Agility training can provide your dog with plenty of exercise and strengthen your bond, and while most healthy dogs will enjoy agility, you do need to make some adjustments to your pet agility equipment depending on your dog’s age and size. Here is a quick look at what agility looks like from the puppy stage up to the senior stage.
Puppy Agility
Puppies have a ton of energy, and while dog agility can be a fantastic way to expend a dog’s energy, most pieces of agility equipment should not be used with puppies or should be used with great care.
We recommend getting started with the pause table and the dog agility tunnel, as these can be the safest options for puppies. Our pause tables are ideal because you can simply remove the green board and place it on the grass or even on your carpet and teach crucial obedience skills such as stay, sit and lay down. These are skills that all dogs need to master anyway, and you can begin teaching these skills at around eight weeks of age.
With the tunnel, you can simply have a person at either end of the tunnel and encourage the puppy to head through the tunnel. You can gently coax them through the tunnel with a small treat and heap on the praise once they make it through the tunnel.
Puppies are not physically ready for any type of jump. However, you could simply place jump poles on the ground and train your puppy to walk over the poles. With consistent practice, they will understand the concept of going over the jump poles and should be able to transition easily into jumping once they are fully grown.
Adult Agility
In general, regular dog agility training can begin shortly after your dog’s first birthday, although some trainers will hold off until their dog is 18 months or even two years old. We recommend talking with your dog’s veterinarian as each dog is unique and certain breeds might benefit from a later start date.
Agility organizations don’t allow dogs to complete until some time after their first birthdays anyway, so there is no rush to begin training prior to that first birthday. As an example, the American Kennel Club and United Kennel Club won’t allow dogs to compete until they are at least 15 months old. The North American Dog Agility Council (NADAC) requires that dogs reach 18 months before competing in any NADAC agility events.
Once your dog has reached their first birthday and you’ve discussed training with your dog’s vet, you can begin teaching obstacles. By now, you may already have started with the pause table and the tunnel, so you can begin introducing new pieces of dog training equipment, such as the agility dog walk and the agility a-frame.
If your vet has cleared your dog for jumps, you also can begin to take those jump poles off the ground and start adding a little height. We recommend still keeping jump heights low for several months to ensure safety. Once your dog has mastered the low jump heights, you can move them up to competition heights.
To determine the correct jump height, you will need to check with your preferred agility organization and measure your dog. Jump heights are calculated by measuring the distance from your dog’s withers to the ground. The withers are the tallest part of your dog’s body (not counting the neck and head), basically the area between your furry friend’s shoulders.
Senior Agility
When does a dog officially become a senior? Generally, it depends on their size rather than their age. Small breeds typically are considered senior dogs once they are around 11 or 12. Medium-sized dogs reach this stage around age 10, and large breeds are considered “seniors” by the time they reach age 7 or 8.
Dog agility organizations will have their own age rules, as well, which might differ from the aforementioned guidelines. Most organizations include categories specifically for older dogs. These might be called a senior category or perhaps “veterans.” Senior courses include lower jump heights and senior dogs aren’t expected to complete courses as quickly as younger dogs.
As your dog begins to age, we recommend lowering the jump heights and limiting the amount of jumping they need to do in general. Jumping can be tough on older dogs, leading to muscle strains so lower is always better for those older dogs.
Rescue Dog Agility
We know that many dogs find their forever home after their puppy years have ended, and if you’ve rescued a dog, agility training can be a great way to cement your bond and build trust. Many rescue dogs are quite nervous in their new homes, but having some fun running about on a backyard agility course can be a great way to establish your relationship.
Obviously, you will need to consider your dog’s age, size and physical condition, but if your vet gives you the okay, you can begin training at any time. It can be a good idea to start with obedience commands, as these are crucial and many rescue dogs lack these skills. In fact, a lack of obedience is one of the top reasons why dogs end up in a shelter, so learning these skills is imperative.
Rescue dogs can be very hesitant about training, but with patience, kindness, praise and some tasty treats, they will warm up to using pet agility equipment. We recommend starting out with a basic jump or perhaps the tunnel or dog walk, as these can be a bit less intimidating than dog obstacles such as the teeter, a-frame or weaves.
Build Your Competition Course
At Carlson Agility, our pet agility equipment is the same type of equipment you will find on a competition course. Most courses include a pause table, weave poles, a-frame, dog walk, teeter, tunnel and tire jump. Additionally, there will be a mix of different types of jumps to fill out the course, which usually has 10-15 obstacles in all.
In addition to our full-sized equipment, we have mini agility equipment ideal for toy breeds and smaller breeds. This, also, is just like the equipment you will find on the courses set up for smaller dogs. We have mini jumps, a mini tire jump, a mini a-frame, a mini dog walk (with or without safety rails), a mini pause table and a mini teeter just to name a few. Ready to get started with dog agility training? We have every piece of pet agility equipment you would find on competition courses, and even if you decide to just enjoy backyard yard agility, our equipment is built to last for years. If you have any questions about our dog agility equipment, please don’t hesitate to contact us at any time.
