formal obed compromises agility?

[KristiM]

Lol obedience is about as fun as watching paint dry!!! (IMO) I do both with my dogs, I could probably go put up to a CDX title on either of my dogs with just a little polishing/proofing. But I just cant force myself to wake up early on a weekend to go to an obedience trial lol. I like obedience because you are working so closely with the dog and I think it helps us improve as a team. I also like the body awareness involved in positions and heeling. Plus havoc needs a lot of mental stimulation and focused heeling is GREAT for that!

Odin did nothing but obedience until he was 2, never had an issue when I started agility. Havoc had strong foundation in both starting as a puppy, never had an issue with him either.


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[Liesje]

I don't do AKC obedience but there is an obedience component to Schutzhund and much more so for SDA - lots of "alerting" the dog, then recalling to basic position during the protection tests - and that's probably why Nikon falls back on obedience/heel position. It's not just a habit from *obedience* heeling but being a non-negotiable part of protection work as well.

[KristiM]

Originally Posted by Liesje

I don't do AKC obedience but there is an obedience component to Schutzhund and much more so for SDA - lots of "alerting" the dog, then recalling to basic position during the protection tests - and that's probably why Nikon falls back on obedience/heel position. It's not just a habit from *obedience* heeling but being a non-negotiable part of protection work as well.

Ya I can definitely see why that would cause more of an issue!

It used to drive me nuts watching all of the obedience people dabble in agility, refusing I run the dog on their right because it was an obedience dog and everything had to be on the left! That was over 10 years ago though, and I see the same people now running agility on both sides I guess they figured out that their obedience dog wouldn't melt if they worked it on the right lol.

[x11]

not sure but i think some protection sports don't have a preference for what side you heel?

so if these obedience dogs are so obedient should they not be able to be directed equally left or right without issue - that would be obedience not programming.

[Mikelia]

I had the hardest time running the dogs on my left. My gsd had no issue with either side - so long as I was giving clear signals with my body. By border collie x had a harder time, she defaults to proper heel position. She still struggles on the odd sequence if it is on my right but really it was me. It took me a LONG time to adjust to running the dogs on my right lol.

[Liesje]

Originally Posted by KristiM

Ya I can definitely see why that would cause more of an issue!

It used to drive me nuts watching all of the obedience people dabble in agility, refusing I run the dog on their right because it was an obedience dog and everything had to be on the left! That was over 10 years ago though, and I see the same people now running agility on both sides I guess they figured out that their obedience dog wouldn't melt if they worked it on the right lol.

See, I don't say my dog can't run on the right because I think that will damage his obedience. I WISH he WOULD run on the right! But considering his level of training and *how* the training was done, the only context he knows is that the right is the "wrong" side and might get him serious corrections. So with that in mind I want him to have fun doing agility, so I run him on the left. I'm not worried about agility interfering with his obedience.

[Liesje]

Originally Posted by x11

not sure but i think some protection sports don't have a preference for what side you heel?

SDA requires left side:

"c. Scoring the Heeling on Leash Exercise.The dog should always heel close to the left knee of the handler and the shoulder blade of the dog should be aligned next to the handler’s knee. Dogs that demonstrate positive, energetic, and attentive attention to the handler are very desirable for awarding full points."

[KristiM]

Originally Posted by x11

not sure but i think some protection sports don't have a preference for what side you heel?

so if these obedience dogs are so obedient should they not be able to be directed equally left or right without issue - that would be obedience not programming.

Competitive style obedience really has very little to do with actual "obedience" it's more of a precise dance than anything.

[llombardo]

Oddly enough when I went to agility today a small pit bull wouldn't do anything unless it was on the left. I have never seen it before today. She is a smart little girl and it is beginning agility so I think that her owner can work with her.

[martemchik]

My dog had a CD on him and was training for CDX before I even started agility. I see no problem in it. Its actually helpful because there are certain commands he knows and I know that I have complete control of him in most situations. It gets difficult when I have to "position" him before an obstacle and he's on my right (I tell him to be on my right) but he'll run on either side of me and will stay there as long as I don't say "heel." In my opinion, its nice to have some obedience on a dog before starting agility (if you're just starting out and haven't been training for both at the same time) because they just listen better and have some expectations on them.

I do have to add...I did directive jumping, and other agility introductions before I officially joined a class, so that might be why he's fine with many of the things we do in agility.

And I believe that all competitive obedience rings require a left side heel. I don't believe any require a command to switch to the right.