Showing. Many owners of pedigree dogs enjoy the experience of showing their animal in competition against others of the same breed. You can start with Exemption Shows locally, then progress on to Open Shows over a wider area and then to the ultimate Championship Shows, where three wins under three different judges will qualify you for Crufts Dog Show.

It is helpful to try and find classes that train you in ringcraft and will show you how to exhibit your dog in the correct way. Competitions are held all over the country and you can have lots of enjoyable days out in the company of similar dog owners but one word of caution, if your animal is not picked out for recognition by the judge always take it in good part. It is not personal, everyone has their own opinion as to the best entrant that matches the breed standard. There is always another time and another day!

Obedience. You can also train your dog for advanced obedience competition. As in showing the same criteria applies if you want to get to Crufts Dog Show in this discipline. This is very exacting and extremely hard work and can take many years to get to such a high standard. Local Exemption Shows often hold obedience classes and for the beginner these can be a lot of fun and informative. If you want to have a go at this you will have to join a club who train for competition preferably with the clicker. If you are willing to give a lot of time training then this could make a good hobby too!

Agility. This was for me! All three of my dogs have taken to this sport with varying degrees of success. They seem to enjoy it a great deal probably because you have to forget all your normal inhibitions and run around like a 'loony' and in the early days of training make a complete idiot of yourself! You can enter agility competitions and compete all over the United Kingdom if you so wish. If you manage the fastest round with the least number of faults then you win! Even if you do not want to compete your dog will enjoy learning this activity and it will keep your both fit! For enthusiasts see the section on Clicker Training Touch Points in agility at the end of this chapter.

Fly-ball. This is fairly new dog sport. Dogs are in teams of four, with two reserves. The idea is to negotiate a row of four jumps towards a contraption called the 'Box' trigger the mechanism to make a tennis ball fly out, catch the ball in their mouth and jump back to the handler over all four of the jumps. Then it is the turn of the next dog. Any faults and that dog has to run again at the end. In competition you run against another similar team and the best one wins after the best of three bouts. Again dogs do get very excited at this sport and tend to make a lot of barking so earplugs are usually a good idea! My own Sam loved this activity when he was younger because he is 'ball crazy' and we did manage to compete at Crufts Dog Show in this event which was a great experience. Little dogs can do it as well as their bigger cousins!

Dog ownership can offer countless pleasures. Amongst them the opportunity to train your dog properly and develop your social life and meet other dog enthusiasts. This could lead on to going to dog shows if that is your goal, but it can also widen your horizons by taking you to all sorts of sporting or country pursuits.

Badminton horse trials in May each year. This will give you the opportunity to watch this countries best riders compete against each other and with those from abroad over a gruelling cross country course that you and your dog can walk round. Lots to see, many horse related stalls and the opportunity for a picnic and good day out. Dogs must be kept on a lead for safety reasons but that will not reduce the thrill of seeing the huge cross country fences being jumped.

Gatcombe Park horse trial in July or early August. The same can be said of this weekend of equestrian sport. A marvellous day out. Walk the cross country course with your dog, (remember to carry water as it can get very hot). Lots to see and enjoy a picnic.

Letterboxing on Dartmoor originated in1854,when a Dartmoor guide placed a bottle in a bank at Cranmoor Pool as a place to put calling cards for the walkers he guided there. Letterboxing has nothing to do with the cast iron, red post office box we put letters into.
As time went by, the bottle was replaced by a tin box and the practice of leaving a name with the card developed.
By 1976 there were 15 known letterboxes on the moor, now there are up to 1,000 out at any one time. They are discreetly hidden and await walkers on the moor who go just to find them. Each letterbox now contains a book for people to leave their message in and a place to leave a copy of their personal stamp.
This is a rubber stamp, unique to that person and can depict their name, interests or just be an amusing picture.
Letterboxing encourages the use of the compass, map reading and care of the moor. Proper safety procedures have to be followed as the weather on the moor can change suddenly. It is a wonderful pastime that is taken seriously by many.
Letterboxers meet twice a year at the Officers Club at Princetown Prison. This is a time when letterboxers buy new information about the new letterboxes on the moor, and all will be supporting a charity. Those people who do not have a personal stamp, often have a 'traveller' made once they are addicted to letterboxing.
That is a rubber stamp that is only used on the moor if you are asked for it. Letterboxers on the moor will ask 'have you got a traveller?) and out it comes if you are carrying one. Letterboxers are a wonderful bunch of people. There is a great social side to meeting strangers on the moor who have stories to tell and are always pleased to see each other.
Dogs love it too, and a good nose is sometimes helpful. Once you have found 100 letterboxes you can get a badge. Your dog, if they go too, will get a tag for the collar. Want to know more? The following books will tell you all you want to know.

Dartmoor Letterboxes, Ann Swinscow, Kirkwood Publications.
More Dartmoor Letterboxes. ( same author and publisher).

Holidays with a dog is always worth some planning. The best way to find out where dogs are welcome is through the book Pets Welcome. The book comes out every year and gives an excellent guide about places that takes dogs. Pets Welcome! The Animal Lovers' Holiday Guide. FHG publications.