"Hamilton"
Scroll down for Hamilton's words of Agility Wisdom
Hamilton earned his Rally Novice title in two weekends with a 2nd place score of 94 and two qualifying legs of 89.
Endeavor's Hammer, SC, OA, OAJ, CGC
"Hamilton"
Scroll down for Hamilton's words of Agility Wisdom
Hamilton earned his Rally Novice title in two weekends with a 2nd place score of
94 and two qualifying legs of 89.
Agility is great fun for speedy whippets with all those tunnels and things to climb up on! If you’re interested in starting agility with your whippet, here are some words of advice from Hamilton, Endeavor’s Hammer SC, OA, OAJ, CGC…
!. Start with Good Basic Training. Before I ever started agility, I did basic obedience. My sit, down, stays and especially “come”.were very good. You don’t want to waste half the class with your mom or dad begging you to sit or chasing you around the field (or maybe you do !) Bone-up on shaping and/or clicker training and play/tug motivational training skills. These are very helpful in agility.
2. Find a Good Trainer. This is very important for both you and your parents. Whippets love very positive, motivational trainers that make agility FUN!
3. Choose Lure Coursing or Agility… Lure coursing teaches you to “hunt” independently, while agility is all about teamwork! I was my Mom’s first Whippet, so of course the first thing we tried was coursing. I got my JC and SC titles with no problem, but I’m kind of a chunky monkey, so winning proved a little harder. On to agility. where I continue to excel, even beating those pesky border collies & aussies. I still have an occasional coursing flashback at an agility trial if I see a white plastic bag waft by on the breeze, so Mom has to make sure there are none of those distractions!
4. Run FAST, run CLEAN & Have FUN!!! Agility is all about having fun with your mom or dad.!
We hope to see you at an agility trial soon! Hamilton is now competing in Excellent Standard and Jumpers with Weaves at AKC agility trials. He is available for consultation and will gladly answer any questions. You may contact him through Linda Stewart at Endeavor Whippets.