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53-418: The World Dog Show (WDS) is a Fédération Cynologique Internationale -sanctioned, four- to six-day-long international dog show, held yearly since 1971. It has been called "the most important dog show in the world". The World Show includes agility , obedience , junior handler , conformation , and other events and demonstrations. Dogs who win in any category are awarded the title "World Winner". The show places

106-401: A bar in a jump, but also time faults , which are the number of seconds over the calculated standard course time , which in turn is determined based on the competition level, the complexity of the course, and other factors. The regulations of different organizations specify somewhat different rules and dimensions for the construction of obstacles. However, the basic form of most obstacles is

159-570: A day of competition, requiring multiple course builds, walk-throughs, and briefings. Awards are usually given for placements and for qualifying scores. Such awards are often flat ribbons , rosettes , commemorative plaques , trophies , medals , or pins . Some clubs award high-in-trial awards, calculated in various ways, or other special awards for the trial. Dogs who complete their final qualifying scores to become agility champions are often presented with special awards. Many Kennel Clubs also award titles to those who manage to qualify enough times in

212-616: A demonstration at the Crufts dog show in the late 1970s in the United Kingdom. Dogs were run around a course designed similar to horse jumping courses during intermission as a way to entertain the audience. It has since spread around the world, with major competitions held worldwide. Globally, dog agility competitions are regulated and run by the Fédération Cynologique Internationale (FCI) and its member organisations and

265-690: A hand in the dog's collar and guiding the dog through while leading with an incentive. It also includes teaching the dog to run full speed between two poles and gradually increasing the angle of approach and number of poles. Agility may be trained independently (for instance at home) or with an instructor or club that offers classes. Seasoned handlers and competitors, in particular, may choose to train independently, as structured classes are commonly geared towards novices. Seasoned handlers often instead look to seminars and workshops that teach advanced handling techniques, and then practice on their own. Common reasons for joining an agility class include: In addition to

318-404: A new dog to the agility obstacles varies in response. Each individual dog learns at its own pace; confident dogs may charge over equipment with little encouragement, while more timid dogs may take weeks to overcome their hesitations with much encouragement. Both scenarios present their own challenges, as dogs may be overconfident and sloppy to the point where they have a serious accident and teaching

371-650: A number of national kennel clubs and sport federations. Rules of each organisation, titles and selection process of national teams that represent the country at prestigious international events vary slightly. One reason alternatives to FCI organisations started to emerge is that FCI is an international pure-bred dogs federation and most of its members have restrictions for dogs without pedigrees. Such organisation as USDAA, UKI and IFCS and their members have opposed that and created their own international competitions that do not restrict participation for dogs without pedigrees. Dogs can begin training for agility at any age, but care

424-488: A particular level. Most clubs require three qualifying scores in any level to get the corresponding title, however, other clubs may require more or less. In the United States in most sanctioning organizations, there are a variety of titles that a dog and handler can earn by accruing sufficient qualifying runs—also called legs—that is, runs that have no more than a certain number of faults (typically none) and are faster than

477-637: A special emphasis on rare and unusual dog breeds . It is one of the largest dog shows in the world, with shows attracting upwards of 10,000 entrants. It is held in a different country each year. The top title at the event is Certificat d'Aptitude au Championnat International de Beauté ( French for 'Certificate of Aptitude at the International Championship of Beauty'), abbreviated CACIB , for which only purebred specimens of fully recognised, standardised breeds , not provisionally recognised or experimental breeds, may qualify. Some people feel that

530-728: A win at the World Dog Show is worth more, reputation-wise, than the same win at the Westminster Kennel Club show. Entries in the World Show are from Fédération Cynologique Internationale member clubs, and non-member clubs (such as the American Kennel Club) by invitation. Dog agility Dog agility is a dog sport in which a handler directs a dog through an obstacle course in a race for both time and accuracy. Dogs run off leash with no food or toys as incentives, and

583-522: A word or syllable is doubled, often with a different vowel. Reduplication is typical of words that indicate repeated activity, such as riding up and down on a seesaw. In the southeastern New England region of the United States, it is sometimes referred to as a tilt or a tilting board . According to Michael Drout , "There are almost no 'Teeter-' forms in Pennsylvania , and if you go to western West Virginia and down into western North Carolina there

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636-519: Is a band of 'Ridey-Horse' that heads almost straight south. This pattern suggests a New England term that spread down the coast and a separate, Scots-Irish development in Appalachia. 'Hickey-horse' in the coastal regions of North Carolina is consistent with other linguistic and ethnic variations." In the early 2000s, seesaws were removed from many playgrounds in the United States, citing safety concerns. However, some people have questioned whether or not

689-554: Is a direct Anglicisation of the French ci-ça , meaning literally, this-that , seemingly attributable to the back-and-forth motion for which a seesaw is known. The term may also be attributable to the repetitive motion of a saw. It may have its origins in a combination of "scie" – the French word for "saw" with the Anglo-Saxon term "saw". Thus "scie-saw" became "see-saw". Another possibility

742-530: Is reported to vary by country, with Australia reporting the highest percentage of injuries and the United States reporting the lowest percentage of injuries. Injuries were most commonly perceived as being caused by interactions with bar jumps (contact), A-frames and dog walk obstacles (contact and/or fall). There were no relationship between the use of warm-up and cool-down exercises and injuries. As in many sports, dog agility has its own World Championships. Only pure-bred dogs are able to compete in those. One of

795-402: Is taken when training dogs under a year old so as to not harm their developing joints. Dogs generally start training on simplified, smaller, or lowered (in height) agility equipment and training aids (such as ladders and wobbling boards to train careful footing), but puppies who learn quickly must be finished growing before training on equipment at standard height to prevent injury. Introducing

848-412: Is the situation of the apparent appearance, disappearance, and re-emergence of the person, seated opposite one's position, as they, seemingly, "rise" and "fall", against a changing, oscillating background - therefore: "I see you", followed by, "I saw you". In the northern inland and westernmost region of the United States, a seesaw is also called a "teeter-totter." According to linguist Peter Trudgill ,

901-452: Is the time under which dogs must complete the course to avoid time faults. For example, if the course is 150 yards (or meters) long, and the rules state that dogs must run the course at a rate of at least 3 yards (or meters) per second, the standard course time would be 50 seconds. Other organizations, though, leave the decision on course time to the judge's discretion The judge often holds a briefing for competitors before each class, to review

954-580: Is then taken to the score table for recording. At the score table, scorekeepers compile the results in a variety of ways. Some organizations require or encourage computerized scorekeeping, while others require certain types of manual score sheets to be filled out. When all the dogs in a given height group, level, and class have run, the score table compares run times, faults, and any other requirements to determine placements (and, for classes that provide qualifying points towards titles, which dogs earned qualifying scores). Each ring might run several classes during

1007-419: Is uncommon to find real estate inexpensive enough to devote entirely to agility, so sites are usually rented for the weekend. Even in more rural areas, agility-only sites are uncommon. Popular locations include large parks , covered horse-riding arenas, and in cold-winter areas, large, empty warehouses in which mats or carpet can be laid. Before the trial, each judge designs the courses that they will judge at

1060-787: Is usually at least 5,000 square feet (I.e 465 square meters); however, exact dimensions vary according to the organizations. Competitions can have anywhere from one to a dozen rings. The ground must be non-slip and level, usually being either packed dirt, grass, carpeting, or padded matting. Competitors additionally need space to set up quarters for their dogs and gear. When space permits, competitors often bring pop up canopies or screen room awning tents for shade. Dogs, when not competing, are usually left to rest in exercise pens, crates , or dog tents familiar and enclosed environments in which they can relax and recover between runs. Handlers also bring reflective cloths to protect their dogs from sun exposure and to calm them down (by covering their crates with

1113-541: The air. Playground seesaws usually have handles for the riders to grip as they sit facing each other. One problem with the seesaw's design is that if a child allows himself/herself to hit the ground suddenly after jumping, or exits the seesaw at the bottom, the other child may fall and be injured. For this reason, seesaws are often mounted above a soft surface such as foam, wood chips, or sand. Seesaws are also manufactured in shapes designed to look like other things, such as airplanes , helicopters , and animals. Seesaws, and

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1166-495: The cloths). There also needs to be space for many handlers with dogs on leashes to move freely around the rings without crowding, and space for warming up, exercising, and pottying dogs. Adjacent to the site, parking must be available for all competitors. At weekend or weeklong shows that offer camping, space needs to be provided both for competitors' caravans and tents, and for the small fenced enclosures or gardens that they set up around them. In heavily populated areas, therefore, it

1219-422: The competition. The sanctioning organization usually reviews and approves the courses to ensure that they meet the organization's guidelines. Guidelines include such issues as how far apart obstacles must be, how many turns are allowed (or required) on a course, which obstacles and how many of each must appear on the course, and so on. The rules vary by level of competition and by organization. Before each class, or

1272-483: The course. The handler typically runs near the dog, directing the dog with spoken commands and with body language (the position of arms, shoulders, and feet). Because speed counts as much as accuracy, especially at higher levels of competition, this all takes place at a full-out run on the dog's part and, in places, on the handler's part as well. Scoring of runs is based on how many faults are incurred. Penalties can include not only course faults , such as knocking down

1325-437: The dog and handler must be able to clearly discriminate which to take, and can be arranged so that the handler must work with obstacles between themself and the dog, called layering, or at a great distance from the dog. Printed maps of the agility course, called course maps , are occasionally made available to the handlers before they run, to help the handlers plan their course strategy. The course map contains icons indicating

1378-401: The dog is always safe and has a good training experience for agility so that it does not fear the obstacles, and instead performs them willingly and with enthusiasm. The teeter-totter (or see-saw) and the weave poles are typically the most challenging obstacles to teach to a dog. Many dogs are wary of the see-saw's movement, and the weave poles involve behavior that does not occur naturally to

1431-427: The dog self-control becomes one of the goals for the trainer. Timid dogs need extra support to boost their confidence. Given the right encouragement, a timid dog can gain confidence through learning the sport. The size of the dog can also have an effect on training obstacles, particularly with the chute, in which smaller dogs are prone to get trapped and tangled inside. A trainer will take great effort to ensure that

1484-434: The dog. Contact obstacles in general are challenging to train in a manner that ensures that the dog touches the contact zone without sacrificing speed. Whether for competition or recreation, the most important skill for an agility team to learn is how to work together quickly, efficiently, and safely. Dogs vary greatly in their speed and accuracy of completing a course, as well as in their preferences for obstacles; therefore,

1537-567: The eagerness of children to play with them, are sometimes used to aid in mechanical processes. For example, at the Gaviotas community in Colombia , a children's seesaw is connected to a water pump . In 2019, a set of seesaws were installed spanning the US-Mexico border fence between El Paso and Ciudad Juárez. Seesaws go by several different names around the world. Seesaw , or its variant see-saw ,

1590-412: The evening before the first class, course builders use course maps provided by the judges to place equipment on the course. The chief course builder is usually an experienced competitor who understands what equipment is legal, how it must be configured, how each must be aligned compared to other obstacles, and can direct several course-building volunteers to efficiently move the equipment into place. To make

1643-594: The ground. The seesaw, sometimes called the teeter-totter, is a seesaw , that the dogs walks the length of, the seesaw varies between 8 and 12 feet (2.4 and 3.7 m) in length and the apex between 16 and 27 inches (41 and 69 cm) in height. The tunnel obstacles involve tunnels of different designs that the dogs run or crawl through. Although each organization has its own rules, all divide dogs into smaller groups that are close to each other in size and experience for purposes of calculating winners and qualifying scores. The history of dog agility can be traced to

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1696-429: The handler can touch neither dog nor obstacles. The handler's controls are limited to voice, movement, and various body signals, requiring exceptional training of the animal and coordination of the handler. An agility course consists of a set of standard obstacles laid out by a judge in a design of their own choosing in an area of a specified size. The surface may be of grass, dirt, rubber, or special matting. Depending on

1749-403: The handler must adjust their handling style to suit and support the dog. Training techniques for each piece of equipment varies. The techniques for training the weave poles include using offset poles that gradually move more in line with each other, poles that tilt outward from the base and gradually become upright, wires or gates around the poles forcing the dog into the desired path, and putting

1802-428: The inherent difference in human and dog speeds and the strengths and weaknesses of the various dogs and handlers. As each course is different, handlers are allowed a short walk-through (typically 8 minutes) before the competition starts. During this time, all handlers competing in a particular class can walk around the course without their dogs, determining how they can best position themselves and guide their dogs to get

1855-399: The job easier, courses are often marked in some way to correspond to a grid: for example, if course maps are printed on a grid of 10-foot-by-10-foot squares, the posts that hold the ring ropes marking the course's four sides are often set 10 feet apart. When the course builders finish, the judge walks through the course and double-checks that the obstacles are legal, that they are placed where

1908-422: The judge intended, and that there are no unintended hazards on the course (such as potholes, uneven ground, or mud puddles) around which the course must be adjusted. For many classes, the judge then measures the path through the course to determine the optimal running distance of a typical dog. The judge uses that measurement with a speed requirement determined by the rules to calculate the standard course time, which

1961-477: The maximum standard course time (SCT). For example, under USDAA rules, a dog can earn novice-level titles in Standard, Jumpers, Gamblers, Snooker, and Pairs Relay classes by earning three qualifying runs in each of the classes. The dog can also earn intermediate-level titles and masters-level titles in the same classes. After earning all of the masters-level titles—five qualifying runs in each, with some that must be in

2014-460: The middle forming an A shape, the ramps vary between 6 feet 8 inches (2.03 m) and 9 feet (2.7 m) in length, and between 4 feet 11 inches (1.50 m) and 6 feet 3 inches (1.91 m) in height at the apex. The dog walk is an elevated plank with ascending and descending ramps at each end, the ramps vary between 8 and 12 feet (2.4 and 3.7 m) in length and 36 and 50 inches (91 and 127 cm) in height above

2067-467: The most accurate and rapid path around the numbered obstacles. The handler tends to run a path much different from the dog's path, so the handler can sometimes spend quite a bit of time planning for what is usually a quick run. The walk-through is critical for success because the course's path takes various turns, even U-turns or 270° turns, can cross back on itself, can use the same obstacle more than once, can have two obstacles so close to each other that

2120-480: The most notable year is 2015 - for the first time in the history, there was a double victory by the same handler. Pavol Vakonič from Slovakia held his nerves and brought two faultless runs with Ikea and Fiona (both border-collies ) through to the last jump. He earned silver and gold medal. Unfortunately, 2020 and 2021 were canceled due to pandemic . AWC 2022 was originally slated to be held in Moscow, Russia, but

2173-460: The myriad tasks involved in putting on a trial. For example, if electronic timing is not being used, each class needs a timer, who ensures that the dog's running time is recorded, a scribe, who records the judge's calls as a dog runs the class, and pole setters (or ring stewards ), who ensure that jump bars are reset when they are knocked off and change jump heights for dogs of different sizes. Agility competitions require considerable space. Each ring

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2226-431: The position and orientation of all the obstacles, and numbers indicating the order in which the obstacles are to be taken. Course maps were originally drawn by hand, but nowadays courses are created using various computer programs. Each dog and handler team gets one opportunity together to attempt to complete the course successfully. The dog begins behind a starting line and, when instructed by their handler, proceeds around

2279-414: The ring in the running order previously determined by the trial secretary and manages changes to the running order for handlers who might have conflicts with other rings of competition. As each dog and handler team runs the course, the dog is timed either by a person with a stopwatch or with an electronic timer, and the scribe writes the judge's calls and the dog's final time on a scribe sheet or ticket, which

2332-413: The rules and explain specific requirements for a particular course. For Standard courses for experienced competitors, the judge's briefing is often minimal or dispensed with altogether. For novice handlers in classes with complex rules, the briefings can be much longer. The competitors then walk the course (as described earlier). When the walk-through ends, the gate steward or caller ensures that dogs enter

2385-415: The same wherever they are used. Obstacles include the following: Contact obstacles are obstacles made of planks and ramps, they require dogs to ascend and descend the obstacle and to place a paw on a "contact zone", an area that is painted a different colour. The height, width and angle of the planks and ramps varies by the organisation running the competition. The A-frame comprises two ramps that meet in

2438-437: The sanctioning organization and applies to the organization for permission to hold a trial on a specific date or weekend; most trials are two-day weekend events. The club designates a member to be the chairperson or show manager, who is responsible for ensuring that the trial takes place, and another member to be the secretary, who is responsible for providing competitors with the show premium or schedule—a document that describes

2491-446: The specific competition, summarizes the rules, describes the trial site, and includes an entry form—receiving completed entry forms, sending out running orders, producing running-order lists for the day of competition, and compiling the results from the trial to send to the sanctioning organization. The designated chief ring steward or ring manager is responsible for finding and assigning workers, almost always volunteers, to perform

2544-488: The sport on par with mobile handlers. Research has also demonstrated health benefits to handlers engaged in dog agility. Competitions (also called trials or matches or shows ) are usually hosted by a specific local club. The club might be devoted solely to dog agility, or it might be primarily a breed club that wants to promote the working abilities of its breed, or it might be a club that hosts many types of dog sports . The club contracts with judges who are licensed by

2597-434: The technical and educational training, physical training must also be done. The dog must be fit enough to run and jump without causing stress or injury to its body. The handler can also benefit from being physically fit, but with some handling styles it is not necessary to keep up with the dog (nor is it possible with very fast dogs). Being able to handle a dog from a distance allows mobility-impaired handlers to participate in

2650-474: The term originates from the Norfolk dialect word tittermatorter . A "teeter-totter" may also refer to a two-person swing on a swing seat , on which two children sit facing each other and the teeter-totter swings back and forth in a pendulum motion. Both teeter-totter (from teeter , as in to teeter on the edge ) and seesaw (from the verb saw ) demonstrate the linguistic process called reduplication , where

2703-1056: The top 15% of dogs competing at each trial—the dog earns its Championship. Other organizations have similar schemes; in AKC, to earn the Championship, the dog's qualifying runs must be earned two at a time on the same day. In NADAC, the quantity of qualifying runs is much larger; and so on. Most champion titles have "CH" in the title: NATCH (NADAC Agility Trial Champion), ADCH (Agility Dog Champion for USDAA), CATCH (CPE Agility Trial Champion), MACH (Master Agility Champion for AKC), TACH (Teacup Agility Champion), ATCH (ASCA Agility Trial Champion) and so on. Surveys of handlers indicates that between 32% and 41.7% of dogs incur injuries from agility related activities. The most common types of injuries were (in order) strains, sprains and contusions. Locations most commonly injured were shoulders, iliopsoas muscle, digits and lumbar spine/lumbosacral area. Border Collies are more likely to be injured than other breeds. Injury rate

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2756-428: The type of competition, the obstacles may be marked with numbers indicating the order in which they must be completed. Courses are complicated enough that a dog could not complete them correctly without human direction. In competition, the handler must assess the course, decide on handling strategies, and direct the dog through the course, with precision and speed equally important. Many strategies exist to compensate for

2809-471: Was moved to Austria following the invasion of Ukraine in the Russo-Ukrainian war. Seesaw Mechanically, a seesaw is a lever which consists of a beam and fulcrum with the effort and load on either side. The most common playground design of seesaw features a board balanced in the center. A person sits on each end, and they take turns pushing their feet against the ground to lift their side into

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