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to CyberHound For the past few years, I have had a moderate interest in the world of agility. I would read the few articles that would appear in dog magazines, attend portions of AKC trials held locally, and listen to fellow obedience club members brag about their achievements. But it wasn’t until I actively supported Agility being part of the BHCA Versatility program that I realized this armchair enthusiasm just wasn’t enough. Agility is a "do it", not just a "watch it" kind of sport. I decided to actually take the plunge and sign up for a beginning Agility class.
Since this is a relatively new sport, lets all start off on the same level with a quick explanations:
Basically, agility is a competition where dogs and handlers run though a course full of obstacles. There are several organizations that run trials and give out titles following their own rules. NADAC and USDAA are the two oldest American organizations. They maintain their own registries that is open to all dogs, even mixbreeds. The American Kennel Club was the latest to recognize the sport. Although AKC offers fewer titles then the other two organizations, the jump heights are lower, which makes the sport more accessible for our breed.
Through AKC, there are three levels of competitive Agility: Novice, Open, and Excellent. The novice course has the fewest obstacles, a total of 12 to 13 with 10 mandatory obstacles, and no weave poles. The Open class will have 15 to 17 obstacles with 11 mandatory obstacles, and designed with more complexity and added difficulty. The Excellent courses have 18 to 20 obstacles and are designed with the most difficulty. Each level is separated into five divisions dictated by the required jump heights. Dogs over 10 and up to 14 inches at the withers (which covers most Basset Hounds) are in the 12 inch division. The 16 inch division is for dogs who are 18 inches and under at the withers.
There are sixteen types of obstacles that can be used on a course. These include a Dog Walk, Seesaw, A-Frame, Pause Table, Open Tunnel, Closed Tunnel, Single Bar Jumps, Other Single Jumps, Panel Jump, Double Oxer Jump, Triple Oxer Jump, Tire (Circle) Jump, Window Jump, Broad Jump, and Weave Pools. The dog walk, seesaw, and A-frame are considered contact obstacles. Contact zones are designated areas, painted a different color, at both ends of each obstacle. The dog is required to touch the contact zones on these obstacles to receive a qualifying run. The pause table is usually set in the middle of the course. The dog is require to jump on it, and lay down or sit (at the discretion of the judge) for five seconds.
The runs are timed, and there is a maximum time limit allotted for the dog to run the course. Dog/handler teams start out with a perfect score of 100 points, deductions are marked if the dog goes off course, balks at an obstacle, or takes an excessive amount of time to run the course.
In my area, I felt lucky because there were three different classes running within a 50 mile radius of my home. Of course, it wasn’t until I tried to enroll that I found out that, due to the small class sizes, there is often a two to three class waiting list for beginners classes. So my idea of starting this past Spring was postponed until August. Then the next surprise. The only class available started at 6:00 p.m. Obviously, when I usually didn’t arrive home until 5:45 p.m. and the class was an additional 40 miles away, this was not going to be easy. To complicate things, my boss is not sympathetic when it comes to "Dog Things". Trying to get time off to go to any dog related activity is next to impossible. A few hypothetical medical appointments made in the late afternoon, a series of bribes to husband and family, plus creative driving skills, I managed to make seven of the eight training sessions (only missing the day after another of my bitches whelped eight puppies)
My choice was pretty obvious. I would make my six year old spayed female "Cori Beth" my agility victim. We have been working in obedience for about three years, and had recently embarrassed ourselves in several Open A competitions. I knew she was physically sound and able to jump (when she felt so inclined). I knew everything would not be a bed of roses, but what I had not anticipated was that her extensive training in obedience would start out as a hindrance to our agility training. "Cori Beth" as most other advanced obedience dogs knows to work on my left. To her, she only wanted to work from the left. In agility, the dog must learn to work from either side. Since even a basset can out run me, it was imperative that she work on my right as most of the courses are set up to be run in a counter-clockwise direction. Running the perimeter of the course was not my idea of fun. We were a comical pair in the first few classes with her making circles around me before taking an obstacle. It wasn’t until week 5 that the light bulb went off, and she became more interested in the obstacles than where I was.
Before the class, we were told to leave our competitive nature at home and bring lots of food and a sense of humor. Although agility looks easy from the sidelines, it is actually a very intricate sport filled with strategy, timing, and ingenuity. It also involves a lot of running. Each class started with us doing laps around the course to warm the dogs up. There was a lot of heavy breathing during the classes as all of us out of shape handlers tried to keep up with our dogs.
The idea of agility is to teach your dog to take the obstacle to which you direct him. You must first teach your dog to listen to you, but to watch the obstacles in front of him. To do this, you use food to target him forward. While I held Cori on one side of a single bar jump, the instructor, on the other side of the jump, excitedly showed her a piece of food and got her attention on it. She then placed the food on a target (a small plastic cover), and stood back. At this point, I gave Cori a "wait" command, and moved to the side of the jump. As the command "Over" left my lips, she was in mid-air over the jump, her mouth open in anticipation of her juicy snack (who said basset hounds were slow learners). By the end of the night, we were doing two jumps in a row. By the next class, we were up to two jumps and a tunnel. On the rare occasion that Cori would swing out around an obstacle rather than B-Line it to the food, her treat would be snatched up away from her. She soon learned that her reward would only come after a successful run.
Contact equipment such as the A-Frame, Dog Walk, or Seesaw were taught with lots of food and modified equipment. In the beginning, the obstacles were lowered, and baited with many tidbits of food. The A-Frame was taught first. It turned into a smorgestbourg for "Cori". She basically ate her way across (this immediately became her favorite obstacle). As she became more comfortable with the equipment, the food was reduced until there was only one piece left at the end. By the end of eight weeks, "Cori Beth" had been on all the contact equipment. Although insecure on the seesaw, she had no reservations on the Dog Walk (of course I had enough anxiety on that one for both of us).
When the class ended, it was time to assess our experience. Of the eight dogs that started the Beginners class (four of which were repeats); Cori was the only Basset and the only hound. We had endured many "short dog" jokes, dispelled the myth that basset hounds are lazy or slow, proved that not all dogs can jump up on an 18" table, and made new friends. I knew that Cori had enjoyed the classes as she was in major "body-wag" mode from the time we left for class until she would fall asleep on the way home. The saddest part about our "graduation" was learning that our instructor was about to take a three month hiatus from classes for personal reasons.
One month later, I have several new agility obstacles scattered around my yard, a new library of agility articles, and "Cori" and I are signed up to attend another class this month. As with other dog activities (like obedience, tracking, and conformation), agility is addicting. I encourage everyone to at least take the time to watch a trial. Don’t just watch the dogs, also take a look at the support of the other exhibitors. The camaraderie and enthusiasm is contagious. I am sure that at least some of you will be intrigued enough to "test" the agility waters. One thing is for sure, you and your dog will have a lot of fun, and at least one very hilarious "war" story.