Agility Classes

Jumping Malamute

Alaskan Malamute Bootstrap taking an agility jump

Agility is an action-packed race against the clock, with the handler guiding the dog through an obstacle course made up of jumps, a pause table, tunnels, so-called contact obstacles - the Dog Walk, the A-Frame, and the Teeter - and weave poles.

Northfield Dog Training has been offering a wide-variety of agility classes since the late-1990's. While we have some trainers who are training in agility just for the fun of it, many of our students compete and earn titles with their dogs in many different venues, including AKC, CPE, and UKC. These competitions are at the local as well as national level.

All agility classes are held in the south end of the big building at the rear of the NDT site.

To download a PDF with a flowchart of recommended obedience and agility training classes, see Class Flowchart.

Current Classes

Agility

Course	Day	Time	Start Date	End Date	Cost	Instructor	Section	Spaces Left
Intro to Agility Intro to Agility We work on basic obedience control needed for agility (attention, hand touch, come, stay, spins both directions, target work) and introduce the dogs to all of the different obstacles seen on an agility course, at safely lowered heights. Your dog needs to be comfortable being held by the instructor or assistant, and to have enough self-control to work around other dogs without being disruptive. Equipment: 4-6 ft cloth or leather leash, flat collar, treat bag, lots of small soft treats, toy that does not roll or squeak, and sensible shoes in which handler can run. Prerequisites Puppy Kindergarten or Jumpstart Obedience at Northfield, or equivalent class.	Tue	5:45-6:40 PM	Oct 29	Dec 3	$100	Raissa	19C65AgIntro	Filled
	Notes: Dogs need to have taken a Basic Obedience-like course or have Instructor Approval to participate in this class
Agility 2 Agility 2 We continue to work on the obedience control needed for agility and build on the foundation work started in Intro to Agility. We will introduce the various ways to change sides (including front and rear crosses), start to build the number of obstacles in a sequence, introduce different jump sequences, build on contact obstacle performance, still at lowered heights, and build on weave pole performance, with gradually narrowing channel weaves and 2x2s for reliable entrances. Students are expected to have weave poles at home with which to practice. Equipment: 4-6 ft cloth or leather leash, flat collar, treat bag, lots of small soft treats, toy that does not roll or squeak, and sensible shoes in which handler can run. Prerequisites Intro to Agility or instructor approval. Screening required if you have not trained at Northfield before.	Sat	2:15-3:10 PM	Nov 9	Dec 21	$100	Terri	19F65AG2SAT	Filled
	Notes: Dogs need to have taken an Intro Agility like course to participate in this class. Please contact us if you have any questions at all..PLEASE NOTE NO CLASS 11/30/19 INSTRUCTOR APPROVAL REQUIRED
Agility 2 Agility 2 We continue to work on the obedience control needed for agility and build on the foundation work started in Intro to Agility. We will introduce the various ways to change sides (including front and rear crosses), start to build the number of obstacles in a sequence, introduce different jump sequences, build on contact obstacle performance, still at lowered heights, and build on weave pole performance, with gradually narrowing channel weaves and 2x2s for reliable entrances. Students are expected to have weave poles at home with which to practice. Equipment: 4-6 ft cloth or leather leash, flat collar, treat bag, lots of small soft treats, toy that does not roll or squeak, and sensible shoes in which handler can run. Prerequisites Intro to Agility or instructor approval. Screening required if you have not trained at Northfield before.	Sat	9:00-9:55 AM	Nov 9	Dec 21	$100	Terri	19F65AG2SAT2	Filled
	Notes: Dogs need to have taken an Intro Agility like course to participate in this class. Please contact us if you have any questions at all..PLEASE NOTE NO CLASS 11/30/19
Weaves Weaves This class will focus on teaching weave entries and channel weave and teaching independent weave poles Lets make weave poles fun for your dog! Prerequisites Dogs need to have taken a basic obedience class and be able work in a group class setting.	Sat	3:30-3:55 PM	Nov 9	Dec 21	$50	Terri	19F65WeavesSat	2
	Notes: Dogs need to have taken an Basic Obedience like course or Instructor Approval to participate in this class. Please contact us at info@northfielddogtraining.com if you have any questions at all..PLEASE NOTE No Class 11/30/19
Agility 3 Agility 3 We continue to build on the skills learned in Intro to Agility and Agility 2. We will expand on the number of obstacles in sequences (4-6 with side changes, 6-8 without), expand on the types of jump sequences, build contacts to full height for the dogs that are > 12 months old, strengthen contact obstacle performance, and continue to build on weave pole performance, with gradually narrowing channel weaves and 2x2s for reliable entrances. Students are expected to have weave poles at home with which to practice. Equipment: 4-6 ft cloth or leather leash, flat collar, treat bag, lots of small soft treats, toy that does not roll or squeak, and sensible shoes in which handler can run. Prerequisites Agility 2 or instructor approval. Screening required if you have not trained at Northfield before.	Thu	5:00-5:55 PM	Oct 24	Dec 12	$100	Karen	19B65AG3Thurs	1
	Notes: No class on Oct 31st and Nov 28th
Agility 3 Agility 3 We continue to build on the skills learned in Intro to Agility and Agility 2. We will expand on the number of obstacles in sequences (4-6 with side changes, 6-8 without), expand on the types of jump sequences, build contacts to full height for the dogs that are > 12 months old, strengthen contact obstacle performance, and continue to build on weave pole performance, with gradually narrowing channel weaves and 2x2s for reliable entrances. Students are expected to have weave poles at home with which to practice. Equipment: 4-6 ft cloth or leather leash, flat collar, treat bag, lots of small soft treats, toy that does not roll or squeak, and sensible shoes in which handler can run. Prerequisites Agility 2 or instructor approval. Screening required if you have not trained at Northfield before.	Sat	1:00-1:55 PM	Nov 9	Dec 21	$100	Terri	19F65AG3SAT	Filled
	Notes: Dogs need to have taken an Agility 2 like course to participate in this class. Please contact us if you have any questions at all..PLEASE NOTE NO CLASS 11/30/19 INSTRUCTOR APPROVAL REQUIRED
Agility 4 Agility 4 We continue to build on the skills learned in Intro to Agility, Agility 2 and Agility 3. We will expand on the number of obstacles in sequences (8-10 with side changes), build contacts to full height for the dogs that are > 12 months old, strengthen contact obstacle performance, and continue to build on weave pole performance, with the goal of completely closed weaves and independent entries. Students are expected to have weave poles at home with which to practice. Equipment: 4-6 ft cloth or leather leash, flat collar, treat bag, lots of small soft treats, toy that does not roll or squeak, and sensible shoes in which handler can run. Prerequisites Agility 3 or instructor approval. Screening required if you have not trained at Northfield before.	Sat	11:45-12:40 AM	Nov 9	Dec 24	$100	Terri	19F65AG4SAT	1
	Notes: Dogs need to have taken an Agility 3 like course to participate in this class. Please contact us if you have any questions at all..PLEASE NOTE NO CLASS 11/30/19 INSTRUCTOR APPROVAL REQUIRED
Agility Run Thrus and Course Analysis Agility Run Thrus and Course Analysis This class is for students who are running all or parts of a course with closed weave poles and full height contacts. We will take turns running a course and discussing handling options, in order to find what works best for your team. All levels welcome. Everyone will get equal time to work the course. Prerequisites Instructor approval. Screening required if you have not trained at Northfield before.	Tue	7:00-7:55 PM	Sep 10	Oct 15	$70	Raissa	19C55AGRunThrus	5
	Notes: This class is for students who have done foundation work ( beginning to close weave poles, worked on weave pole entrances, contact behaviors at lower heights , and short sequencing with beginning work on side changes (crosses) . ( Or with permission of instructor)
Agility Run Thrus and Course Analysis Agility Run Thrus and Course Analysis This class is for students who are running all or parts of a course with closed weave poles and full height contacts. We will take turns running a course and discussing handling options, in order to find what works best for your team. All levels welcome. Everyone will get equal time to work the course. Prerequisites Instructor approval. Screening required if you have not trained at Northfield before.	Tue	7:00-7:55 PM	Nov 5	Dec 10	$70	Raissa	19C65AGRunThru	4
	Notes: See the Course Description for more details and in this class we will focus on improving and proofing weave pole performances and especially on weave entries. We will also do some proofing on whatever contacts are available. Doing closed weave poles, preferably 12, will be needed. Please email info@northfielddogtraininig.com if you have any questions at all...
Agility Skills Agility Skills This class focuses on handling skills, building weaving skills, and building contact obstacle sills with emphasis on two-on-two-off contact performance. We build to working a full course of 13-15 obstacles. This is a great course for the 1st-time handler. Prerequisites Knowledge of all agility obstacles; comfortable on full height contact equipment; ability to perform short obstacle sequences consistently; working at least 6 weave poles.	Thu	11:30-12:25 PM	Oct 31	Dec 12	$100	Karen	19B65AGSkillsThurs	Filled
	Notes: No class on Thanksgiving, Nov 28
Agility Skills Agility Skills This class focuses on handling skills, building weaving skills, and building contact obstacle sills with emphasis on two-on-two-off contact performance. We build to working a full course of 13-15 obstacles. This is a great course for the 1st-time handler. Prerequisites Knowledge of all agility obstacles; comfortable on full height contact equipment; ability to perform short obstacle sequences consistently; working at least 6 weave poles.	Sat	10:15-11:10 AM	Nov 9	Dec 21	$100	Terri	19F65AGSkillsSat	Filled
	Notes: Dogs need to have taken an Agility 4 like course to participate in this class. Please contact us at info@northfielddogtraining.com if you have any questions at all..PLEASE NOTE No Class 11/30/19
Open/Excellent Agility Problem Solving & Proofing Open/Excellent Agility Problem Solving & Proofing Competition class ONLY. Must be competing at the Open/Excellent Level. Are you having problems with contacts, start lines, wide turns, motivation, attention, etc? This is a combination class offering problem solving and proofing. This class will also include back side jumps, learning how to set line for jumping sequences and more advanced distance work. Course walk-through work and course analysis is an important component of he class. We will discus all options for running the course, which is most efficient, and which is best for the team. Limit of 6 dogs and handlers. Bring toys, treats, and a pill bottle with a lid that fits in your hand. Prerequisites Competing at the Open or Excellent level. Instructor approval required.	Thu	3:00-3:55 PM	Oct 31	Dec 12	$100	Karen	19B65AGComp1Thurs	4
	Notes: No class on Thanksgiving, Nov 28
Open/Excellent Agility Problem Solving & Proofing Open/Excellent Agility Problem Solving & Proofing Competition class ONLY. Must be competing at the Open/Excellent Level. Are you having problems with contacts, start lines, wide turns, motivation, attention, etc? This is a combination class offering problem solving and proofing. This class will also include back side jumps, learning how to set line for jumping sequences and more advanced distance work. Course walk-through work and course analysis is an important component of he class. We will discus all options for running the course, which is most efficient, and which is best for the team. Limit of 6 dogs and handlers. Bring toys, treats, and a pill bottle with a lid that fits in your hand. Prerequisites Competing at the Open or Excellent level. Instructor approval required.	Thu	6:30-7:25 PM	Oct 24	Dec 12	$100	Karen	19B65AGComp2Thurs	1
	Notes: No class on Oct 31st and Nov 28th