BOSTON TERRIER PERFORMANCE by KELLY MISEGADIS
B oston Terriers enjoy and excel in a wide range of performance activities, including Obedi- ence, Rally, Agility, Barn Hunt, Earthdog, Flyball, Tracking, Dock Diving and Weight Pulling. Th ere is a fallacy that Bostons cannot compete or compete at the highest levels, being a brachycephalic breed, but this is not true. Bostons are not only able to com- pete in most performance events, but com- pete quite successfully. At the AKC National Obedience Championship in March, 2014, OTCH Mandy UDX3 OM5 GO VER RE MX MXJ CA DM (“Mandy”, owned/handled by Molly Copelin) took home 1st place in the Non-Sporting Group. Molly became only the 2nd Boston Terrier in history to earn the top obedience title of Overall Trial Champion (OTCH) earlier in 2014. Bostons can and do excel at the physi- cal sport of Agility. Th e top Boston Ter- rier of all time, (per AKC lifetime reports), MACH7 Hoosier Hamburger Padees CD RE MXG2 MJG2 MXP MJP MXF TQX NFP (“Hoosier”, owned/handled by Kelly Misegadis) made the finals at the inau- gural AKC Agility Invitationals in 2006 and again 2008 and tried out for the AKC Agility World team on two separate occa- sions. In 2010, Wannabe Run’s Awesome Dawson RAE MX MXJ MJB MXP3 MXPB MJP3 MJPB NF OFP “Dawson” and owner/trainer Laura Tsuk finished in 7th place in the Preferred finals at AKC Agility Nationals, demonstrating the ath- letic capabilities of the breed. Th is prey-driven breed has the white English Terrier as one of its foundation breeds so it should come as no shock that the Boston excels at sports such as Barn Hunt and Lure Coursing. Some believe only “true” terriers and sight hounds can perform well in prey-driven sports such as Barn Hunt or Lure Coursing but watch a Boston in action and this belief will be quickly disproved. Th eir terrier heritage
“Hoosier” (Photo courtesy of Ken Gee)
“Mandy” (Photo courtesy of The Dog Sport Photographers)
quickly becomes apparent through their focus and drive in getting to the prey. “Lexi” (Riot I Want Crazy RATO, owned/ trained by Elizabeth Staley) is the 3rd Bos- ton in history to earn the Open title in Barn Hunt and demonstrate this prey drive. It comes as a surprise to some to dis- cover that not only can Bostons swim quite well but that many adore the water. Bos- tons have earned Dock Diving titles and routinely jump further than many bigger
“Lexi” (Photo courtesy of The Dog Sport Photographers)
246 • S HOW S IGHT M AGAZINE , F EBRUARY 2015
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