Eight-week courses towards the Bronze, Silver and Gold awards, test fee included, £150
Kennel Club Good Citizen awards
Eight-week courses towards the Kennel Club Good Citizen Dog Training Scheme awards, Bronze, Silver and Gold, with the test at the end of the course on Heath Park examined by a Kennel Club-listed examiner. The test fee and the rosette are included. £150 a course.
The Good Citizen scheme is the Kennel Club's national award for a well-mannered dog, in three levels. It gives a course a goal and a dog a certificate, and the things it tests (walking past people, staying put, coming back, being handled, waiting at a door) are the things that make a dog easy to live with.
Bronze tests the basics: walking on a lead, a controlled greeting, a recall on the lead, a one-minute stay, handling and grooming, and the owner's responsibilities. Silver adds road walking, getting in and out of a car, a two-minute stay, play with the owner and control at a door. Gold adds walking free beside the handler, a send to bed, a stop on recall, relaxing when isolated, and food manners.
Courses are eight weeks on Thursday evenings in summer and Sunday mornings in winter, six dogs at most, working through the test exercises in order and then rehearsing the whole test twice. The test is in week eight on Heath Park, examined by a Kennel Club-listed examiner who did not teach the course. Most dogs pass first time; any who do not can re-take at the next test without charge.
The test fee and the rosette are included in the £150. Dogs need to be at least twelve months for Silver and Gold, and to have passed the level below. Puppies who finish our puppy course and the adolescent course usually take Bronze at about ten months.
Several owners have used the Good Citizen awards as the first step towards therapy-dog visiting, scent work or agility; we can point you to the Cardiff clubs and charities that take dogs on from there.
What is included
- Bronze, Silver and Gold courses, eight weeks each
- The full Kennel Club test exercises, in order, rehearsed twice
- The test in week eight with a Kennel Club-listed examiner
- The test fee and the rosette included
- A free re-take at the next test if needed
- Pointers on to therapy-dog, scent work and agility
What it costs
£150 for eight weekly classes and the test, including the Kennel Club fee and the rosette. No membership and nothing added. The timetable has every class with its spaces and every price side by side; the problem finder says which course or visit fits.
Questions about good Citizen awards
Does my dog need to have done your other courses?
No, but Bronze assumes the basics: a dog who can walk on a lead without dragging and sit when asked. If you are not sure, the free ten-minute call will tell us; a home visit can fill gaps.
What happens if we fail?
You get the examiner's sheet saying what to work on and re-take at the next test for nothing. About one dog in eight needs a second go, usually on the stay.
Is it worth doing for a pet dog?
Yes. The things it tests are everyday manners, and having a goal makes the practice happen. Owners say the course made the difference, more than the rosette.
Tell us about your dog. We will say what fits, and what it costs.
Two minutes on the form: your dog, their age, what is going wrong. We reply the same working day with the course or visit that fits and the next date, or book a free ten-minute call if you would rather talk first. Or ring Ffion in the office.