Upcoming Agility Trial

Also, it is indoors...I don't know if that makes much of a difference...

Whoa! Your instructor wants to you particpate or wants you to watch? If you have been only taken classes for 6 weeks, I think it is the latter. My instructor told me it usually takes a year to start showing and there are those over achievers that can show in 6 months. I guess your instructor wants to give some trial experience however thats going to get costly. I would rather that you try some run throughs which are events for green dogs to get use to the trial environment and its less expensive that route as you just pay for each run while going to an actual trial, you have to pay for registration and each run cost higher.

Hmmm....  I'm also wondering if your instructor meant that you should go watch....  It is the VERY rare person/dog that could enter a trial after completing beginner agility.  After all, the average beginner agility class simply introduces your dog to the obstacles.  Have you done course work?  Do you & your dog know front & rear crosses?  Do you know how to do a course walk to prepare yourself for your run?

It is true that the average team is in training for a year before they trial.  Luke & I were an oddity -- We started beginner agility in January, went straight into fundamentals after that and attended our first trial at the end of April.  This weekend was our one year anniversary of trialing and Luke got the last Q that he needed for his Open Versatility award (NADAC) and he's now Elite in every class.  This is NOT normal for most dogs.  We achieved this because I'm crazy -- we did weekly private lessons in addition to the weekly group class, plus went to the club to practice at least one day a week.  I can't imagine that anyone would be ready to trial in eight weeks after once a week group classes....

The last thing you want is for your dog to have a bad experience (or yourself).  Trials are stressful places for dogs that aren't familiar with them.  I took Luke to two trials just to watch before entering him in one -- just so that he could get used to the atmosphere.  Plus I needed to watch and learn how things were done so that I wouldn't be a complete idiot at my first trial.

My worry for anyone who rushes into trialing at the speed you are considering is that you will have a really bad experience and get turned off of agility because of it.  You would be much better off staying in training, going to watch/work at a few trials and considering entering more towards the end of the year if your training is going well.

Which venue did you enter, out of curiosity?  You registered your dog in it, I presume?

It is an ASCA trial.  We are only running in jumpers in novice class.  So I think it is two run throughs total??  I'm still a little confused about all that.  My trainer will be there with me and walking me through everything.  We have also had a few private lessons in addition to class and we go once a week to practice on our own.  Like I said before, she is really impressed at how well he is doing so far and really thinks it will be a good experience for us both, so hopefully it works out.  This is where it is being held:

http://www.k9athletecenter.com/facility.htm

It's supposed to be fairly small.  I don't think there will be huge numbers of people there.  The whole thing cost me $30.  I assume that means it's just a run thorough?

 When is it?  The May 10/11th? 

Are you doing sequences now?  Have you ever done a full course?  If so, then sure, go try it.  If not, then I'd get some of those in before you show up.  I've never done ASCA so can't say how the Novice judges are, but in CPE they are very laid back.  In USDAA, they are laid back to a point.

Typically, if you go to a trial and do not volunteer, you can leave after your run and many people do.  However, if it's your first trial, I recommend staying and helping out.  this will give you lots of experience ringside and a great viewing spot to watch other people run. 

Yep, it's the 10th/11th.

The way my trainer has her class set up is she starts us doing sequencing.  And since there are only 4 of us in the class we get a lot of practice in during class.  By the end of the first night of class we had done a sequence of the table, tunnel, and weave poles (with expens as guides).  This is the first time she has taught this class in this way, but it seems to be working out great.

When I go and practice on my own and we do all of the things that we've learned so far and I just follow a path around the room and he does great.

Ok well I would certainly do some longer sequences before the 10th.  Full courses, 15 obstacles, etc.  I don't know anything about ASCA agility so can't help there but I can't imagine they'd be any shorter than CPE courses, which are 13 obstacles or longer or longer than USDAA which is usually 15 or more for Starters. 

Yes, there is a huge difference in doing sequences in class and running a full course.  Newbie dogs need continued motivation.  They should be rewarded frequently and often.  I just think that the trial environment is going to be incredibly overwhelming.  IMO, everyone should attend at least one trial before entering one.  Even better if you can work at one.

I guess I just don't understand the huge hurry to trial.  I know of more than one dog who completely shut down from being pushed to trial too soon.  It's much safer to hold off a bit longer and fly through the levels than to start too early and ruin your dog's confidence and be stuck in novice forever (or worse yet, quit agility entirely).

You should be able to get through an Open level course before you compete in Novice, I think.  In the horse world we always want to be schooling a level above where we compete because the show environment is incredibly distracting and we expect only a 70% performance from our animals.  The same is true for the dogs.

tashakota

  I've never done ASCA so can't say how the Novice judges are, but in CPE they are very laid back.  In USDAA, they are laid back to a point.

Typically, if you go to a trial and do not volunteer, you can leave after your run and many people do.  However, if it's your first trial, I recommend staying and helping out.  this will give you lots of experience ringside and a great viewing spot to watch other people run. 

ASCA trials used to be run in conjunction with NADAC.  (I actually have some ASCA titles on my brindlewonderkid.)  Always seemed odd to me that my dog would run one course and it would count as a leg in 2 different venues.  Seems like there was some sort of fall out between the two organizations and they no longer have trials in conjunction with each other. 

Before you trial, you want to make sure your dog is very comfortable with all the equipment.  That means getting the dog on other equipment.  Dogs don't generalize well, so if he's only been on one teeter before, he needs to be exposed to other teeters before he's put into a trial setting.  Are there any run through's in your area?  Other places you can go practice?

None that I know of.  But it will only be jumps and tunnels.  I do only have one jump at the moment.  I should probably have DH build me 2 more and maybe I should buy a tunnel.

 I'm a little unsure about the rush to trial also. She is usually very careful about taking things slow and making sure the dog is comfortable.

Ah, well, that is easier for the dogs to generalize.  But sometimes strange wings can sort of freak dogs out.  So in that case, I'd work really hard on your recalls.  Take Benny to the park, parking lots, petstores, etc on a long line.  Work on recalls and focus work before your run.  good luck

If you came here asking us if we thought you should enter, I would have voted no.  But since you already are, I prefer to give encouragement and advice on things to try to help you at least have a good time.  The long line and recall suggestion by agilebasenji's is a good one.

The thing about little dogs, is that they usually stick closer to us.  I don't know if it's the size differences or what have ya, but I see more little dogs shut down and just stop as opposed to larger dogs that zoom or run out of the ring.    Could be the type of dog or the personality, but that's been what I see.

Don't go in expecting to Q and just say, ok, we're going to do the first six obstacles great! and if the rest fall into place, even better!  This way you won't be setting yourself up to be disappointed.

My first trial was about 11 months after beginning training.  It was TDAA so everything was close together and small.  Kota did great and got two Q's.  The second was USDAA and well, let's just say it took about 5 trials before he'd stay in the ring with me.     He would always come back, but he'd slip through the fencing to sniff something.  Or run into a corner to check out the tape on the floor.  lol...  so focus on one small sequence to get right and you should be golden.

And most importantly, HAVE FUN!!!!   

Oh I would just go and have fun, don't worry about it!  If it's anything like the CPE trials I've attended, there won't be a problem.  Hopefully it's the same atmosphere as CPE, super laid back.  When I was at a trial last summer, this woman invited us to sit under her tent b/c it was really hot and we got to talking about how neither of us understood the "games" and all the rules.  Well, she was actually running dogs!  Then her friend came over and dared her to run a Snookers course.  They went over and asked the judge if she could try it and the judge encouraged her to try.  The dog did like 3 obstacles and then ran out of the ring back to her husband, lol.  Everyone just laughed.  This was a week before I picked up Kenya and they were on my case about running her in their October trials, just three months away and I'd never done agility before, didn't even have my dog yet.

One nice thing about ASCA trials is that training is allowed in the ring, though not with food or toys. If your dog has touble with an ASCA course, you can switch into training mode and repeat that part of the course. You will be given until max course time to work with your dog out there. I've used ASCA trials to work on my contacts, for instance.

So from that point of view, it will probably be a more relaxed atmosphere for you and your dog. Perhaps that's why your trainer encouraged you to enter. ILike the others, I think it's rushing things a bit. But if you go in thinking training and just wanting to have some fun and gain some experience, then you and your dog should do all right. Try hard not to let yourself get stressed; your dog will know and isn't ready to handle that as yet.

ASCA Jumpers courses are similar to those in CPE and USDAA, as opposed to the tight Jummpers With Weaves courses I've encountered in the handful of AKC trials I've done.