NORWICH – Do you have a dog with boundless energy, the kind a simple walk around town won’t satisfy? Pet Street Station Animal Hospital may have just what you need – a new outdoor dog agility course debuting this weekend. In response to numerous inquires regarding dog training classes, Lisa Mullin and Robyn King of Pet Street are spearheading an event designed to introduce what they hope will transition into a regularly scheduled class. The public debut of the course will take place from 3 to 6 p.m. Saturday at the Pet Street location on East River Road. The plan is to introduce the community to dog agility training, which helps to discipline and exercise dogs. Dog agility is a also national sport in which owners and their pets compete all across the globe.
The newly-built course at Pet Street is designed to accommodate all sorts of dogs with different levels of training and was constructed by the staff under the careful supervision of Tracy Sklenar of Smyrna, who has competed on the United States international team in Europe. Sklenar will also be there Saturday, leading demos with her faithful companion Export, a six-year-old Jack Russell Terrier/Border Collie mix who was with Sklenar representing the United States in competitions overseas. Export, named after a Canadian beer, was part of a team that ranked 8th internationally, but has also won regionals and placed 5th nationally. “Pretty good for a dog that lays on the couch and still loves to roll around in Smyrna mud,” said Sklenar. Export will be performing for his fellow canines and human observers alike, opening the event with a demo that he will then recreate every hour for the duration of affair.
“It’s obedience training on the run,” explained Sklenar, refering to the mentality behind dog agility training. The course is designed to wear out dogs with high energy, “letting them blow off steam, so that they will be calmer at home, as well as teaching them impulse control,” she said. The course features an A-frame, a teeter-totter, two different kinds of tunnels, as well as a number of adjustable hurdles and weave poles.
Dog agility is not just for young, high-energy dogs, though. All friendly dogs that are older than four months of age are perfect candidates to have a good time Saturday, King said. The dogs participating in the event will not be interacting with each other – only one dog will be off-leash at a time; the reason being the dog’s focus is meant to be on the owner, not playmates. Dog agility is not quite like obedience school in that it is more about molding the owner and dog into a team. “It’s about training owners and their pets together, bonding and focusing them,” said King.
In the near future, people will be able to rent out the space, said King. For now though, the main goal of the event, on top of having a good time, will be to introduce dog owners to the type of training seasons that will become available at Pet Street on a regular basis. Registration for classes will be available Saturday. Future classes may take on a competitive angle for those who are interested. Class organizers are toying with the idea of interclass competitions, mimicking the style of the grandiose international formats.
People who are not interested in competing don’t even need to think about that aspect of dog agility, King said. “In fact, many of who start taking agility classes do so purely for the fun of it and it can be a great way to socialize a dog,” she said.
On Saturday, canines and their owners will be rewarded with treats donated by Faithful Friends bakery and Chobani, among others. There will also be face painting for the kids, the human ones of course. People are encouraged to dress appropriately and to only bring two dogs, if they have just as many people to handle them. For more information, contact Pet Street Station at 336-7387.