The New York Senate Environmental Conservation Committee is scheduled to consider Senate Bill 7542 on Tuesday, March 3.  It seeks to prohibit hunting contests where the sole objective is taking the largest number of game or wild birds.  It further clarifies that any prohibition will not apply to field trials, dog training areas, or canine […]

Dogs and people have been living and working together for thousands of years. In fact, our canine companions were some of our earliest hunting partners. Over the years, we've developed many breeds to help us hunt, each of which has specific skills that can help us find and secure several types of game. These hardy […]

Dogs can make excellent companions for a variety of hunting excursions. Dogs help locate camouflaged game, flush it from hiding, and retrieve flying or running quarry. Some dogs are better suited to hunting, like Retrievers, pointing breeds, and Spaniels. Regardless of a dog's innate instinct and hunting skills, however, proper gear is essential to keep your […]

Wednesday, September 11, 2019 Yesterday, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) issued new finalized station-specific hunting and sport fishing regulations.  According to its summary, the FWS will open seven National Wildlife Refuges (NWRs) to hunting and fishing, expand hunting and sport fishing at 70 other NWRs, add pertinent station-specific regulations for other NWRs that […]

June 5, 2019 Tomorrow (Thursday, June 6), the New York Assembly Environmental Conservation Committee will be considering amendments to Assembly Bill 722, which as introduced would have limited hunting and hunt trials in the state. You made a difference!  Thanks to the efforts of all who called and emailed the committee, the amendment being considered […]

May 28, 2019 The New York Assembly Environmental Conservation Committee will consider a bill on Wednesday, May 29, that would prohibit any contest, competition, or tournament where the objective is taking or hunting wildlife for prizes or entertainment. The AKC views this as a threat to the ability of New Yorkers who own purposebred dogs […]

May 24, 2019 The New York Assembly Environmental Conservation Committee will consider a bill on Wednesday, May 29, that would prohibit any contest, competition, or tournament where the objective is taking or hunting wildlife for prizes or entertainment. Assembly Bill 722 exempts certain field trials including field trials in dog training areas, so long as […]

May 21, 2019 The AKC continues to closely monitor Assembly Bill 722 and Senate Bill 3830, which seek to limit hunting in the state. On Friday, these bills were amended to exempt certain field trials including field trials in dog training areas, so long as no game are killed. However, the bills would still prevent […]

TITLE APPLICATIONS Advanced Title Application Lifetime Achievement Title Application   EVENT APPLICATION Spaniel Hunt Test Event Application

Rhode Island Senate Bill 2055 seeks to amend the state’s Care of Dogs statute (1) by removing the provision that currently allows dogs to be kept outside during certain temperature conditions if they have access to an outdoor housing facility and (2) by eliminating tethering exemptions for hunting and sled dogs.  AKC opposes S2055 as […]

Clubs Allowed to Use Waiting Lists (July 2021) New Lifetime Achievement Title/Flea and Tick Collars (March 2019)   Regulations for AKC Hunting Tests for Spaniels Eligible Breeds    

Event Service Fees (Jan 2013) Changes to Spaniel Hunting Test Regulations (Nov 2011) The AKC's Position Regarding Club Events Held on Private Property (June 2007) Event giving clubs often conduct their activities on private property. It is the joint responsibility of the Club and the land owner to reach a mutual understanding regarding the obligations […]

Spaniels are flushing breeds. Their purpose is to hunt, find game, flush and retrieve birds in a please and efficient manner. The objective of the hunting test program is to help the hunter develop a useful hunting companion by providing a means to gauge a dog's ability against three standards of accomplishment-Junior Hunter, Senior Hunter […]

The concept of the Spaniel Hunting Test began as a request for an AKC sanctioned event to be known as the "Spaniel Gun Dog Qualification." It had been recommended that AKC sanction Spaniel breed specialty clubs to hold these tests for the purpose of gauging a dog's natural abilities during demands of actual hunting conditions. […]

Airedale Terrier American Water Spaniel Boykin Spaniel Chesapeake Bay Retriever Clumber Spaniel Cocker Spaniel Curly-Coated Retriever English Cocker Spaniel English Springer Spaniel Field Spaniel Flat-Coated Retriever Golden Retriever Irish Water Spaniel Labrador Retriever Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever Poodle Sussex Spaniel Welsh Springer Spaniel

Sunday, July 12, 2009 -- Beaver Dam, WI History was made today as the first Airedales to ever enter a Spaniel Hunting Test got the breed off to a successful start. Airedales became eligible to enter the Spaniel Hunting Test program on July 1, 2009. It didn't take long for Mark and Karen Werner of […]

A new brochure explaining the basics of Spaniel Hunting Tests is now available. The brochure provides an introduction to the AKC Hunting Test program by explaining the standard procedures and basic requirements for each test level. The brochure is meant to allow new participants to become more familiar and comfortable with the event before giving […]

All dogs six months of age or older from the following breeds are eligible to participate in Spaniel Hunting Tests: AKC Recognized Breeds Airedale Terriers American Water Spaniels Boykin Spaniels Chesapeake Bay Retrievers Clumber Spaniels Cocker Spaniels Curly-Coated Retrievers English Cocker Spaniels English Springer Spaniels Field Spaniels Flat-Coated Retrievers Golden Retrievers Irish Water Spaniels Labrador […]

Spaniel Hunting Test Newcomers Have Early Success! First Irish Water Spaniel Master Hunter Upland Airedales Earn Their First Field Titles  

by Senior Field Rep Tom Meyer January 1st, 2012 marked the entry of the Flat-Coat Retriever into the Spaniel Hunting Test program. The Spaniel Hunting test program is a demonstration of a breed's usefulness in finding, flushing and retrieving upland game. This is one of the functions for which the Flat-Coats were bred. This is […]