How do I start teaching agility?
That doesn’t mean you can’t start teaching the foundations that will set you up for success on the a Read More
What are the contact obstacles in agility?
Jadyn Stoltenberg
2025-08-19 17:22:35
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: 24
When there was a discrimination in the training sequence, he always, always chose the contact obstacle. If they were in any other sequence that wasn’t a discrimination, he would go through them. Dogs do what works. If they’re ALWAYS rewarded for the contact or a complex trick and RARELY rewarded for the tunnel or sit, they are going to default to the behavior that gets the reward. Too often, we only reward the dog for the things that are challenging – the perfect contact performance, a confident teeter, a beautiful sit pretty, or fast and flowing weave poles. Remember that jumps and tunnels make up a significant portion of agility courses. Don’t forget to intermittently reward the fun/easy behaviors or the dog will default to a behavior that “pays” better. Maintain their value by remembering to reward them regularly.
Vivianne Bosco
2025-08-15 22:41:20
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The A-Frame, Dog Walk, See Saw and Table are known as contact obstacles.
These require the dog to come in contact with the yellow painted area of the obstacles (the contact zone) in order to score.
Contact Obstacles
The A-Frame, Dog Walk, See Saw and Table are known as contact obstacles.
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How many obstacles are there in agility?
The object of this class is to negotiate a full course of agility equipment with a minimum of 15 obs Read More
Natalia Bruen
2025-08-08 07:22:25
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: 16
There are typically three main contact obstacles in agility: The A-Frame: Two ramps joined at the top, forming an “A” shape. Dogs run up one side and down the other. The Dogwalk: A raised plank with ramps at either end. Dogs run up one ramp, across the plank, and down the other. The SeeSaw: A long plank balanced on a central pivot. The dog runs up one end, causing it to tip to the ground after they have crossed the pivot point. Contact obstacles are strategically placed throughout an agility course, often requiring dogs to approach them at different angles and speeds. Handlers use verbal cues and body language to guide their dogs onto and across the equipment. The flow and speed at which a dog can navigate these obstacles smoothly contribute significantly to their overall course time.
Lilian Willms
2025-08-01 10:47:37
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The dog’s understanding of the behavior you want on the contacts, your timely and exciting reinforcement of the behavior, and a program for routine maintenance are the keys to improving the speed of your dog’s contact performance. Clearly, we all seek faster and more accurate contacts. Still the work of achieving, improving, and maintaining contact excellence can be daunting, leaving many stuck at a “good enough” performance level. When I ask agility competitors what they are least satisfied with, more often than not they answer contacts. Regulation obstacles bring too many challenging variables into play at once. So, you need to start with downscaled and simplified toys that will allow the dog to develop.
The teeter can be a nemesis for many dogs. The seesaw obstacle, which has been included in dog agility since the sport’s beginning, has recently been facing scrutiny. It is the only moving obstacle, and therefore, the performance of the obstacle itself can influence the dog’s performance on course. With the increasing speeds of the canine participants, the functional consistency of the seesaw and the overall safety of this obstacle is now being questioned.
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What is the obstacle commitment in dog agility?
Commitment is a huge buzzword in dog agility but what exactly does it mean. Imagine that you’re invi Read More
How do you explain dog agility?
Agility is a dog sport, where the dog is handled through an obstacle course. Agility is a sport for Read More
America Hudson
2025-07-25 20:04:07
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: 17
The contact obstacles include the a-frame, dogwalk, teeter, and table. Before the use of running contacts, high level performance of these obstacles generally required a stop in the contact zone. The most common stopped performance requires the dog to keep the two rear feet on the contact while the two front feet are on the ground. For all the contacts, the most common problems arise for the exact same reasons as problems in the start line behavior—confusion over criteria, and stress over making mistakes. When dogs are confused about criteria, they often have good stopped contacts at home or practice but not at trials. The solution is simple: never reward a dog who fails to meet criteria, in practice or in trials. Running contacts apply to the a-frame and dogwalk only, as the table requires a 5 second wait for the dog and the teeter requires the dog to wait until the plank hits the ground before the dog can leave the obstacle. The teeter is a special obstacle because it causes many problems for fearful dogs who will do it in practice but not in trials. Dogs can fear the teeter for three reasons, and they must be addressed in teaching the teeter: the loud sound the teeter makes when it hits the ground, the actual movement of the teeter, and the height of the teeter.
Alexie Orn
2025-07-13 00:11:00
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: 19
The ‘A’ Frame is a piece of equipment that looks exactly like the letter “A”.
Its purpose is to challenge the dog’s ability to walk up and down a 45 degree incline.
The bottom part of each ramp will be a different colour and your dog must put his two front paw’s on this part on the up ramp and his two rear paws when completing the down ramp of the obstacle.
This obstacles is known as ‘Contact Obstacles’.
The Dog Walk is another challenging piece of agility equipment, another contact obstacle.
Essentially like a balance beam, which will force the dog to practice his patience and balance while walking on it.
The same principle for mounting and dismounting the A Frame applies to the Dog Walk.
The See Saw is one of the more tricky pieces of dog agility training equipment.
The dog must climb up one side of the see saw, balance his weight appropriately in the middle in order for the other side to touch the ground, and then walk down that side of it.
This is the final piece of Contact Equipment.
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Learning agile individuals demonstrate the ability to rapidly acquire new skills, adapt to changing Read More
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Obstacle Names include Jump, Hup, or Over Tire, Ring or Hoop See Saw, or Teeter. Directional Comman Read More