Dog Agility Training

If, either by accident or design, you have a dog that can be trained to show its natural agility ability, then you may have a pet under your roof that can be trained to participate in national or even international trials and bring you a lot of pride, fun and a deep bond with your dog.

Many dogs were breed to "work" and since the majority of dogs no longer are working farms or rooting out varmints, they can get bad habits due to boredom. In self-defense, many owners are giving these clever companions a "job" as an agility dog and the dogs love it. The point of dog agility training is to train your a dog to perform any type of activity in a highly structured form. Activities such as a jumping through over and under certain obstacles, or weave in and out or between poles. Not only to jump and weave, but to do so in a highly disciplined form, without putting a single paw out of step, and in perfect coordination and contact with their trainer or owner.

Dog agility training first became popular in the United Kingdom in the nineteen seventies, and was brought to international recognition by the annual Crufts Dog Show heal every year in London. There, under the pomp and ceremony that only the British can create, dogs of all varieties, size and color are put through their paces under the watchful of a judge, each a specialist of a particular variety, who will present a modest prize and a winning ribbon, which adds tremendous value to the dog for breeding purposes.

Before embarking on its career as a competitor at dog agility shows, or even to amuse the family with its repertoire of dog agility tricks, your dog should under a more in-depth examination by the family veterinarian. Its back and front legs as well as its hips, should be strong and it should be in general health to withstand the rigors of agility training.

Once we have ascertained that the dog is fit and healthy enough, we should begin to embark on its ability training. The dog should already be able to follow the basic commands such as 'sit,' 'lie down' and 'come.' Most people who have taken any dog through the various stages of agility training will already have some kind of plan how to do it, and how much can they expect of their dog.

The trainer should never allow themselves to forget that this form of training is meant to be a pursuance of a hobby, and not demand too much of themselves or of their family pet. The prizes and the recognition can be very tempting, but shouldn't be arrived at any price. The purpose of agility training is that a dog can make its way, with the help of the handler, through various obstacles on an obstacle course. They can include such diversions as poles, tunnels, ramps and jumps.

To allow the dog to withstand this challenge, the owner/trainer should gradually introduce the dog to all these tests, but a beginners level, As the dog begins to master the art, like any good trainer, the owner will begin to "raise the barrier" slightly every time, whilst encouraging the dog all along the way.

Slowly but surely the dog's abilities will increase till it will be ready to begin to take part in local ability trials and gain experience under tournament conditions. Eventually, and hopefully not in the too distant future, if the trainer/owner has done his work properly, the dog will take home some kind of a prize. This will be a very significant moment in the dog/owner relationship and will help to cement a bond which will remain for the rest of their lives together.

After that first win, the owner may decide that they have reached their pinnacle together, others recognize it as just being the start, and spend a lot of their free time training and taking part in agility competitions both on the national and international stage.