Customer Reviews

Introduction to Dog Agility

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I waited to buy a dog agility book until this was published, and I am glad I did. Everything about the book smacks of quality, from the gorgeous color photos to the full color layout to the little notes and tips. She carefully avoids the impersonal "it" by naming fictional dogs "Ace" and "Sierra". It is a clever invention that really does help in making the material more understandable. It is attention to details like this that make it better than some books I've browsed and declined to buy.

The book covers most aspects of the sport, from selecting a breed to giving the actual agility rules from the various governing bodies (including the UKC!). She gives instructions on how to build some backyard agility equipment; I've already built the tire jump from her plans, and it was effortless. I wish she had given plans for some of the harder equipment, like teeter boards or A-frames, but those are bigger projects requiring some thought anyways.

Her large section on handling and sequencing seems overly long... until you try it on your own. I'll swallow my pride and admit now that it is tougher than it looked. I am glad she spent a lot of space on this important information. I'll now go back and carefully read this section over again.

This is a book I won't quickly outgrow. I feel like it will be useful all the way through my first few trials, and then some. And all the while, it will look dang good on my coffee table!

I'm glad I waited for it!

I purchased this book in anticipation of adopting a mixed breed from my local shelter. Cracker Jack is a australian shepard/sheltie mix who I thought would be the perfect dog for me to start with agility training. This book is so helpful in learning the skills myself and with the teaching of the skills to my dog. The color photos are wonderful, much better than having fuzzy black and white photos as in the other books offered, and the book is a very clear, concise, easy to read, step by step manual. The most suprising thing was that it showed not just the standard breed of dog that comes to my mind for agility (i.e. australian shepards, shelties, border collies, golden retrievers, etc.) but it also showed a wide range of other dogs who can benefit and succeed from agility training and competition like the terriers, corgis, even the bulldog and even the giant great danes! I highly recommend this well planned and designed book for anyone interested in agility training of your dog (no matter what the breed or size!) and for those who simply want to strengthen their bond with their pet.

This is a great book for pros and beginners alike! It has got what most qualifacations and obstacles are for the major agility associations; not to mention how to build a lot of the more simple ones. There are also great pictures of training to see how to do certain obstacles and so you can be able to see if your dog is doing it right. It also has instructions for any obstacle imaginable! I recommend this book to any one having trouble trying to pull off a double jump or to anyone who just thinks their dog could do this (which is a lot; all healthy dogs are capable of doing this!)!

I got into Agility a year ago, this was one of my first books. It's easy to read and understandable. It has lots of great information and it's all easy to follow. Highly recommend.

This is a very good book for the novice agility competitor. I use the diagrams for training in the back of the book for my agility classes. If you are just looking into this extreemly fun sport or just want a good book to read or are involved in Agility, get this book! It explains all about NADAC, USDAA, UKC, AKC, in every category, and more!

I bought this book a 1 1/2 years ago because it was recommended by a local trainer and handler. It sat through my first little class of agility at the local Humane society. But, my dog loved Agility so much, I found a need to look further. What a great book for someone with little time to spend reading and a great deal of learning to be done with an active dog. It has helpful tip boxes. So, if like me, you don't read it by the chapter, but by need you get to what you are looking for fast. Clear easy language. The Contents pages are listed under concise titles and appendixes are straight forward and helpful. The equipment list for simple backyard stuff... I can actually build. The useful info on various National club's focus and their differences; and where to get more info... great stuff. Why write a review now... well, I am buying another book for a friend who is getting into agility and buying the next book too for me. And it's on sale...a bargain especially if you think how little time the class instructor has to instruct you on handling your dog.

This book introduces us to all aspects of dog agility training and competing and reminds us that the whole purpose is to have fun with our dogs!

The book takes us through care and feeding of our canine companions, how to assess whether our dogs would be well suited for agility (reminding us to love them nonetheless if they're not), how we must begin with basic obedience, how to train on each obstacle, how to put it all together, how to get help, how to make our own obstacles, what the rules of the various associations are, and much, much more. It's all illustrated with very apt full-color photos that are actually helpful in showing what the author is describing. And of course, lots and lots of resources are listed, from books and contact lists to websites.

At times the text seemed to be repetitive, but not so much that I'd dock it a star. I read this from the library, but if our athletic and energetic puppy turns out to like agility training, I might just have to break down and buy it!

If you're interested in competing, this is a very good book to get started with and to use in conjunction with agility classes. If, like me, you just want to know more about the sport and maybe do a bit of backyard agility with your dog for fun and to give her an occupation other than chewing everything in sight, then it's really too advanced!

I was not as impressed with this book as I was with Margaret Bonham's other book, The Simple Guide to Getting Active With Your Dog. My first gripe is the layout was too "busy". There were so many pictures, side columns and information boxes that it was a bit hard to find the "meat" of the book. The second reason I was disappointed is because I came to it with wrong expectations. I was looking for a book to show me how to start teaching my puppy recreational agility. This book is entirely about competition agility. I would also have to say it is not a good book for a complete beginner. I knew nothing about agility when I borrowed this book and I still had many, many questions after I finished it. I came away with the feeling that if I had known something about agility first I would have gotten much more out of the book. I am thankful I borrowed it from the library instead of buying it. I am planning to borrow it again now that I know more about agility and see what a second reading will do for it.

This book gave a great background of the sport of agility. As someone who is new to the sport, I appreciated the simple ideas and descriptions on how to get started.