Kavik

I agree with poodlefan. There is no point in putting her in a situation where she is likely to react.

That is a good point poodlefan, whenever I've watched flyball the dogs look VERY excited and noisy. They are also in close proximity to other dogs and run next to and opposite other dogs.

Focus is a good place to start, and you may want to do this at home with few distractions at first, then build up to the distractions you will find in a class situation. I'm not sure how experienced you are. I would work on focus (clicker training is great for this ), basic obedience (sit, drop, recall) and any flyball foundation work in a low distraction environment first before going into class.

Not sure what to suggest re bark collar as my dogs are very sensitive to them and Zoe in particular will get very 'down' if I put a bark collar on her, so they don't get used often. Maybe K9 Force will come in and help there. While this is not a quick fix, but may help long term, what about Crate Games? Was suggested also to Ruthless whose Staffy hurt himself trying to get out of wire crate and who screams the house down when the other dogs are taken out. Builds value for the crate so that it is a positive and helps with self control.

Does he bark in the house, in a crate? What sort of bark collar is it? Do you set the levels yourself or does it adjust itself depending on whether the dog barks/how long?

Cool, will have to think about it then if I would have to do their classes first. All webbing martingale would not be a problem, I use a black dog martingale on Diesel atm. Edit cause can't spell today!

So I can't just do the test (like for eg I could just do CCD)? I would have to do a course first? I am thinking possibly Diesel. He is not motivated enough (and his health problems aren't helping) to get the kind of attitude I want for competition obedience, but if possible I would like some sort of certificate/title on him so that all the work I have done with him isn't wasted, and CGC doesn't look like you need precision heeling but more life skills? He can heel and all that but doesn't look as 'up' and keen and happy as I would like if I was to do competition obedience. Is there an outline of what you need to do somewhere? From that list of instructors I know a couple of them They have equipment requirements from memory - does it have to be a flat collar or are martingales allowed.

I think he sounds lovely and a very happy boy That enthusiasm will make training fun If his behaviour isn't a problem for you I would say it is just the way he is and use it!

I feel your pain smisch - it has taken 3 months to get Kaos's paperwork sent to me so I can actually enter Dogs NSW agility events!

Thanks that is helpful Where can I find out more about it and where can you get assessed for it?

Delta run CGC tests I think? What is involved and can you actually get a title/certificate saying this was achieved?

How have you been training him to sit? Do you reward when he is nicely by your side when walking? Have you done any focus work so he knows to pay attention to you?

Thank you Vickie, that is the stuff I needed to know!

Castle Hill Showground on Sat 11 July

OK have my first ANKC agility trial next weekend I have been to ADAC and ADAA trials, which can be fairly laid back, so wondering what I need to do when I get to an ANKC one. Do I have to check in somewhere and tell them I am there? I have to take the dog into the ring on lead and then give lead to steward right? I think I will run him nude so that it is the same as the other comps I enter.

What about temperament? I have seen some at agility, but have also heard that timidity can be an issue in this breed.

It was great to be able to attend Ronda's seminars this year. She was personable, a great speaker and showed us some great exercises. Those runs are fantastic and I hope sometime to be able to get that kind of speed and accuracy from my dogs

If you pin the dog down and put your face next to its face, you risk being bitten on the face. Don't think I would want to risk copping a bite on the face from a powerful breed like the one you own. I encourage tug in my dogs so I can use it as a reward. I don't have a reliable tug on any of my current dogs (Kaos will tug in the yard but not on walks or training, the others will not tug). With Kaos in the yard, I encourage him to tug and play with him for a bit then stop and make it go 'dead' and he lets go. When he lets go I move it so he can chase and tug again. I also do sits and release him to get the tug.

Yes agility is off leash, so you need a good recall. A good sit stay is very helpful for leadouts, and a drop for the table (not that the table gets practiced much where I train anyway ). Agility is where you direct the dog around an obstacle course which includes jumps, tunnels, ramps and raised walks, a seesaw, pause table, and weave through poles. There is a mix of people and dogs of many breeds and sizes, some that do it just for fun and some to compete.

My personal experience with Kelpies is that they enjoy active training like agility much more than obedience classes which are slower paced.

I used to go to Manly and Districts before I moved further north. I did the Tuesday evening classes in Mosman and did some instructing there for a while. When I was last there, they used a lot of positive reinforcement and food and promoted head collars and martingales. Didn't allow check chains (unless you were an older member ). It is a trialling club and they have a trialling class, however the lower levels are also geared towards pet obedience and manners. It could be reasonably busy at times. Would be fine for a social dog, but wouldn't recommend it for a reactive dog as last time I was there they didn't have a policy for dealing with reactive dogs and the owners of other 'friendly' dogs did not listen.

You shouldn't do much forced exercise (lead walking) with a young pup - certainly should not be doing jogging on a lead. Best to wait til they are older for that or they may injure themselves.

Basic commands like sit, come, drop are a good start. Clicker training is lots of fun and great for teaching tricks, also useful for obedience and agility behaviours. Read up on it if you want to do it - targetting is a good first behaviour to teach and useful for many other things. (and less frustrating than some others to teach with a clicker )

What about some training? Training is good for building your relationship with your dog, and gets them mentally tired. It doesn't have to take a long time (puppies have short attention spans) and besides basic obedience (which is crucial), tricks are also fun to teach

I heard that the classes Vicki and Steve run are also in Mosman Not sure which park though.