Agility Equipment in Public Dog Parks

Ribbon cutting on the beautiful new agility equipment!

Today the Lake in the Hills dog park had an "open house" which included a ribbon-cutting on some beautiful new agility equipment.  The equipment includes a half-height teeter-totter, half-height dog walk and A-frame, several jumps, two tables and a set of weave poles.  I applaud the efforts of the Boy Scout, who worked tirelessly on this Eagle Scout project to make his dream a reality-- in the hopes that he could teach his own dog some agility.

Many owners think it would be fun to try agility with their dogs, but maybe they don't have the money or time to take agility classes.  If you want to try the agility equipment in a dog park, here are some tips for getting started.

1.)  Do not force your dog to do anything he's not comfortable doing.   Bring lots of small, tasty treats so you can reward your dog when he does something that makes him nervous-- like taking a step onto the dog walk.  Be generous with the treats!  Imagine that you are afraid of heights, and your friend wants you to climb a 150-ft. ladder for a one-dollar bill.  Would you do it?  Not too likely, but how about if your friend gave you $100 for every 5 rungs you climbed? I'll bet you'd climb at least 5 rungs, maybe more.  The same goes for your best friend:  give him a treat when he puts his front paws on an obstacle if he is nervous.  Give another treat if he gets another paw up.  He doesn't have to conquer the dog walk on a single outing. Patience and consistency are worth more than gold when it comes to dog training!

2.)  Please be very cautious when other dogs are around. Your dog may not be able to focus on the equipment when he'd rather play with other friends.  Especially use caution if someone else is trying to use the agility equipment.  The last thing you want is two dogs meeting at the top of an A-frame or halfway across the dogwalk.   The best time to work on agility equipment is when nobody else is around and your dog can focus on you and the obstacles ahead of him.

3.)  No leashes, please!  Leashes can get tangled in the jumps or accidentally pull your dog off an obstacle.  If you think you need the leash to guide your dog up to the obstacle, then you need to spend more time working with your dog's focus before attempting any obstacles.  The weave poles may look safe enough, but it is very difficult to teach your dog the correct way to go through the weave poles, and if his leash wraps around a pole and pulls him out, it will be much more difficult to get him in next time.  You can use a treat in front of his nose to guide him through, instead.

4.)  The teeter-totter is a very scary obstacle for most dogs at first.  Many dogs in agility classes are scared of the sound of the teeter banging on the ground--- and this is before they even approach it!  Work with treats to get your dog to climb up the teeter, then gently push the end to the ground  to encourage your dog to walk off it carefully.  Agility competitions require that dogs touch both the first and last parts of the teeter, A-frame, and dog walk so that they don't hurt themselves by flying off an obstacle in midair.   A good way to encourage your dog to the bottom of an obstacle, without jumping off, is to place a treat at the bottom for him each and every time he goes over it.  He will learn to expect that treat at the bottom and will look for it every time.  Once your dog is not afraid of going on the teeter, A-frame, or dogwalk, ALWAYS move with him in the direction he is moving.  You never want your dog to turn around on any of these, which could happen if you stop or move away from the equipment.  Your job is "moral support," to be next to the dog on this equipment!

5.)  Jumps are the easiest things for the dogs to start learning.  To teach your dog how to jump, set the jump height very low and run with your dog next to you, jumping over the jump with him.   Praise and reward him when he achieves this baby step!  The next step might be to set the jump a little bit higher, again running and jumping with your dog, using a cue such as "Jump!" to tell him what to expect.  The next step is to run alongside your dog, cueing him to "Jump!" while passing next to the jump.  If the dog tries to run around the jump, don't make a fuss over him, but don't reward or praise him, either.  Another method is to throw a toy or treat over the jump and encourage the dog to "Jump!" to get it.

6.)  In agility competitions, the table requires a lot of self-control for a dog.  The dog has to jump on the table and stay on it until you tell him he can come off.  Most dogs like running and jumping, and waiting at the table is just a pain!  To teach this in classes, we give small treats between the dog's paws almost continuously until we release the dog with a release word such as "Go!' or "Free!" and maybe a treat tossed in the direction we want them to go.

7.)  Have fun!  If you find yourself getting frustrated, let the dog do something he is good at ("Sit!...  Good sit!") and end on a good note.  Dogs can easily read our emotions, so try not to train when you are frustrated or mad at your dog.    Dogs have good days and bad days, and don't get discouraged if your dog suddenly seems to not "get it."   That is a normal part of the learning curve.