What are all those letters?

We predominantly show AKC though we do also show UKC. In AKC, how many points received is determined by the number of dogs entered and where you are showing. In Wisconsin, a 3 point major takes 4 dogs or bitches. A 4 point major though takes 5 dogs or 6 bitches. In Florida, for example, there are fewer Mals shown and it takes 4 dogs/bitches for 3 points and 5 dogs/bitches for 4 points. Majors must be earned under different judges. All titles/mentions in this section are prefix titles and come before the registered name.

AKC:

CH - Championship. Earn at least 15 points and some part of that must be 2 Major wins (shows where the dog earns at least 3 points in a win)

GCH - Grand Championship. Earn at least 25 points, some part of that must be Major wins (three are required). Also the dog must beat at least one Champion of record at a minimum of three shows. Points are accumulated using the CH point scale.

GCHB, GCHS, GCHG, GCHP - Grand Champion Bronze, Silver, Gold, and Platinum. These are earned by the number of Grand Champion points accumulated.

UKC:

CH - Points are earned by class wins, going Best Male/Female, and Best of Winners. Also breed points can be earned by the number of dogs defeated, not unlike AKC. 100 points and three competition wins are required for a CH, however, competition wins do not have to come from that breed. A Group 4th for example when there are 5+ dogs in the group does count as a competition win.

Not titles but special mention:

BISS - Best in Specialty Show

BIS - Best in Show

BVIS - Best Veteran in Show (competition between older dogs)

BPIS - Best Puppy in Show

We predominantly weight pull under AMCA/AMCA-friendly rules. We have also pulled with Iron Dog and one of our breeding has done UKC. Below are the titles:

WWPD - Working Weight Pull Dog. To get a qualifying pull on a man-made surface dogs must pull at least 12 times their body weight. On a natural surface they must pull at least 8 times their body weight. Dogs require 4 qualifying pulls to earn a title.

WWPDA - Working Weight Pull Dog Advanced. To get a qualifying pull on a man-made surface, dogs must pull at least 23. 21, or 19 times their body weight (depends upon the weight of the dog, small dogs must pull a greater body ratio than larger dogs) at 5 separate events. If 75% of the dogs entered pull their qualifying weight, the pull is disallowed to be counted toward the title.

WWPDX - Working Weight Pull Dog Excellent. Same qualifications for the WWPDA but dogs must also place in the top 1/3 of their weight class.

For complete rules, see the Alaskan Malamute Club of America website.

Iron Dog - our titles were earned under the old rules of body pound calculations.

IDWP1 -

IDWP2 -

IDWP3 -

We use the AMCA rules for sledding/dry land rigging. Dogs do not have to run on the same teams each time.

WTD - Working Team Dog. The dogs must run at least 10 miles in team per trip to accumulate 40 miles. There IS a more complicated racing option on the AMCA website.

WTDA - Working Team Dog Advanced. The dogs must run at least 15 miles/day with at least 30 miles per trip to accumulate 110 miles. The team must travel as a self-sufficient unit (i.e., bring all of your stuff) and excursions must be back country.

WTDX - Working Team Dog Excellent. The dogs must run at least 60 miles over at least two trips to accumulate at least 180 miles. The rest of the requirements are the same as for the WTDA.

WLD - Working Lead Dog. Same as the WTD but the dog must run single lead on the leading team (if there are multiple teams going out) and the team must consist of at least three dogs.

WLDA - Working Lead Dog Advanced. Same as the WTDA but the dog must run in single lead on the lead team.

WLDX - Working Lead Dog Excellent. Same as the WTDX but the dog must run in single lead more than half of the time on the lead team.

For complete rules, see the Alaskan Malamute Club of America website

We use AMCA rules for backpacking. Trips are typically done in the local state forests. For all backpacking titles, the dog starts the day with 30% of their body weight in the pack and the pack can decrease weight by normal consumption of snacks and water through the day. On hikes where there are multiple days, the dog must start over with the 30% each day they hike.

WPD - Working Pack Dog. Dog must go 40 miles over at least two trips. If one trip involves an overnight, that may be reduced to 30 miles over two trips.

WPDA - Working Pack Dog Advanced. Dogs must go 80 miles. These will require an overnight. They must have a minimum of 20 miles/trip and average at least 10 miles/day.

WPDX - Working Pack Dog Excellent. Dogs must go 120 miles with a minimum of 40 miles per trip through back country. These will also require overnights and the team must carry all of their supplies with them. They must travel an average of 10 miles/day.

For complete rules, see the Alaskan Malamute Club of America website

We primarily trial with AKC and secondarily with UKC. Until you get to the 'long haul' titles, 3 qualifying scores (called a "Q") are needed to earn a title. The RAE and the RACH are different in that they not only take more qualifying scores but also require qualifying scores in multiple classes at a single trial. The RAE requires 10 qualifying "Double Qs" - so one in Advanced B and Excellent B at the same trial. The RACH requires 20 "Triple Qs" - so a Q each in Master, Excellent B, and Advanced B at the same trial. It also requires 300 points, 150 of which from Master. Points are score based and only a 91 or better earns points. If you earn a score of 100, you earn 10 points. If you earn a 92, you earn 5 points. All titles but the Rally Championship are suffix titles. The RACH is a prefix title as it is a Championship.

AKC:

RN - Rally Novice (on leash)

RI - Rally Intermediate (on leash - optional class)

RA - Rally Advanced

RE - Rally Excellent

RAE - Rally Advanced Excellent (needs 10, see above)

RM - Rally Master (needs 10 qualifying scores)

RACH - Rally Championship

UKC:

RO1 - Rally Obedience 1 (on leash)

RO2 - Rally Obedience 2

RO3 - Rally Obedience 3

The above UKC titles require 3 Qs to title. The RO1 is equivalent to the RN, the RO2 is fairly equivalent to the RA, and the RO3 is equivalent to the RE.

The Canine Good Citizen program is a certification through AKC to test the dogs on their stability out in the world.

CGC - Canine Good Citizen. There are 10 areas of testing, from accepting a friendly stranger, to walking nicely on lead in a crowd, to loud noise reaction, to a sit/stay, and more. This is the precursor to the other tests.

CGCA - Community Canine. This builds upon the CGC of course and adds some elements like testing the 'leave it' and having the dog wait at a doorway for the handler to pass through.

CGCU - Urban CGC. There's a long down stay (during a meal), elevators, going up stairs, walking on multiple surfaces, enters/exits a vehicle under control, etc.

We primarily trial with AKC and secondarily UKC. There are several different venues to trial through but these are the more common. In AKC, the lower level titles are like many of the other lower level titles in other sports where you only need 3 qualifying scores under at least two different judges. For Master level, 10 qualifying legs must be earned. The Master Agility Champion (MACH)/Preferred Agility Champion (PACH) are prefix long haul titles that require 20 Double Qs (one in Standard, one in Jumpers, both at the same trial) and 750 speed points from the Master classes. Speed points are calculated by the number of whole second you finish faster than Standard Course Time. "Preferred" at any level means the dogs jump one jump height less (so for most Mals, will jump 20") and they get a little more time. There also "the games" like Time to Beat and Fifteen and Send Time.

AKC:

NAP/NA - Novice Agility Preferred/Novice Agility is the title in Novice Standard. Standard is the course with the teeter, dog walk, table, and A-frame. A couple mistakes are allowed and the dog gets three chances at the weave poles. There are only 6 weave poles.

OAP/OA - Open Agility Preferred/Open Agility is the title in Open Standard. Open is called 'purgatory' because many dogs end up there for quite a while. One mistake is allowed on the whole course aside from some time faults. There are 12 weave poles.

AXP/AX - Excellent Agility Preferred/Excellent Agility is the title in Excellent Standard. No mistakes are allowed, only time faults.

MXP/MX - Master Agility Preferred/Master Agility is the Master Standard title. It is the identical course to Excellent. No mistakes or time faults are allowed. It takes 10 qualifying scores to title. Speed points are earned starting (hopefully) from the dog's first Q.

In AKC, the lower level titles are like many of the other lower level titles in other sports where you only need 3 qualifying scores under at least two different judges. For Master level, 10 qualifying legs must be earned. The Master Agility Champion (MACH)/Preferred Agility Champion (PACH) are prefix long haul titles that require 20 Double Qs (one in Standard, one in Jumpers, both at the same trial) and 750 speed points from the Master classes. Speed points are calculated by the number of whole second you finish faster than Standard Course Time. As stated above, "Preferred" at any level means the dogs jump one jump height less (so for most Mals, will jump 20") and they get a little more time. Unlike Standard, at no time on any Jumpers course is a wrong course allowed for a qualifying score.

AKC:

NJP/NAJ - Novice Jumpers Preferred/Novice Jumpers is the title in Novice Jumpers. Jumpers with weaves is exactly what it sounds like. A couple mistakes are allowed and the dog gets three chances at the weave poles. There are only 6 weave poles.

OJP/OAJ - Open Jumpers Preferred/Open Jumpers is the title in Open Jumpers. Open is called 'purgatory' because many dogs end up there for quite a while. One mistake is allowed on the whole course aside from some time faults. There are 12 weave poles.

AJP/AXJ - Excellent Jumpers Preferred/Excellent Jumpers is the title in Excellent Standard. No mistakes are allowed, only time faults.

MJP/MXJ - Master Jumpers Preferred/Master Jumpers is the Master Jumpers title. It is the identical course to Excellent. No mistakes or time faults are allowed. It takes 10 qualifying scores to title. Speed points are earned starting (hopefully) from the dog's first Q.

Fifteen and Send Time (FAST) is a fun game where there's a required "Send" with obstacles at distance and the rest of the course can be made up by the handler to earn points. A Novice FAST dog needs 50 points for a Q, Open needs 55, etc. There is a limited time, too, and if the dog hasn't crossed the finish jump by the buzzer, points get deducted for each second over the buzzer time. For most levels, only 3 Qs are needed. For Master level, 10 qualifying legs must be earned. As stated above, "Preferred" at any level means the dogs jump one jump height less (so for most Mals, will jump 20") and they get a little more time.

AKC:

NFP/NF - Novice FAST Preferred/Novice FAST

OFP/OF - Open FAST Preferred/Open FAST

XFP/XF - Excellent FAST Preferred/Excellent FAST

MFP/MF - Master Jumpers Preferred/Master Jumpers is the Master Jumpers title. It is the identical course to Excellent.

Time 2 Beat is basically what it sounds like. It's a hybrid Standard course and points are earned based upon the fastest dog's time. 25 Qs and 100 points are needed for the basic title. There are higher levels.

Certificates:

ACT1 and ACT2 - Agility Course Tests with standard obstacles and no time. Precursor to Novice.

UKC titles are prefix titles. They do offer a veteran class (age 7+) with normal titling options.

AG1 - Agility 1

AG2 - Agility 2 AG2 is AG1 with weaves, a couple more obstacles, and some distance work.

Trick dog is a fun thing to do with your dog and AKC offers several levels of difficulty. For the basic title, you can do 10 tricks OR if your dog has a CGC, then only 5 tricks are needed. At the various levels, sometimes there was a simpler version at the lower level but no repeat tricks are allowed from level to level.

TKN - Trick Dog Novice

TKI - Trick Dog Intermediate

TKA - Trick Dog Advanced

AMCA offers several Register of Merit programs to recognize sires and dams whose offspring are accomplished in a particular area. In conformation, Males must produce at least 8 champion titled offspring and females must produce at least 5. In all of the other areas, males must produce at least 5 and females must produce at least 4 titled offspring in that area.

ROM - Register of Merit, Conformation

ROM-OB - Register of Merit, Obedience. Qualifying titles are CD or better.

ROM-RAL - Register of Merit, Rally. Qualifying titles are RA or higher.

ROM-AG - Register of Merit, Agility. Qualifying titles are Open Jumpers or Open Standard OR both a Novice Jumpers and Standard.

ROM-PERF - Register of Merit, Performance. This is a combination of Obedience, Rally, and Agility titled offspring.

ROM-WD - Register of Merit, Working Dog. Offspring have any combination of AMCA's basic working titles. They may be all from one of the disciplines or of different disciplines.

ROM-WDA - Register of Merit, Working Dog Advanced. Offspring have any combination of AMCA's Advanced working titles. They may be all from one of the disciplines or of different disciplines.

ROM-WDX - Register of Merit, Working Dog Excellent. Offspring have any combination of AMCA's basic working titles. They may be all from one of the disciplines or of different disciplines.

The All-Around program is an AMCA offered program for those dogs who are versatile and have shown excellent temperament in public education spaces. A CGC, though nice, is not good enough, the dogs have to have done approximately 30 hours of public outreach. Every one of these has the termperament/public ed requirement.

SAM - Serviceable Alaskan Malamute. Dogs need a conformation championship, a performance title, and a working title.

VAM - Versatile Alaskan Malamute. Dogs need at least one title in at least 4 of the following 5 areas AND advanced titling work in at least two of the areas: conformation championship, performance title, WWPD, WTD/WLD, WPD.

AAAM - All-Around Alaskan Malamute. Dogs need at least a conformation championship, a performance title, a WWPD, a WTD/WLD, and a WPD.

BAM - Buddy Alaskan Malamute. Dogs need at least 10 titles, only 5 of which can come from the same discipline (for example, 5 can count from agility but the rest must be from at least one other area)

For more information, see the Alaskan Malamute Club of America page.

AKC has a therapy dog certification program to honor those dogs who visit hospitals, nursing homes, schools, etc. There are various levels based upon the number of visits completed.

THDN - Therapy Dog Novice. 10 visits completed.

THD - Therapy Dog. 50 visits completed.

THDA - Therapy Dog Advanced. 100 visits completed.

THDX - Therapy Dog Excellent. 200 visits completed.

THDD - Therapy Dog Distinguished. 400 visits completed.