What’s the best dog obedience and agility program in Calgary, Alberta, Canada?
We’ve just brought home a little Aussie Shepherd/Blue Heeler pup and I’m looking for information about the best programs for training and agility in Calgary. I’m an experienced dog owner, having raised both a Golden Retriever & an Aussie Shepherd (sadly, both passed away in the last couple of years), but it’s been 15 years since I last sought out these programs. If you could point me in the right direction I would be very thankful.
JS
October 2nd, 2010 at 4:02 pm
Try contacting the Kennel Club.
http://www.calgary-city-maps.com/Calgary-Kennel-Club.html
See if they can help.
October 2nd, 2010 at 4:30 pm
There is a Calgary Agility Association. Email Cindy Swiney at: calgary-agility@shaw.ca or try the Calgary Canine Center at k9centre@telusplanet.net or Calgary Cruzing Canines at Diane.Duft@3web.com or K9 Express or It’s a Dog’s World (sorry, no contact info for them). There is also an “On Track Agility” club in Calgary (again, I don’t have contact info).
So, how do you choose an agility club or instructor? Here are a couple of hints:
1. Do they take anyone in or do they first check stuff like, if your dog has had obedience, or is reactive?
2. Are the instructors for courses fulltime (most aren’t)? Fulltime instructors get exposed to a lot of different dogs and handlers. Plus, for some clubs, they use volunteers to teach the novice classes. While the volunteers mean well, they may not have much experience teaching or with different dogs.
3. Do they have indoor space? Otherwise you’re only taking classes May-Sept.
4. Can you go observe? Most reputable instructors will let you watch one class. What you want to look for is/are…
–is the class organized?
–is it mostly about the instructor talking and people walking the course?
–is it safe or do you see dogs causing problems or reacting?
–does the instructor keep it positive?
–does the instructor offer comments after each run?
–does the instructor offer only one right way to do a run or is there a recognization that each team is different and should use different strategies?
–do they use clickers for training in the classes (especially at the intro levels)?
Last suggestion: go to http://www.agilityevents.net and find an agility trial near you (easy to do–agility is big in Canada and Calgary isn’t someplace like Flinflon). Go observe. Ask the competitors “where do you take classes?” or for recommendations.