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Missysmum
Dogsey Senior
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Location: near Edinburgh
Joined: May 2006
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12-09-2007, 08:02 AM

Our New Agility Classes

Last night , Missy and I went to our first Advanced Agility Class . It was the first of a 10 week course. Back in January , we did a course of beginners agility classes which we both enjoyed. As that instructor only did beginners , She recommended Broxburn Dog Training Club ( and a couple of others) to anyone who wanted to go further. So , last night , we went of to the Scottish National Equestrian Centre at Oatridge College. Missy whined and cried ALL the way there . 26 miles with a whining dog just isn't funny . My fault I suppose , I did tell her she was going to agility . Anyway , there were about 10 dogs in our group , a good variety of breeds. There was a small course set up , consisting of several jumps , a dog walk , an A-Frame and a see saw. Each dog and handler took it in turns to first go over a jump , the A-Frame , then 4 more jumps. I like the way this was set up. There was a jump , with another straight ahead. We had to go over the first jump then turn left to the A-Frame. That's a good start I think as the dog is learning straight away that even if there's a jump in front of it , it doesn't mean it has to be jumped. We had a wee hiccup at the A-Frame . Missy ( off lead) decided to try to jump off the side, towards me , on her way up . She was halfway up at the time . We tried again and she did the same , so the instructor told me to put her lead on and guide her up. That worked , so we kept her on lead for the time being. Not sure why she did that , lack of confidence ? She didn't do anything like that at her beginners classes. She did it once on the dog walk too , but that was at its full height and she's only been over that at about 2 feet off the ground before. Again , it was only the first time she tried to come off , on top of me. We were both a bit nervous and Missy was that excited she was getting hot. The skin on her muzzle , chin , neck and ears was very pink. She was fine once she calmed down and had a tiny drink . Later in the class , we did the see saw for the first time. The instructor held one end for some of us. A couple of dogs were unsure of it and a couple had never done it before , Missy included. She walked on to it no problem but then wanted to charge up it at 100 mph . I had hold of her collar though to steady her. I steadied her at the top by putting one hand on her chest and saying " steady" , then the instructor slowly lowered the end and we let her run off. We did this 3 times before continuing with the mini course. Towards the end of the class , we all had to go round a course as follows ; Jump , see saw , jump (in a straight line) , turn right , jump , turn right , dog walk , turn left , jump , turn left , jump , A-Frame , jump , turn left, dog walk , turn right , jump , finish. So , although Missy was excited , and we were both nervous , our first advanced agility lesson was brilliant. She's learned the see saw , and she's been round a mini course , which included turns away from jumps facing her . She didn't miss one single contact but then at our beginners classes , a lot of time was spent teaching the dogs to wait,("4 on" then " 2 on 2 off" ) , on the contacts.In fact , she stopped and sat on the contact coming off the dog walk . I'm really looking forward to Tuesday next week . ( And I'm trying to get someone to come with me to take pictures ).
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rachelsetters
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12-09-2007, 10:15 AM
Well done - a great start to the new course - good luck with Missy - glad you are having fun together !

Look forward to pics!
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Hali
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12-09-2007, 05:46 PM
Sounds like you both did well, no wonder you can't wait for next week
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Fudgeley
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12-09-2007, 09:21 PM
It`s great fun isn`t it. Sadly our agility finishes next week until next Spring as it is outside and the Autumn/Winter weather means it`s not safe.Great to hear you both did so well.
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abbie
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12-09-2007, 10:35 PM
Well done. Looking forward to pics
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Missysmum
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20-09-2007, 08:32 AM
Week 2

Another great class . This week , instead of putting Missy in the back of my hatchback , I put her on the back seat with her harness on . She still cried but not quite as much as last week. I also didn't mention agility in front of her , and ignored her while I was getting ready. She certainly seemed a bit calmer this week. Only 6 people turned up this week so the class was small. We had a different instructor too. She really knows her stuff ! Excellent at communicating with handlers , and handling the dogs. We were doing mini courses this week. We started off by doing a sequence in line , jump , A-Frame , jump. Asking the dogs to wait at the first jump , we walked past the jump then called the dog. As the dog was landing we were to say " Walk on" , so it knew to go straight on to the A-Frame. We got them to wait on the contact at the end , then tell them " over " , to go straight over the next jump. This was great , seeing the dogs going on to the next obstacle , with or without us at their sides after having an instruction to tell them where to go next. We did more in line sequences with other equipment , then did a clockwise circuit and an anti - clockwise circuit. On both circuits , we stayed on the inside so the dogs were working around us on the outside. The best part of the class for me was when we combined 2 circuits into a course , with changes of direction. I realised just how quick Missy really is , and that she watches my every move even if I'm not aware of it. I'm going to have to be very aware of my own body language so I don't send her in the wrong direction by mistake. I just need to point in whatever direction I want her to go and she does it. ( I need to be careful not to "point" with my legs , shoulders , head or she'll go that way ). She's very , very quick on the turns into jumps , but if there's 2 jumps close together she jumps whatever one I point to and say " over". She was good again on the see - saw. I encouraged her on slowly , saying " see-saw" , and steadying her at the pivot point holding her there for a minute before letting her move forward to lower the other end. She's not worried in the slightest about the see-saw. On the dog walk , she didn't try to jump off the top board this week. Instead , she trotted confidently along the top and waited on the contacts when asked. We had a scary moment on the A-Frame though. First time on , she got to about my shoulder height ( I'm 5'7") , then turned towards me and launched herself off the side , landing in a heap on the ground . Once I made sure she hadn't hurt herself , she was more than happy to go back on and did it properly from then on , ( parachute required for next week ). At the end of the class , we had a go at the weaves. It's 7 months since she's done any weaves but she remembered the correct entry automatically. She did the weaves quite well , only missing a couple of poles as I'd got a wee bit ahead of her. Again , that goes back to her watching every move I make . I need to stay with her more for now and not make any sub concious moves which effectively tell her what to do and where to go. This is sooooooooo exciting and really good fun. Everyone should try agility training with their dogs. Roll on next Tuesday , I wonder what we'll be doing next .
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Helen
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20-09-2007, 08:37 AM
Sounds like you are both doing really well!

I do agility with my springer and any mistakes made, it is usually my fault lol!

Helen
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Missysmum
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20-09-2007, 08:48 AM
Thanks Helen . I need Harry Potter's invisibility cloak so she can't watch me too much . If I tilt my head to the left , guess where she goes . I'm wondering if I'm doing something that's making her think I want her to jump off the side of the A-Frame. It's scary seeing your dog sailing past you at head height . I must be turning my head or moving my eyes or shoulders away from her as that's 2 weeks in a row she's done that. I had visions of broken legs or something when she landed on the ground , but she was ok . Not even a limp at the time or the following day. Anyway , I have to get off to bed now as I work night shift. I'll be back on later .
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Helen
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20-09-2007, 09:31 AM
The only time Pippa jumped off the a-frame was because I, very slightly, stepped away. She really reads my body language and the slightest movement, she moves with me. Great when I get it right, but not so great when I get it wrong lol!

Helen
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jannie
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Location: bolton,lancashire,uk
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28-09-2007, 03:50 PM
Wish i was back up home in Scotland with my irish staff.I am in Bolton and can't find a school who will take on my Bruno.I got a site of a member,but no one would even see him.So good luck with your dog.
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