Does anyone do agilty with their dog? I'm really keen on starting it with Maisy but have to wait as she's not one yet, only 6weeks to wait tho!
Can you start any agilty before 1? or is it best to wait?
I would love to get some equipment to practice at home with, any ideas on what to get or any training advice? Eva

Were i take my dog training she dose it and my little girls just goes mad on her own on the course she loves it

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I do agility with buster, he loves it he can be going bonkers one minute but the second we get on the course he suddenly focusses and does it perfect....the minute we finish he goes back to the bonkers state lol.

When we first started i set up a few practice jumps etc in the spare room... got some bits of conduit for jumps, a couple of chairs back to back with a sheet over it to simulate a tunnel. But thats cos i dont have a very big garden. I know of people that have home made mini courses in their back garden at low cost! Or if you have the money to, and a good size garden you can buy practice agilty kit from places online.

when i was trainin buster i would concentrate on one or two bits at a time, with command, then started chaining them together once he was familiar with the commands (i.e jump - tunnel - weave)

Also, i heard you shouldnt start before one due to stress on joints etc. but i do know of dogs that have started younger, buster was about 18months when we started so wouldnt like to say one way or the other.

I might be wrong but I thought it was 18 months for agility? No doubt you can still go and do light work with her though. I used to do flyball with my poodle x but had to stop because he started getting over excited and would bite me after retrieveing the ball!!! He did do some agility but to Sidney life is all about the ball so unless I had a ball in my hand he didn't do any of the course!!! Nut case that he is!!

I'm sure you'll have great fun, it's a lovely way of bonding and enjoying time with your dog...also you'll get some exercise too!!!

It may well be 18months, i'm not 100% sure. it may even depend on the breed of dog (terriers mature at a different rate to a Leonberger for example ) Either way it may be worth asking your vet or agility trainer to be sure.

I tried flyball with buster, but he was rubbish at catching the ball...it kept bouncing off his nose when it popped up lol.

Hey, you can get dog agility stuff from pets at home, i know they have jumps and tunnels. you could even stick some poles in the ground to teach weaving. you could use an old table to practice when they get the dog to jump onto it and lie down. a few planks of wood on some bricks or something can make jums too, as my dads gf used to do agility with her lurcher and my dad made her some props.

I used to get my collie x alsatian to climb along the seesaw in our park, and jump over things. lol. he loved it!

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-MY DOGS ARE NOT MY WHOLE LIFE- BUT THEY MAKE MY LIFE WHOLE-

Dave and Dixie
Milo and Maisy

depends on the breed - mine are weimaraners and I am waiting for my young one until she is around 15 months - having said that she has done very small jumps at training class. I brought weave poles almost a year ago - itching to use those - but again waiting a little longer as I want her fully developed.
regards
DT

Thanks for the info.

I spoke to my local agilty trainers and they said one, but they didnt ask what breed she was, so may be worth waiting a bit longer than that.
They also said I could take Maisy to watch, get some pointers in for when we start.
Glad to here your dogs enjoy it, I'm just really keen on getting her to do something she enjoys and I think my little boy would love to help, give them a chance to bond a bit more!
I've asked for some equipment for my birthday from my parents, but will have to be patient and keep in the attic for a little while!

Thought maybe I could practice the tunnel? as they used this at her obedience classes but dont want to risk doing any damage.
Eva and Maisy.

P.s. How do people get their pics next to their name, been trying to figure it out but cant!

It does depend on the size of the breed - essentially they need to be fully grown - smaller breeders one, medium around 15 months, larger breeds 18 months. Those are guidelines most agility trainers go by, but there are no hard and fast rules. I used to train at a club where they were allowed from 6 months, although it was more getting used to the equipment and learning commands. Poles were on the ground, the dog walk and a-frame were flat on the floor etc.... I think this definately works, but not all clubs offer this.

Have you had a look on agility.net?

[quote=Dundee;432951] I used to train at a club where they were allowed from 6 months, although it was more getting used to the equipment and learning commands. Poles were on the ground, the dog walk and a-frame were flat on the floor etc.... I think this definately works, but not all clubs offer this.

QUOTE]

Thats how we worked Dundee - When I brought my weave poles I was hoping to use them by the time this one was a year - but I have been told that the pressure on the spine using the weaves is worse then the other obsticals - have been told not to use those until she is 18month BUT - I am thinking of using longer spacing - what do you think????