TrackWest
( a brief History)
The idea of forming a tracking club was talked about for several years amongst a few dedicated trackers, but it was mid 1995 before we bit the bullet and decided to approach the Canine Association of W.A and formally advise them of our intentions and asked them to consider us becoming affiliated with them.
At this stage we thought we could have hordes of trackers joining our ranks, so we also asked CAWA to consider running a Trainee Judges course so would be prepared for the possible onslaught on our resourses.
The Canine Association wished us success , gave us the Trainee Judges Course which resulted in 3 new Tracking Judges, and a year later we were officially affiliated with the Association.
The hordes of hopeful trackers turned out the be about a dozen people, and the membership gradually increased over the years and we now have about fifty members, with about twenty-five active dogs working this season.
In the
early years of the club, when TDX (Tracking Dog Excellent) was needed along with
the UD title, before people could gain their Australian Obedience Champion title
we were able to give many Obedience people
the opportunity to learn how to track.
The
Shepherd Club were conducted tracking classes, but this was not generally known
by a lot of Obedience people.
Tracking in WA prior to our formation was very much a matter of knowing someone who tracked and who was willing to include them in their activities.
Some of
these Obedience people having gained their Tracking titles moved on, and their
knowledge and experience was lost to the club and the new members.
But
fortunately some were hooked, developing a love of tracking and stayed within
the club, joined
When the
Obedience rules changed and Tracking was no longer part of the Obedience
Champion, we
The CAWA
ran another Trainee Judges course and a further 3 Tracking judges joined our
ranks in
As we
became more well known, many dog owners looking for something away from straight
Lesley Watson
President
TrackWest
1998-2001
