At Carlson Agility, we don’t just focus on providing our customers with the best quality dog agility equipment, we also have a full selection of K9 training equipment, including obstacles typically used for training by the USPCA, NAPWDA and other top K9 organizations. Let’s take a quick look at these organizations as well as the equipment they use.
Support Your Local Police Dogs
First of all, did you know that the majority of police dogs in the United States are privately funded? Their training and care typically are paid for by private donations to police dog organizations.
While some police departments do have budgets in place to train and support canine “cops,” most do not, and you can support your local police dogs by donating to your specific police department’s foundation. There are also a few foundations that have been created to support retired police dogs, as well, and your donations can support their veterinary care in their older years.
United States Police Canine Association (USPCA)
The USPCA has been around for more than 50 years, and they host a variety of competitions, and they also provide certifications for police dogs. If you are interested in training police dogs, joining this organization can be a great option as they not only can certify your dogs but also provide helpful training advice for handlers.
North American Police Work Dog Association (NAPWDA)
This organization also has been around for decades, getting its start back in 1977, just a few years after the USPCA. This organization also provides certification for police dogs as well as hosting workshops and training advice for handlers.
There are two levels of membership for the NAPWDA. Regular members must be active law enforcement officers. Associate members would include those who train dogs for law enforcement work but aren’t active law enforcement officers. This level of membership also includes active firefighters who are canine handlers.
National Police Canine Association (NPCA)
This non-profit organization provides a plethora of training opportunities for canine police dog handlers, as well as providing certification. This group hosts training workshops and seminars throughout the United States and even has been offering some online classes during the pandemic.
National Police Dog Foundation
As you can see, there are quite a few police dog organizations throughout the United States and Canada, and we have just listed a few of them here. The National Police Dog Foundation essentially raises funds to support law enforcement canine units throughout the United States. They help pay for the purchase of dogs, their training and equipment, and veterinary care for current and retired law enforcement dogs.
These are just a few of the many organizations that host K9 competitions and help to support dogs in their essential work. These well-trained dogs might work for a local police organization or perhaps for the Department of Defense, the FBI or another law enforcement agency.
Which Breeds Are Best For K9 Training?
For police work, German shepherds are typically the breed of choice, as they are strong, intelligent, energetic and easier to train than many other breeds. Other breeds, such as Belgian Malinois, Doberman Pinschers and Labrador retrievers also can be good options for K9 training.
Keep in mind, however, that our K9 training equipment can be used with just about any large, energetic breed. While not all breeds are ideal as police dogs, our equipment can provide a great source of exercise for just about any dog large enough to handle the jump heights of standard K9 training equipment.
While smaller breeds probably should not use our K9 jumps, we do have plenty of other agility jumps, including mini agility jumps, as well as mini agility equipment. If you are looking for a source of exercise and backyard fun, our regular dog agility equipment as well as our K9 training equipment can be a great option to consider.
Our K9 Training Equipment
At Carlson Agility, we have a wide variety of K9 training equipment. This equipment can be used to train police dogs, but also can be used for agility training or just some backyard fun. We use the highest quality materials, and each piece of K9 agility equipment is handmade. Our selection includes:
- K9 A-Frame
- K9 Adjustable Teeter
- K9 Board Wall Jump
- K9 Brick Wall Hurdle
- K9 Broad Jumps
- K9 Car Door Jump
- K9 Catch A-Frame
- K9 Catwalk
- K9 Chain Link Hurdle
- K9 Dog Crawl
- K9 Dog Walks (we have two varieties of the dog walk)
Except for the brick wall hurdle and chain link on the chain-link hurdle, each piece of K9 training equipment is painted white with an exterior oil-based primer. Surface areas are covered with white flat exterior latex mixed with a non-skid material to reduce slipping. All of the paint products we use are weather-resistant, as well.
Again, these pieces of K9 Training Equipment are suitable for agility training, as well, especially the a-frame, teeter and broad jumps. These are similar to those found on most agility competition courses including USDAA, AKC, CPE and UKC. We also carry some specialized UKC equipment if you are working with that organization.
How To Purchase K9 Training Equipment We make it easy to purchase any piece of our K9 training equipment. Just head to the Products tab on our homepage and select the K9 Training Equipment tab and add whatever you need to our secure shopping cart. If you have any questions about any of our products, just click on the Contact tab and fill out our quick contact form. We will get in touch as soon as possible to answer all of your questions.
