What would you do?

[Root Beer]

I have the opportunity to take one of my Border Collies into a fantastic beginning agility class and I have to decide which one to take.

 

Dog A - Dog A is 5 years old. He took agility when he was younger and it make his brain go crazy. He had no control and drove me (pre-clicker training!!) crazy in the process. His agility career ended the day a dog walked into the room and he threw himself at the end of the leash and had a fit.

 

He has come a long way since then, though. He's older. He's had a ton of conditioning. He has learned to deal with, and even like other dogs in the room.

 

His agility background was odd. He knows jumps and tunnels. He remembers the end part of contacts, but never really did learn to take them properly.

 

He has Rally titles and does competition Freestyle and takes herding lessons every week. This would be his last chance to take agility, I think.

 

 

Dog B - Dog B is a year and 2 months old. He has never taken any agility. I've done a little bit of an introduction to some things with him (a wobble board, low jumps, the table). He has, I think, the potential to be very good. He has a brain with an "off switch" and will learn to handle himself around other dogs.

 

I have every intention of someday competing in agility with Dog B. If he were 2 years old, I don't think I'd hesitate to put him in the class, but would I be jumping the gun putting him in now?

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Thoughts?

 

Of course, Dog A = Speedy and Dog B = Dean

[Rave]

take it with the older dog first, that way your future "main" agility dog is the 2nd dog you've taught agility to. you learn more with each dog you teach and handle... let the younger dog reap the benefits of that.

[Kat's Dogs]

I agree.

 

Take Speedy - he will enjoy himself and YOU will learn all about how you want to train Dean. Because you have started low impact stuff at home you can just continue a little with that (get some distance work for example , even just do obedience around it) and wait to get on the big equipment. Training the second dog usually works out better, and by that time, you will have trained 2 dogs and can go back and fix your first dog like I did

[RaisingRiver]

I concur. You can also teach Dean what you learned in class with Speedy.

 

Yah... wasn't hard to figure out who you were talking about

[Alaska]

I agree -- take Speedy. I had a long-winded answer all typed out but I kept editing it and it got longer and more confused so I finally deleted it. In the end, it said exactly what "wicked" and Kat both said (ETA: River too, who posted at the same time I did), and nowhere near as elegantly.

 

The only other point I was struggling to make was that you'll need to learn two main skills: (1) how to train an agility dog; and (2) how to handle an agility dog. The first is relatively easy to learn, especially with your existing experience as a dog trainer. Since Dean is not yet at the point where he needs you to handle, so you can work on basic skills with Dean while your instructor teaches you how to handle Speedy. And that's where Dean will really benefit: you'll be a better handler by the time Dean is ready to start running sequences.

 

Many newbies fail to grasp that it is really the handler who is doing most of the learning in an agility class, not the dog.

[Root Beer]

Thanks for your input, everyone!!

 

Actually, I've been working with Maddie in agility for quite a while. After I had to pull Speedy out when he was younger I decided to give Maddie a try. She has been a fantastic dog to learn with because she's pretty low drive, and I've had a chance to really focus on handler skills.

 

But you've all given me food for thought!!

[MrSnappy]

I am going to be the voice of dissent and say take the younger dog. If you are interested in competing, it's good to get a ncie foundation on your young guy now - why wait until he is 2 years old?

 

If the class is *that* fantastic, use it for the dog with the most potential to excel. You can always get on the waitlist for a class with your older dog, or teach him what you have learned in class at home. It sounds like Speedy already has lots of things to do to occupy him - herding, frisbee, rally ... he doesn't need agility too.

 

14 months is not too young at all. In AAC you can start competing with a dog that is 18 months. Just keep the jumps low for now.

 

RDM

[Northof49]

I would say take the younger dog. It may be that the older dog will not be as easy a dog to train, could be that the agility will be too much for him, and what you try to learn with him will not benefit you with the younger dog.

 

IF the younger dog is going to be the easier dog to train, then that would be my choice if you are an inexperienced handler. Don't go by the adage that you screw up your first dog, learn from that and do a better job with the next one. If you have good instructors, your first dog will be a success as well.

[Root Beer]

I've made my decision to take Dean based on something I didn't even think to consider - Speedy's arthritis. He has done so well lately that I tend to forget what his stiff days can be like.

 

He's fine for herding and he's fine for freestyle - I can tone down the freestyle stuff on days when he needs it, but sometimes he has stiff days and on those days he couldn't do any jumping. He's been cleared to do anything, but I think that having to manage one more activity with the arthritis wouldn't be the best thing for him.

 

As Mr. Snappy said, Speedy has plenty to do.

 

Thanks, everyone for your input. It's good to get different perspectives to make these decisions.