This is the third in a three-part series on what to expect at your first show. So far I’ve covered what to pack, and the general dos and don’ts at agility shows – now let’s talk about the main event, your actual debut run!
Arriving at the Ring on Time
The general rule of thumb in agility is to allow one minute per dog. This can be quite variable in Elementary and Jumpers C classes though, because the courses are often quite short and fast to run, but some inexperienced dogs and handlers will take a lot longer to get round.
The running order will be displayed on the call board, near the ring entrance. You should always check this after walking the course – even if you’ve brought along your own copy – because it might show you that some other dogs have scratched, and you’ll be earlier than you thought. If you’re not in the first 10 or so dogs, the best approach is to hang out where you can see the ring, count the dogs as they run, and check on the board every now and then.
You should aim to arrive at the ring 5-7 dogs before your turn. I like to get my dog out of the car about 12 dogs before my turn, let him run around the toileting area, have a go at the warm-up jump, and then go to the ring. I then check in with the call steward, and walk with my dog near the ring (but not close enough to distract other dogs) until it’s our turn. If the practice jump is near the ring, I might check in first and then do our warm-up jumps.
If you have a clash – you are scheduled to be in two rings at the same time – keep a close eye on both rings until you are about 20 dogs out. Often you will find that one ring moves faster or slower than you thought, and the situation resolves itself. If not, work out which class you have least ability to move in (e.g. one where there are only a few other dogs in your height, or you are right near the start or end of the class), and then ask the call stewards of the other classes to move you up or down as needed.
Warm-Up Jumps
This is primarily for warming up, not for training. A warm-up should take 60 seconds tops – I usually put my dog at the jump no more than five times. It can be tempting to spend more time here when you’re nervous, but you run the risk of boring your dog and tiring him physically before you actually get in the ring.
If you do want to do some training at the warm-up jump between your turns, that’s OK, but please take frequent breaks so that other people have a chance to get their warm-ups done.
Waiting Your Turn
Once you arrive at the ring, let the call steward know that you’re there, and ask them to point out the person that you’re following. Then move well away from the call board. If you stand right in front of it while you wait for your turn, other people can’t see it!
I like to watch 2-3 handlers go around the course, just to refresh my knowledge of the course. Then I engage my dog in a game of tug or some tricks, so that he is 100% focused on me when we step up to the line. If your dog has a tendency to want to chase other dogs, you may need to keep your focus on her the entire time you are waiting, so that you can prevent her from eyeing up the dogs that are running. Remember that you can move further away from the ring if you need to, as long as the call steward knows where you are, and you can still see the person that you’re following.
Getting Into the Ring
- Move closer to the ring entrance once the person before you has moved into the holding area.
- Step into the holding area as soon as the previous person has started running. If the middle of the course passes very close to the start line, you might want to wait until after their dog has passed that point.
- Use tricks or a tug toy to keep your dog engaged on you, while also leaving you free to watch what is happening in the ring.
- Put your treats and toys into the bucket if there is one, or leave them on the ground in the holding area. You are not allowed to bring any treats or toys into the ring, even in your pocket. If you are training in the ring and have checked it’s OK with the judge first, you can bring a toy, but no food.
- At some shows there will be a helper who will write down your number as you walk into the holding area. At other shows you will need to yell it to the scribe yourself. If the previous dog is eliminated, you can do this while you wait for it to finish its run. Otherwise, I usually do it after I’ve entered the ring itself, but before I’ve set my dog up.
- You can take your lead off in the holding area and put it in the bucket, if you’re confident that your dog will stay with you. Otherwise, you can step into the ring on lead, and then throw it back into the holding area. Try to throw it somewhere convenient for the lead runner – but not at their head!
- If the finish line is well away from the start line, you can enter the ring while the previous dog still has 1-2 jumps to go. This means you can be at your start position, ready to go as soon as they’re over the final jump.
- Step into the ring, and check that all six canine and human feet have made it over the ring rope. There is a rule requiring that you are completely inside the ring before you start, and of course you don’t want to start your run by faceplanting over the ring rope anyway.
- Set your dog up at your ideal starting point, and wait for the judge’s signal before you start leading out. This will usually be a whistle or a thumbs up signal. This is the signal that the judge is ready for you to start – you don’t need to wait for the signal before you enter the ring or set your dog up. Ideally you should be all ready to start your lead-out when the judge gives the signal.
Try to do everything in the same order every time, so that you don’t forget something. The least stressful sequence for new handlers is:
Enter holding area when previous dog starts -> treats and toys down -> enter ring (all six feet) as previous dog nears finish -> give number to scribe -> lead off -> set dog up -> wait for judge’s signal
Things You Can’t Do in the Ring
- Take in food rewards for your dog – ever.
- Take in a toy reward for your dog – unless you’ve checked with the judge that it was OK when you walked the course. Wave the toy at the judge as you step in the ring to remind them that you’re using it. If you are using a toy this will be a training round, and the judge won’t judge you.
- Hit, kick, drag etc your dog – this is called harsh handling, and it’s never OK. Remember that your dog did not volunteer for this new hobby of yours, and it is your job to make it mutually enjoyable. You can touch your dog (although you will be faulted for it), but always be gentle.
- Swear, or use a very harsh tone with your dog – some judges also consider this to be harsh handling, and will ask you to leave the ring.
- Wear bare feet. Even for the course walk.
- Take an excessively long time. It’s OK to attempt things a couple of times, or to take a toy in and reward your dog for something you’ve been working on. But it’s not OK to hog the ring for a lengthy training session. If it takes you several attempts to get the behaviour you want, or you’ve re-attempted more than 2 or 3 obstacles, it’s time to skip the rest of the course and find the fastest path to the finish line.
When Things Go Wrong
I love a good list of worst case scenarios! The list below isn’t intended to scare you, but I think it’s better to be prepared than to not know what to do when things take an unexpected turn…
- If your dog breaks her start line stay – bring her back and start again, if you want to have a start line stay in future. Most new handlers want to carry on and finish their run, since there aren’t any faults for this. Unfortunately start line bolting is a habit that is much easier to form than to break, so if you’re not consistent about insisting on the stay it will disintegrate very quickly.
- If your dog runs past an obstacle – this depends a bit on the dog and the situation.
- If it’s the first mistake on the course, I’d probably just the dog back at that obstacle and carry on. This is the most reinforcing option for the human half of he team! It’s usually the least reinforcing thing for the dog though – if you are constantly stopping them and bringing them back, they are going to lose some enthusiasm.
- I often back up one or two obstacles and start again, so that I can have another attempt at handling the approach to that obstacle. This usually tells me whether I stuffed up, or if my dog just doesn’t have a clue what she’s supposed to do here.
- With a dog that needs more confidence and forward drive, I would sometimes carry on as if they had taken the jump – particularly if the dog went past it because they were moving a bit faster than they usually do! I don’t want to punish that speed by immediately stopping the dog and bringing her back and telling her she did something wrong.
- With a dog that gets easily distracted, I would keep going if they were somewhat focused on me/agility when they ran around the jump. If they were looking at something outside the ring, I might go and take them by the collar, guide them (gently) back on course, ask for a couple of hand targets to regain our connection, and then run the rest of the course.
- If your dog misses a contact – I would nearly always re-attempt the obstacle. The main reason I wouldn’t is if the performance I see is similar to what I get in training, i.e. I haven’t actually trained it properly yet.
- If your dog hits their contact but doesn’t do the criteria I trained (e.g. not stopping if you’ve trained a stopped contact) – I would also re-attempt the obstacle. My dog doesn’t know whether she hit the contact or not. She does (hopefully) know what I’ve trained her to do, and whether she did that.
- If your dog misses a weave pole – again, I would re-attempt. You can put your dog back into the middle of the weaves at the point where she popped out, but I usually prefer to go back to the start and try again. I won’t make more than about 3 attempts at the weaves, because it’s easy for this to turn into a confidence-killing downward spiral with an inexperienced dog.
- If your dog can’t do something after multiple attempts – this is a pretty big clue that your training is not as strong as you thought it was. Leave it for now, and put it on your list of things you need to work on for next time.
- If your dog runs out of the ring – if you can get your dog back quickly, judges at the lower levels will usually wait for you to come back into the ring and finish your run. If she won’t come back, probably not – just run out and get her as quickly as possible, then walk her back to either the car or the ring (to get your lead) with your hand on her collar. Or if she’s small you could carry her.
- If your dog toilets in the ring – pick it up if it’s a turd. Then put your foot on the spot where your dog went (whether it’s pee or poo) – a helper will bring water to spray it down, but you need to keep track of exactly where it was.
Remember that however bad you feel like your run has gone, almost everybody at the show will have had a run that was that bad or worse!
After the Run
- Have a celebration with your dog – but make it very quick.
- You must put your dog back on lead before you leave the exit chute.
- Remember that there will be another dog coming up right behind you, so you need to leave the ring within 30 seconds.
- Now you can continue your party outside the ring! If your dog likes a game of fetch after her run, move well away from the rings to somewhere that’s safe to let her off lead and have her fun.
- Walk your dog around for a few minutes to cool her down, unless you urgently need to get to go and do something else (like walk another course).
- I like to write down my thoughts about the run as soon as I put my dog away after our run.
Closing Thoughts
Most people at agility shows are welcoming to newcomers and tolerant of the odd faux pas. We all made mistakes as we were learning how our sport works, both inside and outside the ring. It’s natural that you will feel confused sometimes. When in doubt, ask someone, and you’ll probably make a new friend in the process.
Approach your first show with a realistic mindset. It’s rare for someone to go out there and blitz the field on their debut run. It’s likely that your dog will be distracted and confused by the new environment and a different set of equipment. It’s likely that you will find it mentally challenging to give your dog clear guidance all the way around the course too. It’s best to think of your first show as a chance to see whether you are ready to compete yet, and to find out what skills you need to improve. And if things go badly in your first couple of runs, you might want to take a toy in next time so that you can reinforce the little bits that do go right.
Above all, remember that this is supposed to be fun for you and your dog. Bring your sense of humour along, remember that dogs (and people) are not machines, and try to find the fun in the process of testing and improving your agility skills.