Are Canaan Dogs used for herding?
Yes. Joan Capiau, past CDCA Herding Chair, has done herding with her dogs; her bitch Abbey was the first Canaan ever to compete in an all-breed trial in the world and took HIT (High In Trial) that day (an American Herding Breed Association trial). Denise Gordon rounded up herding titles with her dog Ze’ev Midbar; “Wolf” earned AHBA Started titles in Ranch Dog and regular Trial courses, and is a RHIT (Reserve High In Trial) winner, too. The 1997 CDCA Specialty in Lexington, Kentucky, included a herding trial. At the 1997 ICDCA Specialty, an AHBA Herding Capability Test was held in which there were 11 Canaan Dogs tested and four passed the first leg. Virtually every Specialty since then has included an AKC Herding Instinct Test. Virtually all of the breeders producing good conformation Canaani also test pups and breeding stock for herding instinct. The Canaan Dog is the only AKC herding breed that can make that claim. Pet and conformation dog owners are encouraged to get their dogs invol
