No idea where to start...

[Dos Doodles--Sam & Luke]

I live in Claremont, CA.  I think Sam would love agility training.  I have no idea where to start looking for a good place to do this.  I'm also completely unaware of anything I might need to watch out for....like bad training, etc.  I just started considering this in the past week or so.  I haven't done any research yet.  Any ideas about where I should begin?  Thanks!  :-)

[Dori & Rua]

Since it doesn't look like Sam is a puppy, you can most likely rule out worrying about Sam's growth plates being closed.  After realizing that Rua a.k.a. KangaRua can jump to amazing heights, I decided to try agility also.  Rua is still a puppy, though, so we are limited on what the training facility we go to offers for puppies.  Even for regular agility, our training facility requires that the dogs complete a "May I have your attention" class and has passed the CGC test. While both are also self-serving to the training facility, I also like the fact that the "teams" are going to work well together, the dogs are able to be around other dogs and people without getting overly excited and there is focus on what they are doing.

 

I did the 4 week puppy agility sampler recently with Rua.  Our house is turning into an agility course.  We have two jumps, sticks, pause table, tire jump and weave poles (I made all of those) and an 18' tunnel.  I am working on making a rocker table (the jigsaw blades that I started using weren't long enough).  Later July we are starting the "Attention" class and then we are going to start work on our CGC, so hopefully in the fall we are going to take more agility classes.

 

I would also check out Kennel Clubs in your area and see if there is a dog show you can attend.  We have one coming up mid-July that has obedience, rally o, agility, etc.  Can't wait.

 

You'll get a lot of good answers here!

[Nancie & Gracie Doodle]

You might want to just Google Agility Training in California or in your area.  I live in San Diego and had a hard time finding a place to go with Gracie Doodle.  When you do find a place they are usually away from the town or city out in the rural areas because more land is available for the facility.  My trainer had many different classes offered and one was agility.  I only wanted to do it to challenge Gracie and for bonding.  She loved it but the area was not that big and we were pretty confined.  I never took it any further than the six sessions.  I notice most of the agility people are on the East Coast and in the South.  I think it is much more popular in those parts of the country.  We do have on really serious Agility center down here but it sounded really like a commitment and really intense.  Googling is your best bet for finding a place.  Good Luck!

[Kim Williams]

Sam is such a cutie!!!  I am curious if you are going to an obedience class??  My obedience teacher told me about an agility club.  A great book to get you started is called " Developing Jumping Skills for Awesome Agility Dogs" by Linda Mecklenburg.  It is a collection of articles originally published in Clean Run magazine.  The DVD called Foundation Fundamentals by Mary Ellen Barry  is GREAT!!  It teaches skills necessary before you begin any obstacles!! 

[Kyoko]

Canine Performance Event, inc facilitates a lot of agility events. If you contact them they may have alist of local trainers for you...

http://www.k9cpe.com/ Also if he had taken any other obedience classes, the trainer there may know  agood place to go.