CKC & CARO Rally
Rally is a fun and rewarding obedience sport that helps strengthen the bond and teamwork between you and your dog. Whether you’re looking for an enjoyable hobby or aiming to compete at the highest levels, rally has something for everyone, with classes ranging from beginner to advanced.
In rally, you and your dog work together to navigate a course made up of stations, each with a unique activity to complete as a team. It’s a fantastic way to build skills, confidence, and communication—all while having fun!
Our rally trainer brings a wealth of experience from regularly competing at advanced levels and earning high scores in both CKC and CARO Rally. In our classes, you’ll receive expert guidance and practical tips designed to help you succeed in both CKC and CARO-style trials. You’ll become familiar with both sets of rules and signs, giving you the confidence to trial successfully in either organization. TNT also holds CARO Rally trials giving students a home field advantage and an easy transition into competition with lots of support and camraderie.
All dogs, including mixed breeds, are welcome. Come discover how rally can bring out the best in you and your dog, and enjoy the journey together!
I especially loved working on building a strong partnership with my cocker spaniel, Mac
I took the Rally class and had a fantastic experience! My instructor was incredibly friendly, knowledgeable, and always offered such fabulous advice. All of my questions were answered, and I especially loved working on building a strong partnership with my cocker spaniel, Mac. My expectations were absolutely met, and I honestly can’t think of anything that could be improved. Highly recommend!
Rally has been a Rewarding Journey
What began as basic puppy training for Oaklie quickly turned into a surprising and rewarding journey into Rally Obedience. I had no background in dog sports, but the supportive and fun environment at TNT made it easy to fall in love with the process.
Encouraged by our amazing instructor, we entered a trial just to see how we’d do, and we were hooked! Since then, we’ve earned perfect scores in both CARO and CKC trials, collected a stack of ribbons, achieved our RA title, and are now working toward our RE.
TNT has been more than just a training center, it’s where Oaklie and I discovered a new passion and a stronger bond.
Feel like I found the secret to success
I hadn’t competed in many years but definitely finding so many tips and tricks that giving us way more success than expected. We have now earned our RN in both CARO and CKC and have have legs towards Advanced and Team Novice (with HICs). The tips for dealing with the differences between CKC and CARO rally have been invaluable.
The CARO (Canadian Association of Rally Obedience) holds virtual trials Spring and Fall. The video to the left shows one of our Rally instructors competing in Rally Excellent. They scored a perfect 200. Great Job!
Which rally level is right for you?
Beginner
For those new to the sport of Rally. We will cover foundation skills for competition-style precision sits, downs, stands, focus heeling and more. Perch and platform exercises will be taught which greatly helps your dog with positions. You will learn to use Janice's signature finger follow and impulse control games around food and toy distractions. Toy play reinforcement and food chase reward skills will be covered to keep your dog motivated and engaged. Signs will be discussed but practiced more specifically in the next level.
Novice
For teams that have taken 1-2 Beginner Rally sets and understand the foundation skills (finger follow, pot & platform) or near trial ready at the Novice level in either CKC or CARO Rally. We will practice walking and understanding how to read a course and you will practice a small course with your dog. You will also learn other exercises to help you perform novice signs with joyful engagement and develop a focus heel.
Intermediate/Advanced
For those that have a full understanding of ALL Novice signs and are familiar with doing courses. Learn and practice Intermediate/Advanced signs including food/toy figure exercises and jumps for both CARO and CKC.
We will move on to more advanced skills to build the focus heel (**both arm band & push method) and off-leash heeling to proof your skills. You will learn remote reinforcement & practice random reinforcement and teach tricks to keep your dog engaged while heeling.
Excellent/Masters
For those that have a full understanding of ALL Intermediate/Advanced signs and are comfortable with doing courses off leash. Learn and practice Excellent/Masters signs including jumps, tunnels, weave poles, clover leaf, spiral and serpentine weave with distractions.
Rally Class Information
Length: 5 week program, each class 1 hour in length (once a week for 5 weeks)
Price: $220 + GST
Prerequisite: Basic skills ie, sit, down, stay, heeling
Please Note: Group classes are not suitable for aggressive or reactive dogs
Visit our Training F.A.Q. for: our refund policy, dog vaccination info, what to do if you have to miss a class etc.
Group classes are not appropriate for dogs that are fearful, anxious, have uncontrollable barking or lunge with aggression towards other dogs or people. We suggest you seek out private training to get this under control prior to a group class.
CKC & CARO Rally Class Schedule
Click on instructor name to see bio!
| Class | Instructor | Day | Time | Dates (Start date in bold) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Novice | Katrina Vavrovics | Tuesdays | 6:15 pm | Oct 27, Nov 3, 10, 17 & 24, 2026 |
| Advanced/Excellent | Katrina Vavrovics | Sundays | 10:00 am | Nov 1, 8, 15, 22 & 29, 2026 |
| Novice/Intermediate ** Must have previously taken Novice Rally at TNT | Katrina Vavrovics | Sundays | 11:30 am | Nov 1, 8, 15, 22 & 29, 2026 |
| Beginner | Katrina Vavrovics | Tuesdays | 7:30 pm | Oct 27, Nov 3, 10, 17 & 24, 2026 |
In Progress Classes
These classes are no longer open for registration.
We leave them posted so students can check dates and times.
| Class | Instructor | Day | Time | Dates |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Excellent / Masters | Katrina Vavrovics | Mondays | 5:15 pm | Sep 14, 21, 28, Oct 5, & 19, 2026 Note: No class Oct 12 Thanksgiving |
| Novice | Katrina Vavrovics | Mondays | 6:30 pm | Sep 14, 21, 28, Oct 5, & 19, 2026 Note: No class Oct 12 Thanksgiving |
| Intermediate/Advanced | Katrina Vavrovics | Mondays | 7:45 pm | Sep 14, 21, 28, Oct 5, & 19, 2026 Note: No class Oct 12 Thanksgiving |
| Beginner | Katrina Vavrovics | Tuesdays | 6:30 pm | Sep 15, 22, 29, Oct 6, & 13, 2026 |
Peikko earns a perfect CARO Rally score
peikko-200
photo credits: Jessica Morgan @tinyfablesphotography for the Rally picture, and Cindy Mayes @sunniedayspetphotography for the glamour shot
A Comparison of CKC & CARO Rally
The following table gives a brief overview of the differences between CKC & CARO Rally. Both are a lot of fun to compete in and compliment each other. Note: that CKC now allows mixed breeds to compete.
| CKC Rally Obedience | CARO Rally Obedience |
|---|---|
| Mixed breeds are welcome to compete as of 2014 | Mixed breeds are welcome to compete |
| Scored out of a possible 100 points - 70 points required to pass | Scored out of a possible 200 points - 170 required to pass |
| Does not allow disabled dogs to compete but does allow disabled handlers. | CARO allows both disabled handlers and disabled dogs to compete. Modifications of the course for both handler and dog are permitted, at the judge's discretion. |
| In the CKC style of Rally O there is no time limit to complete the course | In the CARO style of Rally O there is a time limit to complete the course |
| Does not permit food in the ring | May give a food reward in-between exercise |
| Dogs must wear a collar | Dogs are allowed to wear either a collar or a harness |
| CKC Rally rules do not specify the distance a handler must run from the side of a jump | CARO Rally O does specify the distance a handler must run from the side of a jump |
| In CKC Rally O, the dog is called to heel position after the handler makes the turn | In CARO Rally O, the dog moves along with the handler after the turn |
TNT’s training method is based on using positive reinforcement. Here’s why…
Dogs respond best/fastest to positive reinforcement training. This method focuses on rewarding your dog for doing the asked behavior. The reward in turn encourages your dog to repeat the cued behaviour when asked again. Positive reinforcement training focuses on rewarding good behaviour rather than punishing bad behaviour.
