Agility Folk, Please Help! :)

Misty went to a puppy agility class tonight (I know she's not a pup, shhh!!) with my friend and her dog, and she absolutely loved it.

I couldn't go because I finished work late, I plan to go next week with her and see for myself what she did this week.

My friend said she did some small jumps, the tunnel and weave poles and was really good at it.

I know she's a crossbreed, so where does this leave us? I don't want to get into it really seriously, but would like to consider it as an alternative vocation for her, when she's working on shoots with me!

Any advice would be appreciated! Thank you in advance!

Agility isnt breedist
To compeate in kennel club agility shows all you have to do is register on the activites register - I think the link is on the KC website
You get the fun of making up a poncy name for them

Many crossbreeds do great at agility - my Ben is really making me proud - v little training and v few shows and he is up at grade 4 already

It is great fun

The only thing I am concerned at are the other dogs in the class - puppy agility should not exist, you could have pre agility classes but they should not include jumps and weaves until the dog is at least 1 year old or older

Possibly I would look around at all the clubs in the area - it is v addictive and you are as well to train it properly from the start - because retraining mistakes take so much longer

I'm not sure it's actually puppy agility, it's what my friend calls it. Misty is 2 year old and I know my friends dog has recently turned one! I've not been to the class, so I've no idea on the other dogs there!

I'm thinking more on the lines of doing it for fun with her, if she enjoys it, as something else other than just being a gundog.

I've no idea about anything to do with agility, so any advice would be great!

Other organisations like UKA and BAA organise shows aswell and dogs do not have to be registered with the KC for these.

There is also the gundog agility league, mainly a place to record results but they have held a show twice a year for the past few years. This year they have opened the league up to gundog crosses aswell

I started off at a 'fun agility' class to see if my dog would enjoy it. We soon moved to a competition orientated club and compete regularly at KC and UKA shows now

Be warned - agility is addictive! You may start with the idea of just doing it for fun and, before you know it, you have the full outfit - van and caravan - and you're off every weekend at a different show! It definitely takes over your life but it's great fun and the dogs love it.

My pup is due to start competing in April and I can't wait!

I agree with Ben Mcfuzzylegs about the puppy classes.

Glad Misty enjoyed the agility class

There is a really good agility club up here near Drem/Gullane. I took Yogi last year, but he only enjoyed the jumps and tunnels and didn't take to the see-saw and dog walk at all, so we stopped going. I can give you the details if (1) you are interested, and (2) are coming back up to Scotland.

BTW did your OH find his dog???

I am going back to Scotland, there is no confirmed date yet though! It depends if I can actually pass my driving test as well, I've failed twice, as to whether I can take Misty to classes when I back!

I'm really excited for next week! It'll be awesome having something else I can do with Misty. She loves her beating/picking up, but it'll be nice to have something to do in the summer with her when we aren't shooting!

If I enjoy it with Misty, I might get some of my other dogs doing it as well, if they enjoy it!

If/when you pass your test (all the best people have trouble passing) you could join our agility club. (well I say 'ours', I don't go anymore with Stumpy as she didn't enjoy it, but OH still goes with Hoki).

Its over at West Linton on a Monday night - quite a trek from yours, but possibly worth it. You need to be careful with the other clubs in the Borders - every other one I know of takes it all too seriously and there is a lot of nastiness. Ours would be just what you would be looking for though I think - the dogs have a great time and the humans have a good laugh

I run my dog for fun in agility. She is up to Grade 5 now, and I have some reservations, for myself, as well as her, about Grades 6 and 7, as these are where it becomes pretty competitive! Grades 1 and 2 are fun, but lots of people try to get out of them quite quickly, and then I think regret it, as you can never go back, even with another dog! Grade 3, in Large anyway, can be more difficult to get out of, as there are often very fast collies in there, and it's where experienced handlers start their young dogs off, so you can kick around there for quite a while, and you sometimes get to run Gr 1 to 3 courses, which should be simpler than, say Gr 3 to 5, and lots of fun to run. There are less dogs in the smalls and mediums at the moment, though they are becoming more popular to run, so you could find yourself going up the grades quicker, and onto the more complex courses if your dog turns out to be in either of these. There are quite a few fun shows around, and also, in KC shows, for large dogs, ABC (anything but a collie classes), which mixed breeds can enter as well as the ordinary classes (there are BC classes only sometimes to even this up!). Only thing is your dog needs to be neither a Border Collie or Working Sheep Dog (border collie without papers) cross, but, for example, beardie, smooth collie, rough collies, and their crosses can take part. We're up in Scotland, and there are lots of clubs around. Depends where you are moving to. The agility forum on the Agility Net website is a good place to join to find out about all things agility.

Hope this helps.

Just to clarify, the agility forum is on the Agility Addicts website - there just happens to be a link on the Agilitynet website.