Puppy Class Nearing an End

Mo has just one week left in his Beginner I agility class at Dog Haven, and he has certainly made the most of his time there. He has learned a lot, and has progressed quickly. We've now been introduced to all the fundamental agility obstacles (jump, tunnel, a-frame, teeter, broad jump, weave polls, dog walk, tire jump, pause table) as well as some good footwork obstacles (agility ladder, booja board) that you don't see in competition. 

However, I think one of the best results of the class is how much WE have learned.

When you run one dog, you get very accustomed to their running style, how they respond to cues, and their interaction with you as you run. I've ran other dogs before, but they've all been somewhat similar to Harley's style of running. Little adjustments, but nothing major.

Mo is a completely different case. Deb, our trainer, says he definitely runs like a border collie does. Where Harley can make hair-pin turns at almost full speed, Mo makes wide arcing turns. These differences highlight an important aspect of class: the dog is not the only one training. Handlers have to train their minds to think of how their dog will run a particular set of obstacles.

This understanding between person and dog takes a while and prospers most when on a regular training schedule. It's the main reason someone can't just run another handler's dog in competition. While some dogs will certainly run with a different handler, if no prior work has been done with the dog and handler, the handler is really just winging it and hoping the run is clean and the dog listens. It gets even more confusing for the dog if the handler isn't briefed on what the owner calls each obstacle. A good example: an agility friend of ours has a very accomplished Doberman whose verbal commands are all Italian! 


Coming full circle, these beginning classes have been hugely beneficial to both Mo and his handlers. The best thing about beginner class coming to an end is that the next class will be arriving shortly!

Mo Starts Puppy Agility Class

Fresh from our trip to Arizona, we started puppy agility class at Dog Haven with Mo!

For those of you who are interested in starting agility, we'll try and give you a good picture of what to expect here. It certainly is a humbling experience going through the beginner class now that we've been trialing with our other dog, Harley, for several years now. As an added bonus, we had several friends in the class with us (Susette & Archie, Katie & Rosy, with Laura co-teaching with Deb!)

First class is all about acclimating dogs to the obstacles. There are a lot of different obstacles you will encounter on an agility course, and it takes time for you dog to 1) get used to what the heck they are and 2) consistently perform the obstacle correctly on command. The best advice is to GO SLOW!!!! Don't do too much too fast. Don't expect your dog to start agility and be in a trial next month. Training too hard could lead to injury due to unsafe execution of obstacles, or your dog could just burn out and decide "I hate this agility class mom and dad make me go to!"

This class we focused on leg awareness exercises, and acclimation to jumps, weave polls, and the A-Frame.

The leg-awareness exercises included walking over polls, and going through the agility ladder. Each of these are designed to make your dog aware of where they are putting their feet. This is important when they have to negotiate a dog walk or teeter, where it is very narrow, and they have to hit the contact zone.

Mo was definitely scared of the A-Frame at first. With a scared dog, DON'T FORCE IT! Take it slow so that they learn to enjoy the tasks at hand. Forcing it creates a negative experience and will make them not want to continue. Mo is proof of this. After taking it slow, he was LOVING the frame by the end of class.

Weave Polls are the hardest thing to teach a dog to do. Think about it: a dog has to enter the weaves with its left shoulder, then know to weave in and out of each poll and not skipping any. This is not something a dog naturally knows how to do! It takes a LOT of work to get good, consistent weaves. In this class, we started going through the weaves in a V-Channel. Each weave poll is angled so when you look down the center, it looks like a V. The dogs walk through the center. This method gets them used to picking up their feet going through the polls, and learning to go straight through the polls.

After instruction, we had some free play time at the end of class to practice. All in all, it felt great to be back to square one with a new dog! Laura did a wonderful job taking duties as a first time instructor under Deb. We're looking forward to next week!