Agility training at home is a fun way to keep your dog active, no matter their breed or size. This is especially important given that almost 60% of dogs in the U.S. are either overweight or obese, which can lead to a host of health issues, including arthritis and diabetes.
Luckily, agility sessions are fairly short and sweet, between 15-20 minutes on average, so they’re easy to fit in between walks. This helps keep your dog fit and mentally engaged, and avoids weight-related health issues in the process.
Even better, you don’t need expensive equipment or special skills to get started. You can train your dog at home with a few simple exercises to get them used to common agility movements, and then add basic obstacles like low jumps and tunnels.
In time, who knows, you may even decide to take on an official agility course or competition together.
Build confidence with simple exercises
First, get your dog used to the basic movements they’ll need for agility practice before you introduce them to the actual obstacles.
This helps build their confidence and body awareness as they learn to move in new ways, which reduces the risk of injury. A simple place to start is to lay a broom on the floor, and encourage your dog to step over it.
This exercise helps them learn to place their paws just right over obstacles and prepares them for future jumps. You can then move on to practice walks over a ladder laid down on the ground.
Coax your dog through the rungs with treats, and try to get them to go a little faster each time.
To prepare for obstacles like tunnels and underbars, your dog can also practice ducking and crawling under low objects like a table or chair.
Again, use treats to make it fun and rewarding, and move the object a little every time. This will help them learn to adapt to new situations and obstacles without difficulty.
Practice turns
Agility courses also involve lots of sharp turns, so it’s essential that your dog knows how to turn left and right. To help them master this, set down a basic obstacle like a bucket or cone, and encourage your dog to run around it.
Lure them with a treat, and reward them once they complete a circuit. Start with a big circle, as it’s easier for them to follow.
Then make the loops smaller and smaller as they become more proficient with the turns. Don’t forget to practice both directions.
Once they’ve got the hang of it, you can also teach a verbal cue for turns (like “turn” or “around”), so your dog knows to switch direction on command.
Introduce your dog to agility equipment
Once your dog has the basic movements down, it’s time to move on to some tougher challenges that involve obstacles.
According to the American Kennel Club, novice-level agility courses usually include between 13-15 obstacles, so you’ll want to start small and help your dog master a few at home, and then gradually add more.
When you think your dog’s ready, you can try out different official dog agility trials in person to really put their skills to the test.
But for now, to get started with jump training at home, for example, grab a broom and place it across two boxes to create a low jump.
Choose a stable surface, and start with super low jumps easy for your dog to clear (no need to take any risks). As they get more confident, you can slowly increase the height.
Learning to go through a tunnel is another key agility skill, and you can easily create one at home. If you have a fabric play tunnel, that’s perfect.
Though you may need to crawl through it yourself first to prove to your dog it's safe and encourage them to follow. Otherwise, you can use a cardboard box with ends removed.
Keep it short to begin, and gradually extend the length of the tunnel to around 15 feet, as is typical for agility training.
Dog agility training is a fun way to keep your dog healthy and bond with them in the process. Start with some simple moves at home, and add challenging obstacles as your dog’s skills develop.
