Foundation Agility

Agility requires that our dogs learn many athletic skills in order to be able to negotiate the obstacles in a safe and confident manner; it also requires that we learn to communicate with our dogs so that they know what we want them to do and where we want them to go. Pre-agility or Foundation work helps develop these skills in dog and handler. Much of this can, and indeed should, be learned without recourse to any agility obstacles. The most important part of practical agility training is laying a solid foundation, and this should be the starting point for all dogs and handlers.

Even if you don’t have aspirations to compete, you can have a lot of fun teaching skills that improve and develop balance and co-ordination and build a wonderful bond with your dog. Every activity is introduced in the form of a game, with lots of rewards, and we work only at a pace suitable for each dog.

Some of the things we will be working on include:

Attention – if a dog can’t pay attention to you he can’t do agility! We work on making it worthwhile for your dog to pay attention to you, to ignore the many distractions that will be found when training around other dogs and people.

Moving together, also called groundwork – most of an agility course involves getting from one obstacle to another, preferably without the dog leaping up every step or hanging off your trouser leg! We begin to teach you how to move together, how to co-ordinate your movements so that you can execute turns and change which side of you your dog is working.

Self control – teaching them to wait on the start line or on a contact, to race to you when released, to watch other dogs working without getting over-excited, to give up a fun toy in order to get it back. Learning self control is an essential part of any dog’s training and a vital life skill.

Motivation – finding what each dog finds worth working to earn, how to use treats and toys effectively, learning the rules of play, incorporating toys into our self-control exercises.

Proprioception – awareness of where in space their limbs and bodies are, and how to use them efficiently. Most dogs don’t know where their back legs are or what they are doing; learning about this improves balance and co-ordination, essential for negotiating narrow dog walk planks or for jumping at speed. We use eggballs, balance discs, wobble boards, cavaletti, low planks and a few fun tricks to help teach dogs how to use their bodies effectively and build confidence, building your dog’s skills to manage their own bodies.

Jumping foundation – We know all dogs can jump, but that doesn’t mean they automatically know how to jump well! However, using “jump grids” we can teach them to understand the notion of taking a determined path, working out striding, organising their bodies and working away from us. This is a technique that has been used for years by the competitive horse community, and has now been developed to enhance the jumping skills of dogs.

Introduction to safe pieces of low equipment – tunnels, tyre, planks to run over, tables to climb on. Equipment is introduced at a low height to build confidence, to aid understanding, and to develop independent performance of these obstacles by your dog.

Throughout, we are also teaching our dogs to think, to problem-solve, and to enjoy the learning process!

There will be a new ‘Foundation Agility’ weekly class starting from 4th Feb 2012.

Saturdays, 1.30-2.30pm, £7 per class.

These classes are open to dogs of all ages. Exercises will be tailored to the age and ability of each dog. The classes are aimed at those wishing to teach their dogs agility to a competitive standard (though you don’t necessarily need to want to compete, just to be keen to learn how to do it properly so that you and your dog understand what you’re doing!).

The classes will either take place at our field in Camerton, weather permitting, or in bad weather will be moved to Shoscombe Hall where we can lay some rubber matting and do some simple work in the dry!More venue info here...

Because of the low-impact nature of the exercises, Foundation Agility work is suitable for pups from 12 weeks of age who may want to go on to future agility training, and is also the appropriate starting place for adult dogs interested in beginning agility training.

The benefits of starting with Foundation Agility training can clearly be demonstrated through the success of the dogs who have already followed this system through.

Katie and Tuula started their agility training with us in the Summer of 2010, and followed through our Foundation Agility course and continued on from there. In June 2011 they entered their first agility competition, and did so well that they WON the Beginners Steeplechase class, and gained 4th place in another class! (pictured)

Our own trainers, Shelley and Kay, have been following a Foundation Agility training programme with their working-line Cocker Spaniel pups Whirligig and Dazzle since they were 8 weeks old, and their progress can be seen in the series of videos on the right. Both dogs have grown into confident adult dogs who have a strong work ethic, endless enthusiasm for training, great problem-solving and thinking skills, and they are never fazed by anything. Having now started their equipment training at 12 months, their understanding of what is required and their focus on the training exercises is exceptional, and they are already well along the path to becoming future agility stars.