How many gun rounds are fired in the NPCA obedience test?

• A. 2
• B. 1
• C. 3
• D. 0

Answer: (B)

Gunfire in the NPCA obedience test is used as a controlled distraction to see if the dog remains calm, focused, and under the handler’s command when a sudden noise occurs. The standard setup fires a single gun round. This single shot provides the realistic stress needed to judge impulse control without overloading the dog or compromising safety. If no rounds were fired, the test wouldn’t gauge the dog’s reaction to gunfire at all; firing multiple rounds would add unnecessary stress and could affect performance or safety. So, one round best fits the test’s purpose of measuring steady obedience under a brief, tense distraction.