Fast CAT
Fast CAT — short for Fast Coursing Ability Test — is a timed 100-yard dash where a dog runs alone down a straight lane (usually fenced — the premium list says whether the site is enclosed), chasing a white plastic lure pulled ahead by a motorized line. Electronic timers capture the run; the time is converted to miles per hour using a fixed formula, then multiplied by a height-based handicap to produce points toward titles. Dogs run one at a time, off-leash for the sprint, with a handler at the start and a catcher at the finish. The whole thing is over in seven to nine seconds for most dogs.
Coursing Ability Test (CAT)
The Coursing Ability Test (CAT) is AKC's pass/fail field test where one dog at a time chases an artificial lure — a white plastic bag pulled by a continuous-loop machine through staked pulleys — around a 300- or 600-yard course. The course bends and turns to mimic the way a fleeing rabbit moves. Handlers do not run with the dog. You release at the start, the dog chases the lure alone, and you collect the dog at or near the finish when the lure stops. To pass, the dog has to chase continuously and with visible enthusiasm and finish inside the time limit — 1.5 minutes at 300 yards, 2 minutes at 600. CAT is non-competitive. There is no ranking, no head-to-head. Titles come from accumulating passes, not from being faster than another dog.
