There are a variety of activities that,
depending on the breed of or mix of your pet, can help meet their
exercise needs. Don’t be put off by the competitive aspect of trials and
certification. Yes, you can work your way up through the rankings, but
simply learning a new activity for fun can be a great bonding experience
for dogs and owners.
- Dock-diving: This is exactly what it sounds like. Dogs leap from a dock into a regulation pool to see how high or far they can go. Facilities around the country offer classes that build up your pet’s confidence in the water long before they get into competition. There is a lot you can do outside of class, if you have a body of water to practice in. Ultimate Air Dogs explains how to gradually teach your dog to swim and retrieve toys in the water.
- Herding: This teaches a dog to use its basic breed instinct to control livestock. You can start by teaching a puppy how to chase things and stop on command. Then take them to a place that has livestock and get them used to listening to you, despite the obvious distractions. From there, a training facility like Ewe-topia in Roy, Washington can take you and your dog to the next level.
- Agility: Over time, dogs learn to negotiate obstacle courses made up of jumps, tunnels, weave poles, and more, at the direction of their owners.
- Fast cat: An AKC event where dogs compete in a straight race of 100 yards by chasing a lure.
- Field trials: Dogs compete in four components based on hunting breed characteristics; pointing, flushing, retrieving and scent, trailing.
- Earthdog: This type of training lets those little diggers use their natural abilities to hunt for prey underground.
