Dumb questions about agility

 Agility is open to dogs of all shapes and sizes! I've seen Pom's doing agility. Lol. Talk to your local trainer and see if they can offer some advice. Also see if there's a K9 club around your area.

For basic training, a good stay is recommended and some attention training.

I'm planning on putting Maze in to agility once I get a car on the road.. She likes to FLY over the furniture when she gets the zoomies.. Lol. 

Hmm.. I think that's all I can think of.. I'm sure other, more informed people will stop by  

Thanks!  I was hoping all dogs could compete, because I really think Harry would enjoy it.  I'll ask the trainer that did Harry's puppy class about agility classes for when he's a little older.  I plan to do a continuing education course with her this summer, and of course we work on basic commands every day.  I know I want to get all that stuff down pat before I even think about training for agility.  "Stay" is not his strong point, so we work on it A LOT.  Our local dog park has a few agility obstacles that I could use for between-class training, too, once we start those classes.  Also, he's a little ball of energy; the faster the better for him!  Oh, Harry's zoomies are hilarious.  He incorporates all the furniture...couches for jumping on and off, tables for weaving between the legs.  Though he seems to get the zoomies only when we get back from walks.  I can walk him for over an hour (with some running in there, too!) and he goes nuts when he gets home.  Man, I can't WAIT to get that fence put up!!!  He can get all the cases of the zoomies he wants in the yard once we do that!

Hey, I'm sorry to hear about Crombie.  I didn't know he was missing.  I hope he comes home safely!

Maze doesn't weave but she can jump really good.. She only gets the zoomies after a bath or if I get down on my hands and knees and growl at her.. Lol.

yeah I know what you mean about a fence.. We need a new house! lol.

Thanks. I hope he comes home too... 

 hey!

it's great to hear that you're wanting to get into agility... i'm probably just one step ahead of you (zoey and i have had a couple classes), but i was in your shoes very recently, so i know what you're going thru.

i bought this book off amazon (but i'm sure you could find it elsewhere) and i LOVED it. it is so great with teaching you not only how to train and get started, but also how to chose the right dog (not your problem obvisously), how to get your dog ready, and it goes farther into training, and shows you how to get ready for competing, and what to expect etc. i also loved how it taught you all the jargon they use (i was SO confused by all the abbrev and acronyms!! :S ) .... i highly recomend it, because it helped me so much!

http://www.amazon.com/Beginners-Guide-Dog-Agility/dp/0793805465/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1209310659&sr=8-1

there are lots of good books out there on agility. so dig in and remember that it's all about having fun with your best friend :)

good luck!!

~V~ 

Thank you!  I will definitely get the book you recommended.  I do want to get into it for the fun of it (not to win competitions).  That's always the attitude I had when I was into eventing; it was just about me having fun, my horse having fun, both of us doing the best we could, and learning new things from every competition.  I think it builds the relationship between animal and human.  And, if we do some classes and I find out that agility is not for us, no big deal.  Like I said, it's just for fun and learning for both of us.

Here's another funny thing...I watch Animal Planet a lot (of course!), and Harry usually doesn't pay much attention to the TV, EXCEPT when they show anything on agility.  He's glued to the TV when he sees the pups going around those courses.  I think it's a trip when he does that!

I believe in the US, the first agility champion was a pom. The bigger poms are pretty fast.

To the OP, I say read books and visit websites get the feel for it first. If you really do get hooked, look for people that teach. I know home instruction can be successful - one of the finalist in the AKC Agility finals in CA was home taught - but you can develop bad habits. You will end up having a subscription to Clean Run and spending more money than you thought.

~BTW, have you guys read the May issue editoral? It sounds like I am in the same boat! LOL

time to get ready for agility class.

I would never recommend that anyone try to learn agility on their own -- there are too many ways to mess it up and possibly hurt your dog.

When I decided to get into agility I researched my options in my area.  There were two training clubs to choose from (we're not counting Petco/PetSmart).  The reason I ended up going with the club I'm with is because they host agility trials on site.  I figured that they would be the more "serious" of the clubs (and I was right -- the other one has since shut down).

I didn't know anything about agility venues when I started.  I fell into NADAC mostly by default because my training club hosts NADAC trials about nine or ten times a year.  Lucky for me, since Luke is a mixed breed and wouldn't qualify for AKC.  Other venues that are mutt friendly are USDAA and CPE.  If you don't know of trainers in your area, I would start by going to these web sites to get their trial schedules, then going to a few trials in your area and asking around.

Before starting agility, I feel that a dog should have an excellent wait, sit & recall.  These are the biggies.  The dog should also have desire & drive to want to work with you and hopefully be motivated by treats or toys.  Without motivation, you are going to have a hard time training.  I hear a lot of people say that their dog isn't motivated by anything, but basically they just haven't found the RIGHT thing yet.

I came to agility from the horse world (dressage with a bit of hunter/jumper) and I feel that this made things a lot easier for me than for people without that experience.  A lot of the training is very similar (IMO) and trials are not stressful for me because I'm so used to the show ring from the horses.  You will be amazed at the number of horse people you will meet in the agility world!

Oh, I DEFINITELY plan to train in a class/with a professional.  I would never attempt to try this on my own!  I just want to learn the basic info behind it and study up on it before we start any kind of training.  I want to make sure I know what I'd be getting into, and see if it really is something I'd be interested in pursuing, once I learn more about it.  I don't like doing things halfway, especially when it's going to impact someone else (Harry).

Harry's only 6 months old, so this isn't something I will start until he's older.  I've heard they should be at least a year old, correct me if I'm wrong.  What I was saying about the obstacles at the dog park...that would be for in between agility class working only (like homework, but just not at home).  It's nice that they are there so I don't have to buy them.  Our back yard isn't level enough.  Plus I figure the more different places we can work, the better, because every trial is a new environment.

Harry is extremely food-motivated.  He hates it when our daily obedience lessons are over, lol.  "What the H, mom, no more chicken???"  He seems to have a desire to work as well.

I'm from the horse world, too, so it's good to know there are similarities.  I figured as much; I mean, experience with competing in one animal sport I can't imagine would be anything but a benefit for another animal sport.  I also figure my experience with cross-country and stadium would be helpful in at least understanding agility (ya know, like walking your course to plan each approach, know how your horse is going to react to particular fences, where you can cut time, etc).  And I'm always up for meeting more horse people!

Knowing how to walk a course from the hunter/jumper perspective WILL help you in agility!  lol  I learned courses by pattern in the horse world and I do the same thing in agility.  Many of my peers struggle badly during the course walks, especially at the novice level, worrying how they are ever going to remember the course.  My brain maps it out in sections and pieces it together as I run.  I thank my jumping background for that much, at least!

Yes, if your boy is only six months old then you have some time on your hands.  You shouldn't do too much jumping, weaving or anything at full height until the dog is at least a year old.  I plan to do foundation work with Kaiser from the get-go (groundwork, etc.) because I know what I'm doing and the goals that I have for him.  For an agility newbie, though, who doesn't understand the reasoning behind the foundation work (believe me, I was boggled by crosses and the like at first), it's probably better to wait until your dog is physically mature enough for the stress before you start anything.  Working on your basic obedience stuff in the time being will only make agility more fun & easier for you when you begin.

Ok, stop, you're getting me too excited about this! 

Seriously, though, I really appreciate all the input.  I will continue to work on our basic obedience and then when he's a year old I'll start looking into classes. In the meantime, I'll read everything I can, thanks to you guys for the books and organization info.  I'll keep everyone posted when we start training.

 Subscribe to Clean Run the magazine. If you can, order the Feb, March and April issues as well.  Linda Mecklenburg is going through her handling system beginning in Feb and she has some articles on flatwork.  This is stuff you can do with your pup now before getting near jumps.  She also printed a book on jumping skills but your pup is too young to do  much of it.  However the first chapter is on foundation skills on the flat.  Good stuff for handling.

Look for a training class that has a puppy agility class.  This class would help you work on the foundation stuff as well as introducing tunnels, chutes without fabric, tippy boards and walking along planks.  All puppy safe stuff while helping with the attention and focus things you'll need to be successful.  

Have fun!! 

KarissaKS

I would never recommend that anyone try to learn agility on their own -- there are too many ways to mess it up and possibly hurt your dog.

 

Not trying to be argumentative but your dog can be hurt anywhere regardless if supervised and under proper instruction. I have never bought into that where people say that. Yeah I can buy you can possibly train your dog wrong but it is the handling skills by the handler that are the culprits from I am told. e.g. I had no idea was using a mix of several handling systems when learning my backyard which went against the system we learned (Linda M) in school. So thats corrected and still learning it.