USBCHA judging guidelines

The stockdog trials sanctioned by the USBCHA (HA) are modeled directly after trials in Britain where both sheepdog trials and the Border Collie originated. The “Rules for Trials” and “Notes for the Guidance of Judges” developed by the ISDS are recognized by the HA as the foundation of how HA trials are to be run and judged.

The ISDS notes for judges, while brilliantly written and based on a long and proven history are, nevertheless, somewhat vague and open to misinterpretation. The notes lack details regarding the specifics of scoring. This has resulted in a large variation in scoring amongst judges and, in some cases, errors. To remedy this, the HA has assembled these Judging Guidelines. They attempt to standardize the way trials are judged by providing more detail and specifics on the numerous situations that can occur and how they should be scored. They should be of great value to educate both judges and competitors.

These guidelines were generated by a collaborative effort of a number of well-known handlers and judges. They are not intended as hard and fast rules that must be strictly obeyed on all occasions. As noted in the ISDS guidelines “Judges must take into consideration all the relevant circumstances and adjust deductions accordingly”. The HA cannot overstate this point. In the event, however, that a judge wishes to make a significant departure from these guidelines, handlers should be informed of this at the handlers’ meeting.

The HA believes that the future of Sheepdog Trials in North America is dependent upon judges of experience and integrity who are prepared to study and understand these Guidelines and then apply them impartially.