year in the events in Michigan!