SH CH - Show Champion- dog must win 3 Challenge Certificates under 3 different Judges. Note- dogs who are already champions are still eligible to compete for challenge certificates, making earning a championship quite difficult.
CH - Champion - dog must win 3 Challenge Certificates under 3 different Judges and either an actual Field Trial Award or a Show Gundog Working Certificate, (SDWC).
F.T. CH. - Field Trial Champion- dog must win 2 Open Stakes (see description below).
DC - Dual Champion- dog must have been awarded both their Sh.Ch. title and their F.T. title.
Below is an excerpt from an article written by Jean Collins- Breeder and owner of Dual Champion Amscot Irresista Belle, the first Gordon Setter (and first of ANY Setter Breed) in UK history to become a Dual Champion.
"The Making of a Dual Champion"
To become a Champion (CH.), you need to win 3 Challenge Certificates under 3 different Judges and either an actual Field Trial Award or a Show Gundog Working Certificate, (SDWC) which are not as difficult to obtain as a Field Trial award as you do not compete with other dogs or have to be as steady to game. It does show your dog has the ability to hunt/point and be obedient to the handler’s commands.
Less than 25 Champions have been made up in Gordon Setters in the UK over the last 50 years, the majority a long time ago, and only a handful of those gained their full title via an actual Field Trial award.
In a Field Trial in the UK, your dog will be running with another dog under the watchful eyes of 2 Judges appointed by the Kennel Club. They are both cast off in opposite directions and are expected to cover the ground on either side crossing in the middle hunting for the scent of game birds as they move to the other side. This is called ‘quartering’. The two handlers walk forward at an even pace together behind their dogs.
Trials are run either on grouse, or partridge and pheasants. All game found will be wild, i.e., not planted on the ground for the purposes of the trial, as in some countries. Which means, you may find some birds on the day, you may not!
If your dog indicates that they have found birds by pointing, it must hold that point as you and the judge on your side will walk to the point and then you will be asked to move your dog forward till the bird flushes and flies away. The dog must drop to the flush and a gun will be fired. Just imagine the control needed here as the dog’s basic instinct is to catch the bird. The frozen body posture is necessary to slowly get closer and closer to this end! And after that the reaction of most dogs is to chase the bird they didn’t catch! Clearly an eliminating fault at a Field Trial.
You will then be asked to ‘clear the ground’ and the dog will move forward carefully and check that no birds remain in the area. If there are further birds, your dog must work them out properly as if it was the first one found. While all this is going on, your brace mate will have their dog in a down position, or their dog will be ‘backing’ your dog, pointing the other dog on sight, acknowledging they have game, which is a highly prized trait.
All handling of your dog, turning their direction, dropping, recall, etc. must be done by whistle or hand signals, you mustn’t shout or touch the dog at anytime.
After the judges have seen enough, or your dog or brace mate has eliminated itself, you will be asked to ‘pick them up’ call them to you and put your lead back on. This is then repeated with all the dogs entered.
Dogs which in the opinion of the Judges, have performed well, will be called through to a second and sometimes even further rounds. Even if you have a find with your dog, this does not mean you will receive an award, as it is also extremely important that the standard of your dog’s work is high and has to be compared to a required level and not just the performance of the other runners.
Awards that can be obtained are 1st-4th prizes and then the judges can also award Certificates of Merit (CoM’s) if they feel there are dogs whose performance merit that. However, awards are not always given and sometimes a first prize or all prizes will be withheld if the judges do not think the standards have been met on the day. Rather than upsetting the competitors, as it most certainly would in the show ring, this action mostly brings wry smiles all round, as we have to agree with their findings!
There are basically 4 types of Field Trial Stakes: Puppy, Novice, All-Aged and Open.
There can be more than one Stake on a day, but no more than 45 dogs can compete in total and there are 2 judges. If the trial is over subscribed, a draw based on various criteria decides which dogs get to run and you are notified before the day of the trial. There is not an age limit in these stakes, except for Puppy Stakes; for the most part it depends on your number of awards.
Novice Stake: For Setters/Pointers who have not won a First, Second or Third prize in an Open Stake or a First or two Second prizes in other Stakes. Once you have won these awards, your dog can never be entered in Novice Stakes again.
All-Aged Stake: For Setters/Pointers of any age or qualifications. Any dog can be entered in an All-Aged Stake regardless of wins, even Field Trial Champions.
Open Stakes: For Setters/Pointers of any age or qualification.
(Limited to 40 dogs) If there are more than 40 dogs applying, preference is given as follows:
a.) Member’s dogs which have gained a First, Second or Third award in an Open Stake, or a First or two seconds in other stakes.
b.) Non-members dogs as in ‘a’ above.
c.) Member’s dogs, which have gained other awards.
d.) Non-members dogs as in ‘c’ above.
e.) Other dogs.
So, you see, it isn’t just about training your dog to a high standard, and then entering a Field Trial, it’s also about getting a run as most are over subscribed!
To become a Field Trial Champion (F.T. CH.) You need to win 2 Open Stakes usually against other qualified dogs who must be either Field Trial Champions or have won awards as specified above.
The only exception to this is if your dog wins the Pointer and Setter Champion Stake, held once a year, rotating between Scotland and England. To qualify for this prestigious Stake, your dog needs to have won an Open Stake or if not over subscribed they will allow second place Open Stake winners to compete.
I have been honored to run in 3 Champion Stakes with Trisca, and in 2003 she was the only Gordon Setter representative as was reported in the Shooting Times magazine.
If your dog competes in the Champion Stake from a second place award and WINS the Stake, they automatically become a F.T. Champion, without having to have another Open win."