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Working Dog and Working Dog Excellent Awards

The purpose of the Working Dog Award is to honor those Bernese Mountain Dogs evidencing a high degree of achievement in several different performance activities. The award will be offered at two levels: the Working Dog Award and the Working Dog Excellent Award. Drafting titles will be required at both levels because this is the working heritage of the Bernese Mountain Dog. The Bernese Mountain Dog Club of America offers a Working Dog Award and a Working Dog Excellent Award to Bernese Mountain Dogs owned by a BMDCA member in good standing when the following requirements have been met:

Carting
Herding
Draft Regulations
Working Dog Awards
Versatility Award

Working Dog Award

The dog has earned the BMDCA Novice Draft Dog title (NDD) and two of the following titles:

AKC Companion Dog (CD)
AKC Tracking Dog (TD)
AKC N American Herding Breed Association Junior Herding Dog (JHD)Novice Agility (NA) or AKC Novice Agility Jumper (NAJ)

Working Dog Excellent Award

The dog has earned the BMDCA Draft Dog Title (DD) and two of the following titles:

AKC Companion Dog Excellent (CDX)
AKC Tracking Dog Excellent (TDX) or AKC Variable Surface Tracker (VST)
AKC Open Agility (OA) or AKC Open Agility Jumpers (OAJ)

Other Stipulations and Guidelines

Ownership

A BMDCA member in good standing must own or co-own the dog. The owner must be a voted-in member of the BMDCA, as confirmed by the Membership Chair's records, when the third title for either Award is earned.

Verification of Award

The BMDCA member who owns or co-owns the dog at the time the third title is earned is responsible for sending copies of the dog's AKC registration or ILP number and copies of certificates of the three titles earned.. The member-owner will be responsible for working out any discrepancies with the Records Chair. The dog does not have to be living when the verification is submitted.

Working Dog Award Records

The records of the Working Dog Awards will be maintained by the Records Chair. The Records Chair will:·

Receive and review the paperwork and titles submitted, confirming the date of membership in the BMDCA of the member-owner from the records provided by the Membership Chair.
Notify the member-owner when the paperwork is received and inform the member-owner of any discrepancies, working with the member-owner to resolve these discrepancies when possible.
When the requirements are met, issue a letter of congratulations to the member and remind the member of eligibility to publish a photo and statement in the BMDCA Yearbook of the following year.
Keep yearly records of all dogs and their member-owners who have earned the Working Dog Award.
Send a yearly list of Award recipients to the BMDCA Yearbook editors in sufficient time to be published in the Yearbook.
Once a year provide to the editor of The Alpenhorn an article reviewing the requirements and the process for obtaining the Working Dog Awards.
Notify the editor of The Alpenhorn when any dog completes the requirements for either Working Dog Award in order that attainment of the award can be published.

Timetable for Award

The Working Dog Awards will be presented, if possible, during the BMDCA National Specialty in the calendar year following the year in which the third title is earned, provided the paperwork is completed by January 31 of the year of that BMDCA National Specialty. In all cases, the paperwork must be completed by January 31 of the year in which the award is received.

Retroactive Eligibility

Any BMDCA member-owners of any dogs meeting the requirements of the Working Dog Awards, before the Working Dog Awards were created, are eligible to apply for the award.

Yearbook Recognition

It is the member-owner's responsibility to contact the BMDCA Yearbook editors and to follow their guidelines and deadlines.

Additions to the Working Dog Award

This document will be considered a “living document”. Additions to the Working Dog Awards can be presented to the BMDCA Board for its consideration and review.

Policy

There will be no Top Producer Awards developed from the Working Dog Awards.

Checklist for Working Dog Award Application

Copies of all three title certificates and a copy of the dog’s AKC registration or ILP number registration must be mailed to BMDCA Records Chair Alison Jaskiewicz, 576 Jackson Road, Mason, NH 03048.· For immediate confirmation of receipt of certificates, please include a
self-addressed, stamped postcard.

All members earning a Working Dog Award will receive a reminder in early January of the year of the award about their page in the BMDCA Yearbook. If you do not receive the reminder letter, contact the Records Chair before January 31. Note that the owner or co-owner must have been a BMDCA member when the third title is earned. The Records Chair has the records to confirm membership.

The deadline for each year’s award is January 31.

If you have any questions about these procedures, contact:

BMDCA Records Chair
Alison Jaskiewicz
576 Jackson Road, Mason, NH 03048
603-878-2590 fax 603-878-2552
alison@jaskiewicz.mv.com