In conformation, dogs are judged on their appearance and their movement in the show ring. Dogs are judged against the official written “Standard” for their breed. This “Standard” describes the perfect dog. A dog may earn a Championship title. There also is a Grand Championship title with several levels.
https://www.akc.org/sports/conformation/

Obedience shows the trainability of the dog. The dog must perform a variety of activities on command, sits, downs, retrieves, jumps, etc. There are several levels of titles, each one a bit more difficult. Each level has a specific set of exercises.
https://www.akc.org/sports/obedience/

In Rally, the dog and handler execute a course set up in the ring that requires a specific activity at each sign. While similar to obedience, there are numerous different signs that may be used in any course. There are several levels of titles.
https://www.akc.org/sports/rally/

In Rally, the dog and handler execute a course set up in the ring that requires a specific activity at each sign. While similar to obedience, there are numerous different signs that may be used in any course. There are several levels of titles.
https://www.akc.org/sports/rally/

In agility, the dog and handler work together, on a set course filled with various obstacles, such as jumps, tunnels, a teeter totter, weave poles, etc. In this event the runs are also timed.
https://www.akc.org/sports/agility/

Also known as the CAT test, in this event, the dog follows or “courses”, a plastic bag (lure) that is pulled around an open field in a zig zag manner ( meant to resemble the run of a rabbit), by a pulley system.
There are several different levels of titles.
https://www.akc.org/sports/coursing/coursing-ability-test/

In this event, the dog chases the “lure” and is timed on a straight 100 yard course.
https://www.akc.org/sports/coursing/fast-cat/

In scent work, the dog is trained to find various odors hidden in or on objects. Depending on the class, the objects may be in containers ranging from cardboard boxes to briefcases, buried in water or sand, hidden on furniture or other objects, or outside on automobiles etc.
https://www.akc.org/sports/akc-scent-work/

This is a pass/fail event which tests a dog’s ability to navigate normal everyday situations, from meeting new people, encountering other dogs, or going to a veterinarian
https://www.akc.org/products-services/training-programs/canine-good-citizen/

In trick dog, dogs are required to exercise a specific number of tricks. There are different levels of titles, each one requiring more difficult tricks.
https://www.akc.org/sports/trick-dog/

In this event, dogs are exposed to various typical farm situations such as livestock, hay bales, gates, etc. and are judged on their reactions.
https://www.akc.org/sports/herding/farm-dog-certified-test/

Dogs are judged on their reaction to various situations, such as, loud noises, unusual footing, meeting new strangers and walking through a crowd of people.
https://www.akc.org/akctemptest/

In this event, the dog is expected to jump off of a platform into a large tank of water. Dogs are scored on the distance they jump.
https://www.akc.org/sports/title-recognition-program/dock-diving/