The advantage of choosing to train your dog in obedience, besides providing you with a well-behaved dog, it makes for a closer bonding between you and your dog and you can usually find classes almost anywhere you live.

When you look for a training class I really recommend that you look for one that is based on positive reinforcement or uses "Clicker" training. Cairns do not respond well to harsh corrections.

Obedience trials demonstrate the dog's ability to work with and for his handler. Many of the exercises reflect origins in tasks useful for working and herding dogs, but Cairns can learn these skills as well as any breed. Cairns bore easily so you need to keep your training fun and avoid repetition of the same exercise.

The best way to learn more about obedience is to attend an obedience trial and watch. If you are interested, you can join an all-breed dog club or training club that offers classes. Often such clubs will also offer classes for some or all of the other dog sports, but basic obedience is recommended as a foundation for all of the other activities. If you contact the American Kennel Club (AKC) or the United Kennel Club (UKC), they can tell you about clubs in your area that offer classes.

Both the AKC and the UKC offer competition for obedience titles at their shows. Both offers titles for different levels of competition: CD (Companion Dog) title, CDX (Companion Dog Excellent), and UD (Utility Dog). Both registries offer additional titles for advanced obedience work.

If you are not up to earning an obedience title on your dog, you can try at least getting a CGC ( Canine Good Citizen ) award for your dog.

Obedience Regulations

AKC Geographical List of Show and Obedience Clubs

Learn how to get started in Obedience and Tracking

AKC Performance Events