Dog Agility Equipment Homepage

Question: What dog agility equipment to get first?

(Posted by: Lissie on 2008-08-07 16:27:42)

To get my rat terrier started, I bought a cheap kit at mounds and it came with a 4 foot tunnel (so I really need a bigger one), some tape for a pause box (I'd prefer a real one, not a stupid tape that comes undone all the time), a jump which looks pathetic and the bars fall down if the wind hits it (ddefiantly need a new one), and weave poles, but I would like to get that last. Lily is starting to get really good with this cheap stuff and knows tunnel and almost jump (we've been doing it in a week). My aunt is a trainer so she has been helping me, however she has no spare stuff, and she told me to not take classes, there's a long story that goes to that..... I would like to know which obstacle to buy first. My aunt gave me a website so I'm going to get stuff from that. Which obstacle out of these should I start with: tunnel pause box * a frame * teeter * dog walk * chute bar jump tire jump weave poles I preferably do not want to start with the ones I put a star by. Any ideas on which to start with? Which do you think is the easiest? Lily has a very strong body and is 3. my aunt lives 45 minutes a way and we hardly ever see her. She alsohas a broken leg and toe and a bad leg and they don't think she can do agility anymore, we still talk on the phone and she thinks it is miraclulous how far she's gotten in a week, she is a very reputable trainer, and all the other classes within a 100 miles, have a very low reputation or my aunt knows and can only list bad things about them. I have attended all of them to see how it went all of the trainers except my aunt didn't care about the dogs having fun, and even a few I saw suggested kicking the dog if they didn't cooporate! And if the owner didn't do it, they would!

Posted by: Agility Man on 2008-08-07, 18:34:01

I have a rat terrier and we do agility. Your rattie is going to love this sport and love you for doing it with her. Of course she's strong--she's a rat terrier and people who don't know ratties are always astonished by their ability--that breed is nothing but muscle and tendon isn't it. Okay, a couple of tips: 1. The single most important piece of equipment to get started with is a clicker. If your'e not clicker savvy now, read up on it (go to Karen Pryor's website). Yes, you can train dogs (or other animals) without a clicker. But it speeds the process up dramatically. It's what animal trainers at sea world use with dolphins and orcas. I've seen people train chickens, cats and horses using a clicker. If your Lily is anything like my rattie or the other rat terriers I know, she picks stuff up quickly. Use a clicker and you'll be STUNNED at how fast she learns. 2. The second piece of equipment to buy is a board--about 2 " x 12 " x 8'. You'll use it to work on targeting, to work on focus, to work on contacts and eventually turn it into a cheap teeter. The specific answer to your question about equipment to buy: I'd probably buy a good quality tunnel or good quality metal-based weaves (competition quality). Because you can make all of your jumps via PVC. 3. Get PVC (for a rattie, 1.75 inch pipe rather than 2 inch pipe) and a PVC cutter. With PVC you can make jumps, a base for a pause box, a frame for a teeter, frame for a tire. The joints you'll need will be either 2 joints with 4 45 degree connections or 4 "T " joints and then you'll need 2 cups (to hold the bar). Jumps are very easy to make. You can also make PVC weaves. All you need is enough PVC pipe and a series of "T " intersections. The advantage of PVC weaves is that you can tilt them so your dog learns to run weaves fast from the git-go. And yes, I have both metal weaves and PVC weaves. 4. Here's the deal with your cheap tunnel: --always have it staked down --always keep it straight. Your rat terrier is a little pocket rocket. She should be able to enter a tunnel and exit faster than she entered. But a cheap, flimsy tunnel that isn't staked down isn't stable. She'll enter it, try to run on the side and it will give. So you'll be teaching her to slow up when she enters tunnels. So always, always, always stake the tunnel down (stakes and bungie cords, sandbags, just nothing hard your dog could hit) and always keep it straight until you can get a real tunnel. 5. More details: an inexpensive, portable and acceptable beginning set of equipment is available through an online organization called "affordable agility. " What you want is called "agility in a bag. " You get 6 PVC weave poles, 2 adjustable jumps, a chute, a pause box (lousy but you can convert the PVC pipe into a jump or teeter base), and a tire (the tire is bad but the frame is fine and you can get irrigation pipping at Home Depot and substitute it for the tire it comes with and you're almost regulation). It all comes in a bag that you can throw on a plane or in a car, take to the park or your aunt's house or on a vacation (I know, I've done all of those). 6. Get yourself a good "intro to agility " book. The 3 best authors on this are: Laurie Leach, Barbara Bauman and Margaret Bonham. Any of the 3 is sufficient to help get you started. But then you're going to want to go with DVD's. Almost anything by Susan Garrett is great and her DVD on "Success With One Jump " would be good for you. 7. Go to agilityevents.net and find some trials close to your house. Go observe. Take Lily and start to get her socialized to the sounds, smells and distractions of a trial. And ask the exhibitors (ie: handlers), "who would you recommend that's local for lessons or classes? " Because you want to find a good instructor. I don't doubt that you're making great progress. But a good instructor at first will speed your progress. Also, new handlers do a lot of things that hold their dogs back (late or confusing cues, criticism, reducing their dog's drive). They develop bad habits. Far better to start off on the right foot. Get early lessons and then go it alone if you wish. Your aunt says to skip classes--she's got her reasons. So just be picky about who you go to. Or get individual lessons rather than group classes. And no, my first choice wouldn't be to go to an AKC trial. AKC only recently allowed rat terriers to compete so you won't see many of them at those trials and I know a few rattie owners who out of spite refuse to register with AKC. 8. For other equipment (if you want to build it), check out Jim Hutchins' book "do it yourself agility equipment. " That's how I built my A-frame. Detailed instructions for competition-quality equipment. 9. Then join "actionrats " listserv with yahoo-groups. It's for rat terrier owners whose dogs compete in agility or other sports. We trouble shoot, share brags and pictures, have support each other.

Posted by: Harlee the Husky Lab on 2008-08-07, 16:32:23

For me i would do tunnel, bar jump and weave poles

Posted by: e.haberman@ymail.com on 2008-08-07, 16:37:05

I would get the bar jump with adjustable heights. start short and work your way up. then try the tire. weave poles are also good because the improve balance and stability. before you get the chute perfect the tunnel because the chute can be scary for a dog.

Posted by: volleyballpimp69 on 2008-08-07, 16:40:21

Bar jumps are easiest for dogs. and there's a cheap way to get a lot of stuff. my dad uses pcp pipe for almost everything. it's flexible and cheap. go to a local hardware store and it should be there. you can also get rubber cement or pipe glue cheap too.

Posted by: abbyful on 2008-08-07, 16:40:50

Why does your aunt recommend you don't take classes? Many of the advanced agility handling techniques are taught in classes. To get speed, you need more than just the dog knowing how to go over a jump or through a tunnel. I strongly recommend taking some agility classes before getting your own equipment. That way, you know the proper and safe way to have the dog approach the obstacles, and also, if either you or your dog don't like agility, you haven't sunk a lot of money into it. Here is a link that will help you find a trainer or agility club: cleanrun.com/ index.cfm?fuseaction= clubs.search --- In my opinion, the pause box and bar jump are the easiest. And the weave poles are the hardest. Agility equipment is quite expensive. Here are some sites to buy equipment: cleanrun.com/ index.cfm?fuseaction= category.display &category_ID= 335 affordableagility.com/ agilityforless.com/ Depending on how big your dog is, you can improvise on things as well. For example, I bought a kid's play tunnel for a fraction of the price an "agility " tunnel would cost ( walmart.com/ catalog/ product.do?product_id= 5481440 ). Keep your eyes peeled and be creative! These two sites are pretty good for finding plans to build equipment: dogagilityhome.com/ servlet/ sql.linkListInq?cat= Plans caninecrib.com/ dog/ training/ agility-course.asp Also, check with agility clubs and trainers in your area. I know in my area, some of the agility clubs/ trainers have equipment building workshops where you learn how to make certain pieces of equipment (the price of the class includes all the materials as well). At the end of the workshop, you have a piece of agility equipment to take home. If you are comfortable with carpentry, or have a friend or relative that is, you can have them make some of the equipment as well. Most good carpenters don't even need "plans " to make the simple structures of agility equipment (A-frame, dog walk). .

Posted by: SweetGracie on 2008-08-07, 16:46:37

It's a shame your Aunt said NOT to take classes... for whatever reason..... Agility classes would be wonderful for your dog AND you!! Plus, it would answer all your questions about equipment, in what order to train, and how to properly train your dog for each piece of equipment. Since you've asked a very good question, you seem to realize there are steps in teaching agility to a dog in a safe manner that is fun for your dog and you. Find a reputable agility trainer and take classes. Go to the nearest AKC Dog show and start asking questions to those who sale agility equipment. Bring a lawn chair and watch the agility trials... then strike up conversations with those waiting in line for thier turn in the ring. There is a wealth of information out there.... since your Aunt cant answer your questions for you... find someone who can.

Posted by: ainawgsd on 2008-08-07, 16:55:14

Honestly, I personally would start with either the teeter or the A-frame because these are the hardest to build. The tire jump, chute, and tunnel are probably the next hardest obstacles to build. Bar jumps are super-easy to construct yourself for very little money using pvc and weave poles are also pretty easy to make from ordinary pvc pipe. A pause box is easy to make using plywood and a dogwalk is also pretty easy to make using plywood and sawhorses (for a heck of a lot cheaper than you can buy them). If your aunt is a trainer, why can't she give you lessons? Honestly getting a trainer to help you properly teach these obstacles and evaluate your handling skills and give you tips on how to improve them is the best and easiest way to learn.