Agilty floors

[in2adventure]

I went to a new agility place today to practice. It was a day just for run throughs, no formal training. It's a very nice place and it's even heated. That's a luxury I've never had before....LOL. I have a problem with the flooring though. We have always run on dirt (soft indoor areana type stuff) or grass. They have rubber mats lining what I think may be a cement floor. It's super hard on my legs, I can't imagine what it felt like for Lucia. I only run her at the 16" height right now (full height is 20" for her). She'll be 2 next month and I don't think she needs the extra wear and tear on her bones this early on. I was amazed at the people that ran their dogs at full height over and over again.

 

So my question is, does anyone have any experience with this type of flooring? How hard is it on their legs? It was pretty obvious with some of the dogs that ran full height were uncomfortable. Many were doing their best to avoid some of the jumps and it didn't look like a training problem.

 

Also, what height does everyone train at? Do you vary it so it's not so hard on them or do you always train at their regulation height? We train at 12" and 16" and compete in 16" in NADAC. I know that changing the height can chance the line because of where they land and take off from, but it's not that much of an adjustent with a good dog (I think).

[clara]

Our training facility has both an outdoor grass field for dry weather, and and indoor, matted area for the winter. We also have a horse barn/arena we get to practice in 2x month during the winter months. Our indoor area sounds similar to what you've described... concrete floor under black rubber matting similar to gym flooring. We always set the jump bars lower when we're inside, for the same reason you've mentioned, it's harder on their joints, and also because it's not quite as spacious so our courses are a little tighter. I jump Ling at 16" when we're inside, even though her competition height is 20". Jumping on that floor at that height doesn't seem to bother her at all, but then she's kind of a freight train when she's running a course... she really no sense of "safety" at all so it's something I have to impose on her. Those who's dogs already have concerns about hip or joint problems jump them two down.

 

I usually train at 20", but make the exception for the concrete/rubber floor. I did notice one spring when we hadn't spend any appreciable amount of time training outside that Ling was knocking bars a lot, so I had to retrain some jump skills. So I try to make sure I vary it at least a little in the winter, and do some jump drills in my backyard on sunny days, so she doesn't get too used to that 16" height.

 

One thing I don't understand about your post is that you say "full height" for her is 20 inches, but later say that she jumps 16" in NADAC. If she trials at 16", why would 20" be "full height"? I don't see any need to regularly train any higher than she's trialing, unless you're having problems with her dropping her feet.

[in2adventure]

One thing I don't understand about your post is that you say "full height" for her is 20 inches, but later say that she jumps 16" in NADAC. If she trials at 16", why would 20" be "full height"? I don't see any need to regularly train any higher than she's trialing, unless you're having problems with her dropping her feet.

 

In NADAC, you have to jump your dog at their full height to get certain titles (versitility, I think). She is a 19" dog, so 20" is what we are supposed to compete at. We are doing very well at the 16" height (called standard) and I want to finish our novice titles there before moving up. I figured by the time we actually finish her NATCH, I'll be comfortable moving her up to 20". I just worry about putting too much stress on young bones.

 

Thanks for the info about the floor. I'll only be running there for a month and then I head south for the rest of the winter and have to find another place to play. It's a bit small in this areana too and the jumps are closer than I'm used to. Although, it does makes for a good change in training. I don't think I'm a big fan of the flooring. It seems very hard and even though I don't slip and slide on it, it's hard to dig in like on grass or dirt.

[clara]

That makes sense about the NADAC heights. I haven't done NADAC for so long that I just don't remember their rules. (and they seemed to change all the time!) I've always had to jump Ling at 20" anyway, since she's 21 1/2" tall, so I probably just never paid attention to the differences for dogs under 20". I wouldn't jump her any higher than necessary, I think you're right to save her joints the wear and tear.

 

it's hard to dig in like on grass or dirt

 

YES! This is a drawback. At the end of each course, when Ling is supposed to come to a stop and sit, she usually cracks everyone up by doing this hilarious sitting slide stop for about 5-10 feet, depending on her momentum! My horsey friends say she looks just like a cutting pony!

[Kat's Dogs]

I did agility at a place that had what you describe - rubber mats over cement floor. It IS much harder on the dogs. It just sounds and looks painful. Needless to say we don't train there anymore. I definitely like some packed dirt the best. Grass can be really slippery in the summer and after a rain, while dirt is pretty good all the time. You just have to watch that it doesn't get hard in the freezing winter....

 

Dazzle has to jump 16" in NADAC and 22" in USDAA. With a good jump training program this is no problem at all. She adjusts herself wonderfully for the jump at hand, rather than be patterned to always just jump a certain height. So, like I said, because she has learned how to judge the proper way to take a jump - where we put the jumps in practice isn't a big deal. If we will be doing a lot of handling stuff - I put them at 8-12" because the practice is for me, not her. If I am working on her obstacle performance, the heights will all be different - from no bars to 22" depending on what we are doing. IMO, if a dog has really learned how to jump there is no need to always practice at full height (especially if you are working on your handling), but at the same time it isn't good to always practice at 8" - so we just change it up depending on the exercise.

[in2adventure]

Adjusting the obstical height depending on the training is the phylosophy I've been trying to follow. I think it's better for the dogs in the long run. I need to start throwing in some 20" jumps to start getting her used to it, but don't want to on these hard floors. I like dirt best too. Thanks for the info. It's good to know other people think thses floors are really to hard. Some of the bigger dogs slammed into them so hard, I would cringed when they ran.

[Pat W.]

I also use to train in a building with rubber mats over cement, fortunately the area was small so I never jumped my huge jumping aussie more than 16 and kept his enthusiasm under control. We stopped training there quite a while ago and train exclusively on dirt or dirt/sand/rubber mixture. Becareful with wear and tear of paw pads on rubber matting too

[MaggieDog]

My training building (where I start teaching classes in January - yay!) has awesome flooring for the exact reasons you mention. We found rubber mats too harsh for jumping (we want to start agility classes next year: basic, but they still involve jumping and running). Our flooring is EVA foam, 3/4", made by Summit Rubber Products. The matting is named "Agiliflex" and it's pretty cool stuff!

[CLW1]

My training building (where I start teaching classes in January - yay!) has awesome flooring for the exact reasons you mention. We found rubber mats too harsh for jumping (we want to start agility classes next year: basic, but they still involve jumping and running). Our flooring is EVA foam, 3/4", made by Summit Rubber Products. The matting is named "Agiliflex" and it's pretty cool stuff!

 

 

The place I train at has Agileflex flooring and it's great. I jump my dogs at full height over it without any worries and my own legs and feet are never sore afterward. I've trained at other places with different matting and have jumped them lower. The quality of the matting makes a huge difference.

[in2adventure]

I was at a place last week that has a dirt/rubber mix flooring. It was great stuff. Very soft like dirt, but she said the shredded rubber is added for no slipping. It also didn't seem to be as dirty or dry as all dirt floors.

 

The place that had the rubber floors has just cheap rubber squares that were pealing up all over the place. She was using tape to keep them in place I was really surprised that everyone was jumping at full height. One lady even moved her dog up to 20". When I asked her why, she said it was for the practice I was concidering lowering Lucia's jump to 12" because I felt bad for her legs

 

Maggiedog: Let me know where to do agility in your area. I'll be looking for a place in Jan. when I head to Franklin, NC. All the big cities seem to be 2 hours or so away, so it doesn't matter what direction I drive. (When I live in WY, this is how far I drive for groceries and agility anyway) I was thinking of Ashville, but I have friends in your area and it would be nice to see them again. I think Spartinburg is also only about 2 hours. I'm sure there is nothing in Franklin. It's a pretty tiny place.

[MaggieDog]

Speedy Paws is the only competition level facility in the area and it's in Greenville - 30 mins further south from Spartanburg. I'm having fits trying to get them to give me anything more than basic info on classes, though.

 

I'll be teaching agility foundation and basic obstacle familiarization hopefully by late 2008, early 2009, but there are other groups offering basic agility in the area as well, so let me know what exactly you're looking for and I'll try to help.

 

You might actually have good luck in NC - I'm going to a trial in Fletcher, NC, this weekend and I know there is a Blue Ridge Agilty Club in NC somewhere as well.

[in2adventure]

Speedy Paws is the only competition level facility in the area and it's in Greenville - 30 mins further south from Spartanburg. I'm having fits trying to get them to give me anything more than basic info on classes, though.

 

I'll be teaching agility foundation and basic obstacle familiarization hopefully by late 2008, early 2009, but there are other groups offering basic agility in the area as well, so let me know what exactly you're looking for and I'll try to help.

 

You might actually have good luck in NC - I'm going to a trial in Fletcher, NC, this weekend and I know there is a Blue Ridge Agilty Club in NC somewhere as well.

 

Great! Thanks for the info. I'll look into the places you mentioned. I'll only be there for 10 weeks and was looking for some semi private lessons. Because we move around so much, it's hard to get into a reg program and training on my own is a hard way to learn.

[Pat W.]

Although the sand/rubber mixture is nice too run on it has its drawbacks too. Some dogs like to eat the rubber- maybe they think it adds spring to their step - I don't know, it gets inside your shoes, your clothes and if for some reason your dog feels the need to take you out at the knees it tastes disgusting while providing a cushioned fall. One barn I ran in that used this flooring periodically added more for a while it would be like running on the beach in deep sand. My knees would be so sore for the next few days. It would also radically change the running style/speed of my dog when it was deep, enought that I would have to make sure I got out to train on grass/dirt before the trial season started just to make sure my timing was correct

[tualizzy]

The facility I train at has rubbler flooring as well. The mats used there are the same thick (3/4" +) mats often used in horse trailers. They're approx. 3' x 6' and fit snug across the room for a smooth surface. Jump heights are kept lower...and we never run full out in there either.... more handling, weaves and contact work. During the warmer months we're outside on grass, or in a barn if the weather is nasty. But its too cold to even train in a barn here right now... we're expecting -15 celcius tomorrow