sweet_ceana Posted July 23, 2009 Report Share Posted July 23, 2009 Is there such a thing?? We tried a class, it had about 20 dogs, and Poke was very stressed out by all the action around us. I thought that maybe agility wasn't really his cup of tea so I placed going back to classes on the back burner. Fast forward 4-5 months and you have Poke at the dog park tonight. They have a little fenced off area with 2 jumps 2 tunnels and three elevated rectangles with holes to jump through. Poke and I were just goofing around and I showed him what I wanted when I said tunnel. Then I showed him what I wanted when I said jump near the rectangles. (regular jumps are just something Poke does for fun over objects at home). We were just goofing around so I then brought him over to my beggining and started running him through like it was a minny course... um he kicked butt. Seriously I am ashamed I hadn't goofed around like this sooner. I said tunnel, he would tunnel come out and wait for the next word then jump over whatever I asked. WTF where was this dog in class??? Ah i know, he was too distracted by all the other dogs. I had to carry a tennis ball in my hand to get him to stop worrying about what everyone else was doing. Are there private agility coaches or if there are not can a person be successful teaching their dog themselves? Teaching him myself would be incredibly ideal because it wouldn't add any more money onto what we were hoping to spend on herding lessons. If only Poke could get a job to help out!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurie S. Posted July 23, 2009 Report Share Posted July 23, 2009 I have Cheyenne in a private weekly lesson and it's great. She's so good at it but she's also easily distracted by other dogs, birds, lizards, etc. If I tried her in a class, she would not be learning and probably would be kicked out of the class. I have to get her to focus when other dogs are around, but in the meantime she's learning agility quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alaska Posted July 23, 2009 Report Share Posted July 23, 2009 Are there private agility coaches or if there are not can a person be successful teaching their dog themselves? Yes to both. A lot of serious agility folks take private lessons so they can concentrate on exactly what they and their dog need, but privates are also common for dogs who are ready to start agility training but can't handle a class setting yet. However, privates are expensive, usually $50/hr or more. A couple of good ways to start out on your own would be: 1) Buy a copy of Greg Derrett's Agility Foundation Training DVD and follow along. It might seem expensive, but it's basically the cost of a single private lesson and you'll get weeks of training out of it. It is also a very, very good program. I always recommend that new people start with a DVD rather than a book - you just have to see how the handler uses their body or you'll be teaching yourself all kinds of bad habits that will just be confusing to your dog. And for me, the very best part of agility is learning to use your body to communicate with your dog. It's like learning a new language, only it's a language spoken by a different species. Mind blowing once you catch on. 2) Sign up for CyberAgility I've done both of these (and taken classes on the rare occasion I'm someplace where they're offered, and had a few privates too), and I highly endorse them both. The other DVD choice would be Moe Strenfel's new Foundation Training for Agility 3-DVD Set. I haven't seen it, but I do know Moe and she is a very good trainer (and a CyberAgility graduate, as it happens). Also, if Poke was stressed out by the presence of other dogs in the class, then the oft-recommended Control Unleashed program is for him (and you). Buy the DVD and book if you can afford it, or book alone if you must. I won't even begin raving about how great CU is, because everyone already knows Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat W. Posted July 23, 2009 Report Share Posted July 23, 2009 I agree with Alaska, private lessons can be very pricey over the long haul. There are some excellent cyber classes...you can google them. I also recommend DVD's by Julie Daniels and Linda Mecklinburg. Plus a training class with 20 dogs is way huge, I wouldnt consider attending at all. You might want to see if you can find smaller classes or contact a couple of people that you made friends with in class that might be willing to split a bi-weekly or monthly semi private class with you. The largest class I was ever in was 10 teams. with 20 its no wonder poor Poke was distracted I would be too Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PSmitty Posted July 23, 2009 Report Share Posted July 23, 2009 Wow, about 20 dogs? If you decide not to do private lessons, maybe you can just find a smaller class? We only allow 10 dogs max in a class, and usually there's not that many. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurie S. Posted July 23, 2009 Report Share Posted July 23, 2009 My private lesson is $20 for 30 minutes, once a week. We're actually working toward getting her ready to go into a class. Her focus is the biggest problem. As soon as another dog appears, she wants to play. I'm working with her at home, too. I made a jump out of jackstands and a pvc pipe, bought a tunnel, and her trainer gave me instructions last night for making weave poles from pvc pipes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grenzehund Posted July 23, 2009 Report Share Posted July 23, 2009 The nice thing about having a private lesson (or class) is having another person watch you. Learning how my own movements (even subtle ones) affected the dog's movement was invaluable. Susan Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Laurie S. Posted July 23, 2009 Report Share Posted July 23, 2009 Isn't that the truth! Last week, Cheyenne was learning to do a turn from the bridge to the tunnel. The trainer said she did good, the handler not so well. Ooops. I got it on the next try, however. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnLloydJones Posted July 23, 2009 Report Share Posted July 23, 2009 I PM'd you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrRipley Posted July 23, 2009 Report Share Posted July 23, 2009 Subscribe to Clean Run, there are tons of great training exercises you can do in your yard. Of course that means having equipment, but a lot of it can be easily and cheaply made. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caerus Posted July 23, 2009 Report Share Posted July 23, 2009 We have one hour long private class every week, I think 30 bucks each. Definitely expensive, but my awesome trainer helps me with D's behavior rehab as well as agility for both dogs. She even invites us to occasionally attend classes to work on them around other dogs/people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
in2adventure Posted July 24, 2009 Report Share Posted July 24, 2009 $30...I'm jealous! I just signed Grady up for a 1 hour class at $60. She the only one I'd spend any time on privates with though. Great instructor. I can't believe ONE instructor would allow 20 or so dogs in a class. Thats WAY too many. 8 is the most I've ever seen and I thought the class was pushing it's max on doability. Try a private or two or find smaller classes somewhere. Doing it on your own is a good idea unless you're planning to compete. It's better to learn from someone first before going out on your own. CleanRun is a great magazine along with all the DVD's and web pages people have mentioned here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
agilityrunningdogs Posted July 24, 2009 Report Share Posted July 24, 2009 I agree 20 is a bit much. The most we allow is 10, but we also have two instructors. I take 1-2 private lessons per month, I drive an hour and a half and it's $90 an hour, but he is extremely well respected and has been on the world team with multiple dogs, so it's worth it. I like privates because it offer the one-on-one instruction that you can't really get in a class. In class, I sometimes feel like I'm just going through the motions and running my dogs on the course, but in a private, I can stop and ask questions and actually learn, rather than practice what we already know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweet_ceana Posted July 25, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 25, 2009 Thanks guys! This is really going to help! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hsnrs Posted July 28, 2009 Report Share Posted July 28, 2009 My friends Nancy and Tom go to DOCNA instructor. He is the one who convinced them to get a Border Collie. They are in the Phoenix area. I don't know what the instructor charges though. They belong to the Jumping Chollas group and say it is a very friendly one. I think they have a Yahoo group and also a website. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweet_ceana Posted August 13, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 13, 2009 So we now have a make shift "teeter" two PVC jumps, a tunnel from target and PVC pipe weave polls. Poke does everything with flying colors except the weave polls. I think that is the most frivalous movement for him. As long as I weave my hand through the polls he will follow, but when I try to have him do it he looks at me like "There is a much quicker way to get to the end of those polls," and walks along side them to the end with the I'm so smart grin on his face. We really need to work on him going to the next obstacle without turning back to look at me and sit. ( I guess all those obedience classes taught him the ready position was sitting square in front of me) The best part is (drum roll) the puppy is all about the equipment. She watched me show Poke the teeter while it was flat on the ground, and now whenever she sees the board she rushes over walks across it, stops at the end and looks at me like "TADA!!!" So tonight we gave her a turn (minus the jumps) and she went right through the tunnel every time on command , followed my hand as well , arguably better than Poke through the weave polls (only 3 to start out for her ) and of course happily walked across the teeter. (Which is now a board with contacts marked on each end balancing on 3 tupperwear bins. It isn't perfect, but it works.) She learned almost everything from observing Poke, do you think if I have her watch me do laundry she can learn that??? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alaska Posted August 13, 2009 Report Share Posted August 13, 2009 the puppy is all about the equipment Don't you mean to say "my puppy..."? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maralynn Posted August 13, 2009 Report Share Posted August 13, 2009 Don't you mean to say "my puppy..."? Good luck with that - I have a feeling that said puppy isn't leaving Pheonix Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martySQ Posted August 15, 2009 Report Share Posted August 15, 2009 Is there such a thing?? We tried a class, it had about 20 dogs, and Poke was very stressed out by all the action around us. I thought that maybe agility wasn't really his cup of tea so I placed going back to classes on the back burner. Fast forward 4-5 months and you have Poke at the dog park tonight. They have a little fenced off area with 2 jumps 2 tunnels and three elevated rectangles with holes to jump through. Poke and I were just goofing around and I showed him what I wanted when I said tunnel. Then I showed him what I wanted when I said jump near the rectangles. (regular jumps are just something Poke does for fun over objects at home). We were just goofing around so I then brought him over to my beggining and started running him through like it was a minny course... um he kicked butt. Seriously I am ashamed I hadn't goofed around like this sooner. I said tunnel, he would tunnel come out and wait for the next word then jump over whatever I asked. WTF where was this dog in class??? Ah i know, he was too distracted by all the other dogs. I had to carry a tennis ball in my hand to get him to stop worrying about what everyone else was doing. Are there private agility coaches or if there are not can a person be successful teaching their dog themselves? Teaching him myself would be incredibly ideal because it wouldn't add any more money onto what we were hoping to spend on herding lessons. If only Poke could get a job to help out!! Is Poke a dog you seriously want to do herding? I am wondering from reading around on the boards if the control unleashed method is going to make him too dependent on handler to do his sheep independently. I don't know, I've never done either, but maybe asking over on the herding board might be a good idea, unless herding is just another activity used to keep dog happy and healthy and not going to be serious work for it. I'm really interested in the idea, cause I've wondered this... Bess was mostly about the other dogs in her house manners class we took... wanting to make that dog that looked like a big overgrown sheep mind her...LOL (Laberdoodle or some such) She did concentrate in class , but I had to really keep on her and keep her from making direct eye contact. I have an agility instructor 20 min. away I would like to use, but decided to do herding lessons first and get that ingrained... and then in a year or so, maybe add agility as added exercise and mind exercise for her (and me). The herding instructor is an hour and half away... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweet_ceana Posted August 15, 2009 Author Report Share Posted August 15, 2009 Herding will be primary until we know how he does. Poke has always enjoyed learning anything new, so for now agility is going to remain in the back yard for just that reason. He is extreamly independent in his thinking and I do know someone's dog who has had to work on independent thinking around sheep due to all of the dog's agility training. The dog I am refering to is obedient, like Lassie obedient. I think that dog may be an extream and not the norm. Poke has a lot of interest in stock work, but he could be horrible at it, so we will see. He needs a TON of mental stimulation (way more than Ceana) so at this point anything that works out his brain is welcome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hsnrs Posted August 18, 2009 Report Share Posted August 18, 2009 There is a new Border Collie club forming in Phoenix that you might be interested in joining. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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