Tuesday, February 1, 2011

Rally Bound?

Corgis-1-29-11-6
He's good at lounging
on the couch
I'm an agility person, through and through.  It is one of the main reasons I got a corgi because it looked like so much fun on TV.  Come to find out, it's harder than it looks.  I love doing it though and my dogs are so happy playing with me on this fun equipment.

There is another sport out there that lots of people compete in called Rally-O.  AKC puts it on and it is described as "fun obedience".  When Bernie started having issues with her left shoulder I considered doing it with her but she is way too barky when I do obedience drills, they are apparently beneath her. 


So I'm thinking of doing Rally with Byron as a good foundation for agility while he's learning baby agility stuff.  Apparently you can start competing at 6 months of age!  It isn't cheap though and there is a lot of waiting around for one rally run in the ring.  Just the practice would be worth it to teach him some useful behaviors and have fun while doing it.

Here is an example of a rally course (this is my agility instructor competing with one of her Border Collies): 

There are signs on the floor telling you what to do like Halt, walk around the dog while the dog stands still, "call front" where the dog moves to the front of you and sits down, heeling, walk fast, walk slow - etc. The beginning levels are done on leash. Once you've earned your Novice title you begin off-leash work.

Byron is pretty focused now that he's a bit older so I'm hoping to start some foundation Rally stuff and see how he does. Waiting for his next growth spurt! He's getting better at keeping up with the other corgis as they run around the yard. Once he grows into himself he is going to be quite a fast little guy.

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