Introduction

Agility is a sport where a dog (under the control of its handler) demonstrates its agility by negotiating a course of obstacles. These obstacles include jumps, tunnels, weave poles, see-saws, high-level dog walks, A-frames and tables. The course is run off-leash, against a course time, and it is a test of accuracy, skill and control and especially of the bond between handler and dog. The handler uses only verbal commands, hand signals and body language to control the dog; the use of treats or toys is banned, and handling the dog during a competition run causes dog and handler to be disqualified. Faults are awarded for matters such as if the dog knocks the bar off a jump. The dog with the fastest time and the least number of faults wins its class at the competition. Both purebred and mixed breed dogs can be found doing agility; the distinction between them is unimportant.

Safety of the dogs is paramount in agility. The bars on the jumps are easily displaced if hit and the surfaces on the contact obstacles such as the see-saw and the A-frame are roughened so as to provide grip even if they are wet.The club has a policy of not permitting dogs less than one year old to jump, because young dogs have soft bones and may injure themselves by jumping.

The club runs classes starting with beginners to the sport, with three more levels of classes, the highest level being Advanced. We train on Sunday afternoons in Castle Hill. This site includes more about our classes and our location

The obstacles

Note that all dimensions given here are approximate and may vary between the three agility organising bodies in Australia.

The Jump

The photograph above shows obstacles being set up for training. The jump shown in the picture has wings but there are also jumps without wings. Both types have a pole set so as to be easily displaced if knocked, and marks to allow the positioning of the pole and its bearers at different heights depending on the size of the dog.

The Long Jump

This is formed from two to five slightly raised platforms which get progressively wider. The dog must clear the jump.

The Tyre

The tyre is a different type of jump, but the principle is the same. The tyre is a pipe circle or an actual tyre suspended in a frame; the height at which the tyre is suspended depends on the size of the dog. 

The A-Frame

The A-frame is formed from two ramps each about 9 feet or 2800mm long. They are hinged at the top and supported by a chain or similar mechanism so that the height of the A-frame can be varied to suit the height of the dog. The ramps can be tapered with the wider end being at the bottom or ground end. The ramps have a non-slip surface and slats at intervals down their length, also to prevent slipping. The last 1 metre at the bottom or ground end of each ramp, called the contact zone, is painted in a contrasting colour, and a dog attempting the obstacle must make contact with these zones.

The Dog Walk

The dog walk is formed from three planks, each 9 feet long and 12 inches wide. The central, horizontal, plank is about 4 feet from the ground. The other two planks form ramps for the horizontal plank. The bottom 36 inches of the inclined planks is painted in a contrasting colour, usually yellow, to show the contact zone. All of the planks have a non-slip finish.

The See-Saw (also called the Teeter or the Teeter-Totter)

This is a 12 foot plank which pivots about its centre point. The pivot is set in a strong frame, so that it can not be knocked over. The contact zone is painted in a contrasting colour and is again 36 inches at each end of the see-saw. The see-saw has a non-slip finish.

The Tunnel

There are two types of tunnel. One is the pipe tunnel (pictured). This can be straight or curved into a U shape or and S shape, and is about 3 to 5 metres long

The other is a cloth tunnel which has a short rigid tunnel at the entrance, connected to a collapsible cloth tunnel. The dog enters the rigid tunnel and has to push its way out of the cloth tunnel.

 The Weave poles

Weave poles are poles about a metre tall and spaced at 550mm or nearly 22 inches apart. There are up to 12 poles, set in a straight line. The dog must enter the first gap with its left shoulder and proceed to go in and out of the gaps between the poles, without missing a pole. They are a difficult obstacle for a dog to negotiate. The movement through the weave poles is unnatural for a dog, and, for safety's sake, dogs younger than one year can not attempt them at Paws 4 Fun.

Related pages

How to join Paws 4 Fun  explains how to join the club and gives the links for club fees, training, map and directions for finding us and our ground rules.

Competing for beginners discusses the three organisations that run competitions in Australia and gives some basic competition etiquette

Getting started at ADAA  explains the basics of the Agility Dog Association of Australia (ADAA) and its competitions