Dog Sports Ten Point Plan to learn Agility
Over the last ten years many people have said to me that they wanted to train their dogs to do Agility. Over this period I have only managed 4 people who have gone all the way with it and trained their dogs to be able to achieve national competition standards. Although to be fair I have some current trainees who are just brilliant and I have high hopes for them. However, the fall off in numbers of trainees as the training becomes more demanding, is very high.
Let's look at the positives, the facts and the negatives.
If you want to compete in agility your dog needs to be fit. It needs a fitness program of walking, running, swimming, stretching and it needs to have a very good diet. The dog should not be carrying any fat. This is fantastic for the look of the dog, but most people find it very hard to limit the amount of food they are feeding and to keep up a fitness program for the dog.
The handler needs a degree of fitness too. Walking, running, swimming and watching weight so you can keep up with your dog is a wonderful incentive to keep in good shape so that you can wear appropriately athletic clothing when competing in the Sport.
In order to do Agility your dog needs a degree of obedience work. In fact I believe that Obedience work should be a daily occurrence and used in your warm up regime prior to doing work on Agility equipment. So every day you need to get out there with your dog and do some heel work some sits, waits recalls, stays in stand, down and sit. Obedience work tends to increase the bonding between the handler and dog, and the body language the handler wants to use plus the verbal commands the handler wants to use, become normal communication devices.
So by the time your dog is 8 months old you should be able to jog along with your dog on both your right side and your left side and your dog should be able to be sent forward from this position and be recalled back to either the right or left side. You should be able to jog along stop suddenly and ask your dog for a stand wait, move on and call your dog up to either your right or left side. Now some people say, oh come on I just want to do the Agility equipment, well sorry folks, I am really strict about pauses on the down contacts, I am a stickler for 'Waits' at the start line and I like a dog who knows a send-away when it is asked for. The Agility gear is neither here nor there if you have a dog that knows your body language, trusts you to the degree he will try his best and is able to do basic commands then the gear will be a doddle.
I like to teach the gear object by object and blitz it so that the dog knows each piece and what to do with it. I am not actually a great fan for starting on course work straight off, although in my Play to Learn class we do little sequences from the start such as hurdle (no crossbar) tunnel hurdle in a line.
The biggest problem that all my learners have is the weaves. This is not a problem for the dog, it is a problem for the handler who has watched others doing fast and fancy weaves and cannot get their head around doing it themselves. I run weaves clinics frequently mostly to get the handlers understanding the methods available to teach their dog to weave. Some go off home and put their stakes in the ground and practice every single day a couple of times a day. These are the minority and these people get their weaves going really quickly. Others think that coming to class once a week is going to do it, and I have to tell them it won't, I also have to tell them that the longer they are marooned in open weaves or two by twos or whatever the harder it will be for the dog to move on to the next stage. In the old days I was told that three times a day practice for three months and you will have a great weaver. I find that three months is about right. Two months and dogs can basically get through 12 weave poles three months and you are starting to lengthen the send into the weaves and get the dog used to the distraction of a tunnel or hurdle at the end of the weaves. So that should be the standard we hope to achieve.
So the gear isn't the thing that is going to be difficult to achieve. What most people lack is 'THE GAME'. Getting people to play with their dog and to take that play into the Obedience work and into the Agility courses is the hardest thing to achieve. If I have someone come for training who is playing tug with their dog, is able to throw the tug and the dog brings it back for more tug, is able to transfer tug to ball retrieve, playing soccer or chasing a long rope with a toy tied to the end then I am over the moon. This tells me:
1. This person loves this dog and enjoys playing with it
2. This person has taken time out to teach this dog to play with rules around no jumping up no biting etc.
3. This person understands that as long as there is fun for the dog, the dog will come back to his handler will listen to his handler and will try to do whatever the game is that his handler is showing him.
So we are more than half way there. I know that that person will practice their Obedience and play tug, will do their weaves every day and play ball with their dog. This is the person who will succeed in Agility and there are not that many of them. Oh sure there are a lot of people doing Agility and that is what it is the people are running around on courses with dogs who are frightened, bored, unsure, and distracted. Not much fun in that. So please take time out to play with your dog every day and you will see the difference it makes with his training. I love playing with my dogs. some days I feel busy and down and I think MUST PLAY with the dogs. I get out there and I start laughing and they have me on and we tease each other and eye each other. Ten minutes and I am a new woman my troubles and stresses have melted away... not just for the dogs' benefit is it!
So here is a program to get you competing with your dog at Agility using Dog Sports Classes and Competitions. Basically you need to attend classes twice a week once your dog is six months old.
1. Do the free puppy class with your under six month old pup.
2. Move to 'Control' Class when dog is six months old and learn the pattern of commands you need to keep your dog working for you. Class costs $5 (plus $2 for rent) and is at 10a.m. on Saturday morning This class also teaches tunnel and hurdles.
3. At six months old also join 'Play to Learn' on a Monday night at 5.30 where you will also do the control exercises plus learning each piece of Agility equipment and how to do it. You will learn what faults you will incur if you do the equipment incorrectly and also learn 'safe practices' around the equipment to avoid injury to both your dog and yourself. This class is also $5 (plus $2 for rent).
4. You are now a qualified 'Learner' and can come once a month to Dog Sports on a Saturday Afternoon at 1p.m. and show off the skills and control you have by competing in the Learners Competition Club Agility. There are ribbons to be won and it is a great test of just where you are at. This Competition is $4 entry.
5. By the time your dog is 10 months old it is time to start learning the weave poles seriously. Join a Weaves Clinic. $50 for eleven weaves lessons, guaranteed to have your dog weaving six straight poles.
6. If you are going well and your dog is 13 months old and is weaving six poles then you will probably need a little bit of one on one as well as class work. One on ones are $10 each for an hour at a time that suits you or $50 for eleven twenty minute to half hour sessions tacked on the end of Monday night or Saturday about midday. These sessions need to be booked with me.
7. Following on from this you will be joining the Wednesday night Senior Agility Class and doing the work you need to do to achieve 18 piece courses using all of the Agility Equipment. This class is also $5 (plus $2 rent).
8. I would probably advise you to come to Tuesday night Obedience class as well as an opportunity to fine tune your handling skills. It also aids the dog's concentration. Remember you will need your dog's attention for about 30 seconds to get from start to finish of an Agility course. You both need to learn how to concentrate on each other. Another $5 for this class (plus $2 rent).
9. Your Dog is 18 months old the age at which the Kennel Club says you can compete in their National Competitions. Dog Sports Rotorua will take you to a Ribbon Show and help you get your dog measured for the height he will officially jump. At that show you will participate in your first Ribbon Agility Course which will be Elementary B. Dog Sports will encourage you to become part of the monthly team at our Club to do NALA - National Agility Link Association. This will give you the opportunity to do top class Agility Courses and to get a ranking in New Zealand for your sized dog.
10. Now after about 15 months to two years training you have reached your goal of being an Agiliteer. There is still lots more coaching and training to do to be a top achiever but you will also know by now whether you like it or not and whether you want to pursue the full Kennel Club Membership Agility Champs and Jumpers Champs. Congratulations you have achieved the Dog Sports Ten Point Plan to learn Agility.
If you decide not to do Agility then there is always Flygility which is even more fun. We will talk about that another day....
