Articles

Handling a Fast Agility Dog: Pinto or Ferrari?

If your new agility dog is a move up from a slow or moderately-fast agility dog to a speed racer, here’s some advice to make your life easier.

Dog Agility Contact Training: Do You Really Need Running Contacts?

Which dog agility contact method, running or stopped, is right for your team? The answer might surprise you.

Should I Use Verbal Cues for Dog Agility?

How important are verbal cues for dog agility? Find out in this article that explains how your dog perceives verbal cues on the agility field.

5 Ways to Crush It at Your Next Dog Agility Seminar

Going to a dog agility seminar so you can learn with your dog? Check out these five tips to maximize your return on investment!

Why You Need an Experienced Instructor for Safe Dog Training

An experienced instructor for agility, tricks, conditioning, and other dog sports is required for safe training and can save you headaches and heartaches in the future.

Dog Training Methods: The Thomas Edison Approach

Approach training like the inventor Thomas Edison, and have fun experimenting with new dog training methods when your dog is stuck.

5 Reasons to Teach Your Dog Tricks

Teach your dog tricks – including basic obedience behaviors. It’s critical to having a dog you can live with. However, training your dog brings a wealth of other benefits as well.

Yes, Sit and Down Are Dog Tricks

As dog trainers, we sometimes forget that not everyone is familiar with the terms we use. To the average pet owner, “dog tricks” means they jump through a hoop or fetch the newspaper. In truth, every behavior we teach, from sit, to walking on a leash, to fetching a drink from the fridge, is just a trick.

Environmental Cues in Dog Training – Avoid This Mistake

When you are teaching a behavior, don’t make yourself part of the environmental cues in dog training for performance. If you always ask for a down with the dog directly in front of you, or always stop next to the contact zone on the dog walk, your dog will rely on your position as part of the environmental cues for the behavior.

5 Agility Dog Training Mistakes to Avoid

Don’t make these mistakes with your agility dog training!

Training a Place, Side, or Middle Cue Makes Agility Start Lines Easier

When setting up for an exercise or at the start line for an agility run, the first thing we need is for the dog to be facing the same direction we are. Simplify your life by training a completely solid heel, side, or “between” (between your legs) cue. This ends the struggle to position and reposition your dog and lets you spend more time on the exercise and less getting set up.