Maggie Mae, Rat Terrier, Fifth Agility Trial One Year Later

[nemirn]

At what age should someone start training an RT for agility?

Mine is 4 months old, but she loves running up and down ramps...

[billbeckerfl]

@nemirn Maggie didn't start agility training until she was 2 years old. However, her brother Banzai started training the day we brought him home at 10 weeks old. We worked agility foundation and flat work. You want to be careful not to work jumps, weave pols or other impact obstacles until the growth plates are closed (10 - 12 months old) however you can do a lot of training before then - and Rat Terriers make EXCELLENT agility dogs!!!

[billbeckerfl]

@nemirn ALSO - I can not post links in this reply but I would encourage you to search both YouTube and the internet with the following terms: puppy agility foundation

and: clean run foundation training for agility

Many important behaviors can and should be taught to puppies/dogs before they are ever introduced to the agility equipment!

[nemirn]

@billbeckerfl

Thanks for the response! I shall heed your advice and seek the information you referenced!

[stubtaildogs2]

great job!!! I have a 10 yr old RT that is the best ever! I compete in Rally and Obedience with him, and im proud to say that we have consistantly placed higher than breeds more traditionally know in those rings :) He also holds a title in Schutzhund. I love seeing other RT out there having fun and makin it look easy! Congrats to you both on your success

Amy and Zeek

[billbeckerfl]

@stubtaildogs2 Thanks for your kind words! It has been our experience that Rat Terriers are very underestimated! Maybe it is because of the "Rat" in their name??? As far as I'm concerned, Rat Terriers are the best!!! They are very versatile athletic dogs! Not to mention emotive and loving! They are becoming ever more popular and we are seeing more of them show up in the agility ring all the time!

[animallover151999]

nice! I might b gettin a rat terrier should i get one? Was she easy to train 4 agility?

[billbeckerfl]

@animallover151999

Rat Terriers are a GREAT breed. They are very intelligent, emotive and love to please their companions. All of these traits make them very easy to train. I would highly recommend a rat terrier as a pet and would suggest you check out rat-terrier It is a great community of people who love the breed. You can learn a lot about rat terriers on the web site.

[billbeckerfl]

@animallover151999

sorry - wouldn't let me list the web site

check out

rat-terrier

and then a dot

and then com

[rrpostalagain]

@animallover151999 I have a 5 yr old male. best. We don't perform or anything, but he's the best dog I've ever had. An amazing little friend. Once he figures out what it is you want him to do, he's absolutely overjoyed to do it for you.

[163mojo]

Fantastic! Maggie Mae seems to be enjoying herself.

[genie1971]

Nice...I have been looking myself into agility with my dog.  I adopted one just recently (was told she was border collie/aussie), but turned out rat terrier that resembles a miniature version of a BC. How early did you get it started on trainning? Mine is 14 weeks.

[billbeckerfl]

Maggie was 2 yrs old when we started agility training. We did two puppy classes first learning sit, stay, down, leave it, wait, off leash recalls, etc. Start "Clicker Training" ASAP!!! When the dogs get clicker trained early, they begin to offer behaviors and agility training is much easier. We trained for a year before attending our first agility trial and we continue to take classes once a week. We attended five agility trials our first year of competing but hope to double that this year!

[animalluver133]

very good! Only thing you can work on is speed. try cheering her on especially during the weave poles. This helped both my agility champions increase their speed. She is a small dog which means you need to take advanatage of more time to give commands (give them clearly), hitting the contact zones (your doing great at that). Only thing you can really improve on is speed.

[billbeckerfl]

Thank you for the tips!

Maggie is much faster in practice and at fun runs. She gets a little "Cautious" at trials. Could be the crowds, the noise or she might sense my adrenaline. I've heard that dogs can smell adrenaline on your breath. I'm hoping that we will both become more comfortable with each and every trial we enter. Im optimistic that a higher comfort level will lead to faster times for us!

[animalluver133]

just to add on a couple tips... To make her more comfortable at trials, try bringing her to ones and let her listen to all the sounds. if she can not come, you should record sounds and play them back for her. the sounds help alot. if your comfortable, she'll be comfortable