Advice on agility

[Ernies mum]

Hi all

Ernies almost 6 months and is a working cocker spaniel . My aim has always been to Chanel his active little mind and body into something fun . I joined puppy classes for socialisation , to do some basic training and picked a particular trainer and class as she also does agility classes . During the puppy classes we encourage the puppies to go through the tunnels and around the cones and ernie loves it . Last week I was discussing with the dog trainer more about agility . At the moment she doesn't have any outdoor space for the agility class so holds it indoors in a village hall . She's said that the few dogs that attend the agility class get very excited and are very vocal whilst the other dogs are going over the equipment. She's advised me to think about whether I defenetely want to attend the class as she's said it could turn ernie into a much more vocal dog ( currently he sits nicely in class whilst the other puppies practice their turn at obedience etc .

I'm looking for some advice from others on the forum that attend agility classes and what their experiences have been and what to look for in a class ?

[Ernies mum]

Wanted to add, I have no problem with ernie barking during agility whilst he's having a good time , I'm just a little confused by the trainer implying that it could become a learned habit and make him more vocal generally and I'd prefer not to have a dog that barks at everything  !!

[HelenS]

Firstly I didnt think it was advisable for a dog to do agility until 1yr old at least (until they have stopped growing and their bones have developed)
Our agility trainer doesn't start them until they are 18months
Cupar does agility and must say he barks all the way round the course (as do a lot of dogs) I dont think it makes him any more vocal  A lot of spaniels are "vocal" dogs anyway 

[Patp]

I too agree that he is a little too young yet, although it might take 12 months to find a good agility class near you.

In the meantime (and I wished I had done this with Jinley) why dont you find a good gun dog trainer and have a couple of lessons?

You and Ernie will benefit tremendously and it will open all sorts of activity opportunities in the future (and help with obedience when you do find a class)

[elaine.e]

Agility clubs don't usually take dogs under at least 12 months old unless they have foundation courses that don't involve jumping, just groundwork.

Personally I wouldn't attend agility classes in a village hall because the floor is going to be slippery. Even if your trainer has some rubber mats I doubt if there is a way of making a village hall floor a suitable surface for agility.

If you are hoping to compete in the future you'd be better finding an agility club in your area and contacting them. Many of them have long waiting lists, so the sooner the better. This website http://www.agilitynet.com/ has a clubs and trainers section where you can see if there's anything local to you. To me it sounds like your trainer does fun agility classes, which is fine if you have no intention of competing. But most trainers who train fun agility don't train to the same standard as those who compete and making the switch from fun to competitive can then be tricky because you and your dog probably won't have been taught how to do weave poles etc. properly. Apologies if I've got that wrong about your trainer, but from what you've posted she sounds like a dog trainer who does a bit of agility training for fun rather than an agility trainer. There's a big difference between the two

[wendall]

Definitely no jumping before aged one. Agility can be fun for the dogs and hard work for the owner Honey loves it but can be easily distracted by the smells as we do it in an equestrian centre   

[Max X 2]

I echo what people have said, the majority of clubs won't start training until the dogs are 12 months old.  However there is a lot of foundation work that could be done from a younger age, although my concern is always that the dog picks these things up quickly & owners could be inclined to do more

If you're on facebook there's a group called agility & flyball cocker spaniels, where you could always ask if there are any other clubs near you

My two are both very vocal on the course, although if they're still listening I tend not to notice 
Harry finds the whole atmosphere very exciting, always did from day 1 when he went to shows before he'd even started training.  Shame I've had to retire him so early because of his hip dysplasia
Max on the other hand, his main thing is where's the nearest food stalls

[Ben's mum]

Max on the other hand, his main thing is where's the nearest food stalls

Made me smile, Ben once at a show did a stunning clear round at great speed and just carried on out the exit to sit in front of a burger van  how embarrassing.

Ben was very vocal while taking part in agility, but was never bothered about making a noise when other dogs were running, if it wasn't his turn he switched off, so I think it depends on your dog. I agree with the others about waiting till a year at least, but I do wish I had started earlier practicing waits and getting good left/right commands so perhaps you could start on that now. Hope you both enjoy it, agility is great fun

[wendall]

Hope this works, a short video of Honey on Monday

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=712292045516514&set=vb.383440885068300&type=2&theater

[Max X 2]

Max on the other hand, his main thing is where's the nearest food stalls

Made me smile, Ben once at a show did a stunning clear round at great speed and just carried on out the exit to sit in front of a burger van  how embarrassing.

Max does this after EVERY run if the stalls are close enough, I just casually collect his lead etc & head over there.  I see people's faces on the verge of shouting "lose dog".   A friends youngster was with us recently, he found it highly amusing telling everybody that "Max went shopping" 

It's when he thinks about going mid-course, or even at the start of the course, like this weekend when it becomes a challenge

[aljeana]

Whilst Ernie is still very young there are tricks & games that you can start to teach him in readiness for basic agility foundation.

Clicker is very good to get your dog to think what you want to offer you a behaviour so you could start teaching going round a cone but put a directional command to it so he learns left & right you can use clicker or toys for this.

Teaching control of their legs is good so teaching them to stand on a box or step front feet on then try teaching back feet on step then all four feet, make challenge harder by making step or box smaller.

Wobble cushions are good do same sort of thing with them.

Cardboard boxes cut sides down & teach him to step in & out you can shape this to be 2 front feet out back feet in this can be used towards contact training.

Ball games are good ask for a sit or someone hold him you run out & call him with your toy get him to turn into you when you stop this helps teach the dog to de accelerate. You can do the opposite & send a toy out in front & send him with you running so he runs past you .

There is loads of very basic games & tricks that work towards agility that can be taught now as they are not load bearing but build focus,drive & control.

Some good web sites are about but most you have to pay for www.agilitysecrets.co.uk with Laura Chudley is very good

[Ernies mum]

Hope this works, a short video of Honey on Monday

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=712292045516514&set=vb.383440885068300&type=2&theater

[Ernies mum]

Wow love the video of honey 

[Ernies mum]

Thanks for all your advice everyone . Don't worry I'm not planning on doing proper agility with ernie til he's at least a year old . The bits we do are at the end of the obedience class and are just for bit of fun - no jumps , just a tunnel , walking around the cones and occasionally a quick go on the wobble board .
I will start looking round for agility classes so at least I can put Ernies name down as I don't think like Elaine said jumping on a wooden floor is a good idea , or maybe fly ball although at the mo bringing a ball back is working progress  !!

Once again lots of great advice thanks guys .