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Originally Posted by nlavett  I'm curious as to others opinions on this. As I stated, my husband is really looking forward to agility. Our breeder is ADAMANT (sp?) that we do not start it until 2 years of age. According to her it's too much stress on the hips before they are full grown.
Are there ways to start training for this without the stresses on joints that she is addressing? |
ABSOLUTELY!! Technique and direction. You can teach cueing (following the hand), front crosses, rear crosses, passing through stanchions (the posts without the actual jump pole), driving ahead, wobbly board (very important so that she's not nervous about unstable footing, two on two off for hitting her contacts and/or downs on a mat for leaving an obstacle altogether. She can step through tires, walk across very low elevated boards, go through tunnels and have weave poles nailed before you even consider any activity that would challenge her joints. Learning to step over poles or ladder rungs is a really good idea too - she will learn foot placement or, as someone once put it to me, where her feet are. By the time you get to actual jumping, A-frames at full height, dog walks and seesaws, you could be at a point that they're a breeze.