FMBB WCH | CWBSA - Canadian Working Belgian Shepherd Association

FMBB IGP World Championship 2025 Team Canada Regulations and Selection Criteria

Prerequisites

Members of the CWBSA in good standing are eligible for the CWBSA IGP FMBB Team if their dog is a CKC-registered Belgian Shepherd.

Candidates who qualify to represent the Canadian Working Belgian Shepherd Association (CWBSA) in the FMBB IGP World Championship must demonstrate the following:

1. Conduct that exemplifies good sportsmanship and self-discipline.

2. A strong desire to attend the FMBB World Championship and represent Canada and the Canadian Working Belgian Shepherd Association in an international competition.

3. The handler must be a CWBSA member in good standing from January 31, 2024 (year during which the qualification competitions occur) and maintain membership without interruption for 2025, the year the event is being held.

4. The handler must be a Canadian citizen or a permanent resident of Canada.

5. The handler must be a member in good standing of the Canadian Kennel Club (CKC) at the time of the FMBB Championship.

6. The dog-handler team must remain the same throughout the qualification process and the FMBB championship.

7. The handler is not required to be the owner of the declared dog

8. The handler may apply with only one dog, as the FMBB IGP WC is restricted to one dog per handler.

9. Handler/dog teams must meet eligibility requirements of the FMBB

Qualifying for the Team

The top four eligible dog-handler teams at the CWDF IGP Nationals, with a minimum score of 80 in each phase, earn positions on the FMBB World Team. Ties will be broken by high protection score, then high obedience score. Should one of these top four handlers reject or be ineligible for their position, the position(s) will be filled via the point system. The remaining two (2), or more, positions plus at least one (1) alternate position will be filled via the point system.

Declaring for a Team Position

Handlers are responsible for filling out the online form at https://form.jotform.com/DogSportForms/team-canada-fmbb-2025-application, and provide copies of the following items to the CWBSA board upon request:

Declaration Form
Rabies vaccination certificate
CKC registration
FCI recognized scorebook (front pages and applicable trial date entries)
Photo of handler
Photo of dog
CWBSA Membership Card
Proof of compliance with the policy for receiving financial support from the CWBSA; see below

Failure to send the completed form and all supplemental copies and fees constitute a rejection of a team position.

The declaration must be received by December 15, 2024 and include a $250 good faith deposit.
Members who are not selected for the team will have their $250 deposit refunded upon final team selection. Selected team members' deposits will be refunded after the World Championships. Deposits will not be returned to handlers who decide not to trial after being selected for the team.

Point System

The time period to earn qualification points will run from January 1 to December 31, 2024. Positions for the team will be filled in order according to the number of points earned. A tie in points will be broken by the highest average score. If there is still a tie, then it will be broken by highest average protection score, then highest average obedience score.

All points earned must be with the same handler/dog team only at the IGP 3 level. A minimum of 4 points must be earned to apply, and must include at least 2 trials, including a regional championship at the minimum.

The table below defines qualification points that can be earned during trials. Points are awarded per trial type and overall score category (S = 210, G = 240, SG = 270, V = 286).

In the trial types, championships include:

Regional: GSSCC Regionals, UScA Regionals, DVG America Regionals
National: CWDF National, GSSCC National, AWMA National, UScA Working Dog Championship, AWDF National Championship, DVG America National
World: FMBB and FCI IGP World Championships

All other trials are regarded as Club trials, unless occurring in another country than Canada or USA, and approved as counting like a championship by the CWBSA board of directors.

Policy for Financial Support for CWBSA IGP FMBB Team Canada Members

Handlers qualified on the FMBB IGP World Championship 2025 CWBSA Team will have their FMBB entry fee (typically 100 Euros) paid and a uniform provided free of charge. Other expenses may be reimbursed, depending on the amount of funds raised for the team before the World Championship.

Team Leader responsibilities

making sure photos/scans of all required documents (CKC registration, rabies vaccination certificate, scorebook front page, and latest titles page) are received from the handlers prior to online registration
deciding upon type and design of the team uniform in collaboration with team members, and ordering them
registering the team (online through Caniva) prior to the event and making sure entry fees are sent
registering the team at the secretary office on site of the event
handling of all communications between the event organizer/secretary and the team members, including filing official complaints
being present at the team leaders meeting to pass down information to team members
being present for the draw
informing team members of any change of schedule after the competition has started
assisting team members during the vet check
organizing and leading the team's official practice, making sure all dogs get enough field time
supervising the team during opening and closing ceremonies, and carrying of the Canadian flag
making sure that every team member displays a “Conduct that exemplifies good sportsmanship and self-discipline”
being present during tracking performances of all team members
request a re-track to the tracking supervisor if unfair conditions or if an incident during a team member’s tracking performance justifies it. Whether a re-track may be requested is left to the sole discretion of the team leader.
if team schedule for tracking allows it, being present during obedience and protection performances of the team
plan for a team dinner during the event
after completion of the competition, get the dogs documents and scorebooks back from the secretary office and return to team members
write a short report about the event and send it to CWBSA board, to possibly be used in CWBSA publications (Facebook, BSDCC newsletter, etc.)

In addition, but not in their responsibility, the team leader may:

help with the required documentation to travel with a dog to Europe
help with car rentals
help to find accommodations
help to find training/tracking fields
help to seek sponsors for the team