Dog Aggression

After incidents of dog aggression in a couple of trials in the spring of 2008, the USCA Judges Committee was tasked with presenting a policy that USCA will follow to address any further situations that arise. Aggression would be defined as a dog that bites a person or a dog that initiates aggression toward another dog.

The following will be the official USCA policy for dog aggression toward dogs and/or people:

1^st Offense

• Immediate dismissal from the trial with all scores and ratings deleted and the following notation made in the scorebook: Dismissed/aggression to dog and/or person.
• USCA, USCA judges, and all USCA regional directors shall be informed of the incident.
• No later than one day following the event, the presiding judge at the event shall file a detailed report with the USCA Director of Judges describing the incident and actions taken. This report shall then be distributed to all USCA judges.

2^nd Offense

• Immediate dismissal from the trial with all scores and ratings deleted and the following notation made in the scorebook: Dismissed/aggression to dog and/or person.
• Suspension of the dog from all USCA-sanctioned events and/or activities for one year.
• Suspension of the handler from all USCA-sanctioned events and/or activities for six months.
• Surrender of the USCA scorebook for the dog to USCA for the duration of the suspension.
• USCA, USCA judges, and all USCA regional directors shall be informed of the incident.
• No later than one day following the event, the presiding judge at the event shall file a detailed report with the USCA Director of Judges describing the incident and actions taken. This report shall then be distributed to all USCA judges.

3^rd Offense

• Banishment of the dog from all USCA-sanctioned events and/or activities for life.
• Suspension of the handler from all USCA-sanctioned events and/or activities for one year.
• Destruction of the USCA scorebook for the dog.
• USCA, USCA judges, and all USCA regional directors shall be informed of the incident.
• No later than one day following the event, the presiding judge at the event shall file a detailed report with the USCA Director of Judges describing the incident and actions taken. This report shall then be distributed to all USCA judges.
• The information shall be published in the USCA magazine.

The officiating judge at an event where an incident occurs is the sole arbiter of any and all decisions made concerning faulty temperament and actions that dictate any of the policy described above.

If a dog bite incident is sufficiently severe or there is reason for the Director Of Judges to believe that the dog represents a significant menace to the public, the DOJ may refer the incident to the Judges’ Committee, who may upgrade the offense to a second or third offense level. Any such increase in penalty must be approved by the Executive Board.