I want to do a class! *stamps foot*

[mrose_s]

I so want to start doing a class somewhere with Quinn again. My Tuesday nights have just opened up again since the group classes at work got changed to Monday nights.

The local agility club meets on Tuesday nights and I feel now like I would have enough control with Quinn to work her offleash in such a distracting environment. But I just feel I can't take the risk of working her in the mid/lower levels and having an over friendly dog rush her and put all our hard work backwards when she over reacts.

I'm trying to keep working on stuff at home, but frankly it's bloody hard without much real experience in what I'm trying to teach. I'd liek to get her to a level where I can just take her in and see if we can skip to the advanced level, I know the dogs there are all at a stage where they couldn't care less about the other dogs running.

Other than that we have one very old school obedience club. No flyball. Noting else really training for competition unless I travelled over 70 minutes+ to get there.

I suppose this is just a whinge more than anything. I'm hanging out for one day when work might secure some facilities that we can get together weekly and train our own dogs in whatever we like.

I think I would just love the social aspect of it more than anything.

 

[Ozfozz]

The agility clubs that I have taken part in have always ensured that dogs are under control. Those who have been in the sport long enough know that a good majority of agility dogs aren't all that fond of other dogs in their space.
Even in the lower levels of agility, people should be taught from the beginning not to let their dogs run rampantly up to others.

Have you been to the venue before? Maybe there's somewhere that Quinn could quietly chill away from the other dogs until it's her turn?


I feel your pain for sure. Unfortunately, my issues have been more finance and scheduling related. I'm fortunate to get 1 or 2 Sundays a month for agility house league but I NEED to do something during the week *sobs*
And my poor dogs, Cobain needs more agility in his life.

 

[Laurelin]

In my experience places are either set up safely or they're not.... doesn't matter what level of class you're in. At my first agility place, my last, and my current I have NEVER seen any dog/dog issues because they're not allowed to happen. My second place, I've seen issues in the advanced class (Summer's class).

Dogs should be crated or at least outside of the working area while other dogs are working. The first place wasn't good but they still had dogs leashed or outside the working area if someone was off leash.

My thoughts are always to start with foundations and heavy foundations. It's made a world of difference with Summer- I pushed her way too far too fast in Texas. Especially with a nervier dog or a dog with issues in different environment it's best to start small and work up.

 

[Dizzy]

Oh join the club!!

Figuratively not literally lol!!

Im in the same boat. So much want to do, so little places to do it.

My closest place is 50 mins away. That's where I'm doing agility but one class, for an hour, once a week isn't enough!!

I'm down for an evening obedience class, but it's over subscribed so doesn't start till feb.. Soon!

I wish I had more stuff near me too

 

[mrose_s]

The way this club is set up is one big sports field. Multiple classes being taken at the same time, multiple dogs being worked in each class at one time. No barriers. the dogs do have to complete 2 Pre-Agility classes on leash and shouldn't progress to the next stage until they are reliable off leash - but really, the environment is just so bloody distracting that it's a big call to make.

I trained there early with Quinn to put her through her Pre Agility stuff, she excelled in everything but once we started moving to off leash stuff I just couldn't trust her, she would bolt up to dogs that she saw running or chasing toys (even 80+meters away) she'd always stop short of actually reaching the dog and recall right away but it was an accident waiting to happen. She only did it a couple of times but I couldn't keep putting her in the position to get herself slammed.
She wasn't desensitising to the other dogs movement, she was too anxious to engage with me and she was getting bored of doing the same stuff on leash. I didn't want to poison what we were trying to do so I just left it.
She's past most of this now, not as reactive and much much more controllable around aroused dogs. Very engaged with me and much more drive for her tug. But the entire environment just isn't going to work for us.

I might have to check out a couple of clubs in Brisbane and see how they operate. If it's a one-dog-on-the-field-at-a-time basis I'd definitely get into it. But it just seems more like people want the students to feel like they are getting value for money so they should all be working their dogs as much as possible during the actual class time.

 

[Laurelin]

I think 70 minutes would be worth it for a better setup if you can swing it. I used to travel an hour or so to agility but couldn't because of my job and the class times (couldn't get home then get the dogs then get there in time). I'm very lucky my current place is 15 minutes away and I have 2 out of the 4 dogs in my class (though usually it's just my two and one other). I get a lot of working time!

Anyways, I think it's very worth the drive to go someplace good and who keeps safety in mind first. My second agility place didn't require crating and kept dogs waiting their turns leashed inside the arena. It's an accident waiting to happen. The only way you could have an accident here would be to be doing something you're really not supposed to be doing.

 

[Elrohwen]

The place I train has safety issues in the lower level classes and it's a huge pain. I totally understand your frustration. I can't even imagine how most dogs would be ok with working off leash in a huge field, with no barriers, and dogs working all around them. That type of thing takes so much foundation work and just doing some obedience on leash isn't going to get you there.

My own dog is one who will leave me and run up to other dogs to play at the beginning of class, when he's still settling in and isn't ready to work yet. Luckily he isn't the type to start anything, but it's not safe to have an exuberant dog running up to just anybody. Last week one of the other dogs decided to run up to us and things got tense. From now on my dog, at least, will be outside the working area while other dogs take their turn, but that doesn't help with his tendency to run up to other dogs when it's our turn, unless everybody else goes outside the area.

I already travel an hour to get to our current place, and there aren't any other options. Totally get where you're coming from.

 

[Finkie_Mom]

What about a private? Even if it's only a half hour (that's how much I do per dog, since an hour is too expensive for me to justify) that's still a lot of working time. And you wouldn't have to worry about other dogs being there (unless they ran another class during your private without barriers, which they hopefully wouldn't do...).

I travel an hour one way for class. It kind of stinks, but it's WAY better a place than the facility like down the street from me. Better in terms of instructors and the set up itself.