loving agility!!

[peachesandchubby]

Peaches is just loving agility! You can just "feel" her excitement and she just prances after she goes thru the course . Its weird how you can tell some of the dogs love it and some dont look like they even want to be there.
They dont put the jumps up but on the first wrung and the tire is set semi low but not too low for her to jump thru. The tire is her favorite.
She did the chute tonight with the material all the way down. Wasnt sure the first time but then woo hoo, just breezed thru it.
I was wondering when they are old enuff to do the full hieght jump for their size...she she turns two this month and I didnt know if it was 2 or 3 before the growth plate closes. I dont want to do anything to hurt her.
I just love how smart these rotties are. I show her something once or twice and she picks it up so fast... sorry to go on and on but the teacher said she had alot of potential for this it gave me a real proud momma moment!!
We are concentrating on the wait at the contact zone on the dog walk which is two halves of the dog walk propped up on a very short pause table (about 6 inches).
Anyway thanks for any info on the "how old when" question.

[debbiej]

I know the feeling! I don't know for sure, but I'm beginning to think there isn't an activity that rotties don't like. both mine get SO excited when we go to class or training. just the prospect of doing something with their people is very wonderful to them!

it is great that you both are enjoying yourselves!!

[lengel]

It's great fun, isn't it? Good to hear that Peaches loves it. Have a great time!

[targonrotts]

2 years old is fine to start jumping at full height. i usually start jumping at full height sometime after 18-24 months, depending if a smaller dog or larger dog frame.
but raise the bar slowly as you train. make it fun, keep it fun.
no negatives on the course...even though sometimes it's hard!

i think gala is now in the ranks of my older girls-as i walked the course the other day before running, she was having a fit in her cage trying to get into the ring!

dali is in training now just like you. he is a heavy boned male, so we are going slow. we are up to 16" in one class and still on the 8" in the other. he loves a frame and tunnels! still working out those channel weaves...he is so wide looking as he goes thru them!

[alice's mommy]

How old do they have to be to go in agility? I can't wait! Arthur loves jumping around when I toss a frisbee to him!

[targonrotts]

you can start as a puppy by doing obedience, socialization, walking on different surfaces.
you can introduce the tunnel, walking over a board.

as they mature, you can enroll in a agility class-most dogs are about 1-2 years when they start. jumps are kept very low and obstacles are placed low to built confidence, keep from injurying, and slowly brought up in height as the dog matures and gets ready for higher jumping(in our breed, typically over 18 months).
to compete, dogs must be 15 months or older, although most dogs entered are well over 2.

[Ayoka]

Oh you will have such a great time! the great part of agility is getting to know your dog because it truly is a TEAM sport!

[Yoda]

Agility is a fantastic sport for rottweilers and really enhances the bond between dog and handler. There are many excellent rotties in agility, some at the very highest levels.

Tango recently finished 3rd in the finals of the AKC Agility Invitational, held in Long Beach, CA in December 2007 and appeared on Animal Planet.

American Rottweiler Club - AKC Agility Invitational 2007

In a shameless brag, my own rottweiler Sammie won round 1 (jumpers) at the Invitational, and just returned from the AKC National Agility Championship in Tulsa, OK, where she finished 3rd in the challenger round (video on our blog). Yoda and Peaches were the other two rotties there.

[hcelsa]

Agility is a blast! 2 is definitely old enough to start jumping, but for peace of mind (and for the sake of information sharing) it's a good idea to have her OFA x-rays done to ensure that she's sound (hips & elbows).

Yoda, my non-Rott agility friends have sent me that link to Sammie's Challenger run, and those that were there to see it keep saying it brought tears to their eyes it was SO lovely (and they've assured me it was even prettier in real life than on the video)! Congratulations...your teamwork is inspiring!

[flyballmom]

Becky I was just about to reply that you'd shared the video of Sammie's run...AWESOME!! (I threatened to send Blitz to you, Yoda, for handling) I love watching Tango run, he's awesome as well.

I started taking Blitz to private lessons (I had an adult I was training too) when she was 12 weeks old. We introduced her to the wobble board, did tunnels and chutes, had her run thru jump uprights with the bar on the ground. As she grew and aged we added obstacles and had her actually start jumping. She was trialing by the time she was 2. (We're now taking a break to focus on SchH training so I'm happy to have you all to get my vicarious agility fix from!)

[debbiej]

OMG I loved that clip!!! maybe it is just cause I'm at a desk, under pressure to finish bookwork to take to accountant for taxes, but it made me both cheer along and choke up!!!