Dog agility is an exciting world of fun and competition, and if you are thinking about joining in on the experience, you will need to do some basic research to understand a little bit about what is involved in training, competing and equipment. Here are a few basic bits of information that will give you a general idea of what dog agility is all about.
Dogs compete on an agility field or agility course, and these terms mean the same thing. A variety of apparatus are set up on the course and these are known as obstacles. Some obstacles are contact obstacles, and that means just what you think, the dog has direct contact with these obstacles. These include dog agility a-frames, the teeter totter and the dog walk.
There are many other obstacles set up on the course, such as the pause table. This might seem like contact equipment, but it is not classified as such even though the dog does sit and stay on this equipment for a required amount of time. Sometimes, in place of a pause table, there is a pause box. This is a square marked off on the ground. While it looks different, you practice the same skills that you would on an elevated pause table.
There are many other obstacles included on the course. You usually will see a pipe tunnel and a collapsible tunnel which also might be called a chute. One of the most amazing sites is watching the dogs navigate the weave poles, and there might be as many as one dozen poles to weave through. This is considered to be one of the most difficult elements for dogs to master. Of course, there also will be a variety of jumps including a tire jump as well as other hurdles. A spread hurdle, which is either a double jump or a triple jump, will be set up, too. These are jumps that require a dog to leap a great distance. Sometimes there are other obstacles such as a swing plank or log jumps, but these are not nearly as typical.
The person who leads the dog through the course is called the handler, and that might be you or perhaps you have hired a professional handler. The dog and handler form a team. You score is based in part on the time it takes you to complete each obstacle and the entire course as well as the accuracy of handling each obstacle. Handlers can use body signals or spoken commands to lead the dog through the course but no treats or other incentives. Your score is determined by the number of faults that you receive. There are course faults given if the dog fails to navigate an obstacle or navigate it correctly, such as knocking down the bar on one of your jumps. Each course must be navigated within a specific amount of time. If you go over this time, time faults are given.
Certainly competitions have their fair share of regulations, but it truly is all about having a great time with our furry companions. They are enjoying the challenge of completing the obstacles and get some much-needed exercise and spending a bunch of time with their favorite person - you. Visit Carlson Agility and you will find every imaginable piece of agility equipment that you might need. They even have mini obstacles that have been scaled down to suit the needs of smaller dogs and, of course, puppies.
Dogs compete on an agility field or agility course, and these terms mean the same thing. A variety of apparatus are set up on the course and these are known as obstacles. Some obstacles are contact obstacles, and that means just what you think, the dog has direct contact with these obstacles. These include dog agility a-frames, the teeter totter and the dog walk.
There are many other obstacles set up on the course, such as the pause table. This might seem like contact equipment, but it is not classified as such even though the dog does sit and stay on this equipment for a required amount of time. Sometimes, in place of a pause table, there is a pause box. This is a square marked off on the ground. While it looks different, you practice the same skills that you would on an elevated pause table.
There are many other obstacles included on the course. You usually will see a pipe tunnel and a collapsible tunnel which also might be called a chute. One of the most amazing sites is watching the dogs navigate the weave poles, and there might be as many as one dozen poles to weave through. This is considered to be one of the most difficult elements for dogs to master. Of course, there also will be a variety of jumps including a tire jump as well as other hurdles. A spread hurdle, which is either a double jump or a triple jump, will be set up, too. These are jumps that require a dog to leap a great distance. Sometimes there are other obstacles such as a swing plank or log jumps, but these are not nearly as typical.
The person who leads the dog through the course is called the handler, and that might be you or perhaps you have hired a professional handler. The dog and handler form a team. You score is based in part on the time it takes you to complete each obstacle and the entire course as well as the accuracy of handling each obstacle. Handlers can use body signals or spoken commands to lead the dog through the course but no treats or other incentives. Your score is determined by the number of faults that you receive. There are course faults given if the dog fails to navigate an obstacle or navigate it correctly, such as knocking down the bar on one of your jumps. Each course must be navigated within a specific amount of time. If you go over this time, time faults are given.
Certainly competitions have their fair share of regulations, but it truly is all about having a great time with our furry companions. They are enjoying the challenge of completing the obstacles and get some much-needed exercise and spending a bunch of time with their favorite person - you. Visit Carlson Agility and you will find every imaginable piece of agility equipment that you might need. They even have mini obstacles that have been scaled down to suit the needs of smaller dogs and, of course, puppies.
About the Author:
Cheng Bernhardt loves dog agility training. To discover a dog obstacle course, or to find more agility dog training equipment such as agility jumps, please go to the Carlson-Agility.com website today.
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