THUNDER BAY - A popular new sport that has gone to the dogs is back in Thunder Bay for the second time and has a lot of tails wagging.
Barn Hunt is back and trials are being held this weekend at the Canine Coaching Club.
After growing in popularity for the last five years in the United States, Barn Hunt is gaining traction in Canada, including Thunder Bay, said trial organizer, Kris Brown.
“There are hundreds of barn hunt groups in the states and maybe a dozen in Canada,” she said. “It’s just new. We’ve been doing it here for just over a year. We had our first trial last fall.”
Barn Hunt challenges dogs of all ages, breeds, and skill levels to sniff out a live rat in a protective tube in an enclosed course. The dogs are also required to climb bails of hay and snake through a tunnel.
Each trial is timed and the dog has to locate the rat and perform all actions under the time limit to complete the trial.
“Any dog can do it,” Brown said. “It doesn’t have to be a special terrier or rat dog. For most dogs it’s instinct.”
What separates Barn Hunt from other dog sports is how it is mostly up to the dog to do all the work, which Brown said opens the sport up to all people and their furry friends.
“The handlers don’t have to be physically fit like in agility,” she said. “You can be in a wheelchair or on crutches because most often the dog does most of the work and the person moves around very little. You can have young people doing it or old people doing it.”
Michele Martin has competed in Barn Hunt trials in the United States with her four-year-old brittany spaniel, Kenzie.
“It’s a new sport and I have a number of dogs and each dog likes to do something a little it different,” she said. “I have a dog that really seemed to enjoy it when we tried it out at a workshop and I continued on with her.”
Unlike other dog sports, which Martin also competes in, Barn Hunt is more about having fun with the dogs, who seem to really enjoy the challenge of sniffing out the rats.
“This sport is a lot of fun because it is up to the dog to do it,” she said. “They are the ones that get to have fun at the end of the day and if you watch some of the dogs do it, you can see that their tails are wagging and they get really jacked up and have a really good time. It’s not something we are forcing them to do like formal obedience.”
Approximately 60 runs are scheduled for this weekend, doubled from 30 runs last fall. Brown said she is hoping more trials will be held in Thunder Bay as the sport continues to grow.
“It’s just one more thing to add to the dog community here in Thunder Bay,” she said.
Trials continued on Sunday and same-day registration is welcomed. For more information, visit the Barn Hunt website.