Elaine,
I'm not bashing AKC handlers, I have over 20 UDs myself and have competed in 100's of AKC OB trials .

Let me explain my observations;

First, SchH is entirely an outside sport. Yes, some AKC trials are outdoors, but many of them are indoors. this makes for an easier trial with not having to deal with the elements.

SchH OB properly done, requires about a football field for the patern ( your leg is 40 brisk paces and judges count your steps ).
Our dumb bell throws are usually longer than an AKC trial ring
And at AKC trails there are a fair amount of elderly handlers ( the "graying" of the AKC obedience handlers has been discussed in various AKC magazines, so I'm certainly not the oniy one observing this ) and these are the handlers that would have difficulty on the longer patterns of SchH ( not to mention the uneveness of many SchH fields which are only slightly less dangerous than VC booby traps in my book )

And although many breds are large in SchH, we have Medium size breeds like ACDs and Aus. Shepreds well represented, and you'll even see Min Pins and JRTs at trials.
All using the same size dumb bell.

Next, let's compare the jump heights. I remember the relief in the AKC obedience community when they dropped the jump heights down ( I was handling Old Englis Mastiffs then and it *was* a relief ).
But in SchH the jump height is a *meter* For every dog.

And in the AKC ring, a judge guides you to every exercise. You follow their commands.
In SchH you have a fairly complicated pattern which you must do in order, from memory, for a good showing.
This adds a significant layer of difficulty to SchH OB.

Again, I'm not bashing AKC OB, I still suggest that my students compete in it along with SchH ( and I offer to attend every trial that they compete in ) , but it is several degrees easier than SchH in my observation.

SchH traditionaly got many of it's handlers from the AKC crowd in search of more challenge. There's room for both styles.

 Quote: Will Rambeau

Steve,
First question, how old is your dog?

And are you specifically asking about points during a SchH trial ( which will be graded *very* diffferently than an AKC event ) ?

22 months, and this is in the context of Schutzhund standards.

I asked that Steve because most dogs that "talk" like that during training and trials tend to quiet as they get older.

Also, if you do multiple trainings in a day ( at least three episodes in the day ), does the dog quiet a bit with the later training episodes?

So... what exactly ARE the point deductions in Schutzhund for a barking dog?

How about whimpering, whining or any other form of squeaking in excitement?

My 20-month-old GSD isn't as vocal as Steven's dog, but is definitely on the chattier side of the spectrum.

Increasing exercise & training before a trial would certainly calm him down and take the edge off his nerves, but it would also take the edge off his enthusiasm, drive and speed.
He would still be working in high drive, but with a little less "flash" than in his full energy state.

I assume this is why Steven worded his question the way he did. Is it worth sacrificing some of the dog's intensity (by increasing pre-trial exercise) to achieve a quieter routine out of the dog, or is it a more optimal solution - points wise - to keep some of the noise along with the higher animation?

Glad Steven asked this, I've been aking myself the exact same thing

 Quote:

Also, if you do multiple trainings in a day ( at least three episodes in the day ), does the dog quiet a bit with the later training episodes?

I don't do enough multiple sessions to even know. I can try that if you think there is relevance.

As the given session goes on, however, it does go away (after some chucks of the ball etc). But at the expense of some sizzle.