Page 41 - Chow Life - Spring 2018

How to make money from a dog event

The Performance Chow Chow

by Loiuse Wilson

The big money maker used to be the trials or the wait list. We were embarked on the new adventure.
agility, but currently, the “flavor of happy to pay for entries! Ellie went 3 for 3 and qualified for
the month”, is scent work. AKC has There is not a lot of equipment the novice container title (SCN) to
gotten in the game and any AKC needed (such as the boxes for become the first Chow to earn that
club can get certified to hold the the container searches or some title! It took Browyn and I (who are
trials, whereas to qualify to hold an other containers for the advanced much more experienced) four trials
Obedience or Rally trail the club’s searches). The novice boxes have to earn the title.
constitution has to state that they to be cardboard and closable. We The trials were a lot of fun as it
are intending to hold such trials. A got ours from Uline. You also need really is not a competition. There
club needs at least five members plastic boxes and dirt for the buried are ribbons for first through fourth
with scent work experience to searches. They have learned to put place and High in Trial, but the
qualify. I would guess that one screens in the boxes as some breeds real goal of most entrants is the
could enlist “ringers”, to use a dig! The interior searches just qualifying ribbon.
sporting term, as members. utilize what is available as do the
I have recently been the Trial exterior searches.
Chairperson for four scent work I had entered two of my Chows,
trails that took place in one Browyn (age 13 and hearing
weekend. Each trail was for Novice impaired) and Ellie (age 6 and sight
containers and we had an entry of impaired). A handler can only
240 teams at $30.00 a piece. There compete with one dog per trial as
was a waiting list and when some the hidden item is the same for each
dropped out for various reasons, run. My friend, who has experience
including have qualified for the title, with a sight impaired Scottie,
others took their place. Since I was trailed with Ellie a few times and we
also the Treasurer, I had to write a
lot of refund checks and bank more
than eighty.
The expenses were: site rental,
boxes for the container searches,
judges, lunches for the volunteers
(we needed about 10), donuts and
coffee, bottled water, ribbons,
porta potty (we could not
use bathrooms in the
building due to air flow
disturbance), miscellaneous
items. We ordered ribbons
without the trial dates and
event name and put that
information on the back of
the ribbons by use of labels.
That way they are usable for
the next trial. The volunteers
were given priority entries,
whereas all of the other
entries were put in a
lottery for selection to
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