Clearing obstacles; one dog at a time

BAKER -- Chase zipped through weave poles and cleared a hurdle, prancing with enthusiasm at the end of the obstacle course.

Chase, a “sheltie,” or shetland sheepdog, was among several dogs honing their agility skills at the Baker Area Recreation Association Community Center earlier this week.

Chase, and his owner, Jennifer Keener, of Panama City Beach, attended a three-day training session taught by Lynne Stephens, a member of the British Agility World Cup Team in 2003 and 2004 who owns DogLogic in Statesville, N.C.

Dog agility is an entrenched sport in the United Kingdom that is growing in popularity in the States.

Dogs tear their way through timed obstacle courses that include weave poles, see-saws, tunnels and jumps. The faster the time and the fewer mistakes, the higher the dogs score in the competitions.

“It’s an obsession,” Keener said.

The sport first began in England as a comical half-time diversion during horse shows, said Daleville, Ala., resident Wendi Roller, who had met Stephens at a dog competition and organized the event.

The dozen or so women at the training event in Baker included veteran dog competitors like Keener and Roller, as well as newcomers like Crestview resident Mary Lou Mason and her dog Boomer.

“I love it,” Mason said. “It’s good exercise for me and for him.”

Border collies, shelties like Chase, and papillions, a small fine-boned breed of dog of which Boomer is a member, were popular among owners at the training event.

One of the attractions, however, is that many dog agility competitions do not require dogs entered be pure bred.

The only requirement is that the animals enjoy what they do.

“If they didn’t like it, they wouldn’t do it,” Roller said, as her border collie, Isabel, eagerly awaited her turn at the weave poles.

The American Kennel Club, the U.S. Dog Agility Association and the North American Dog Agility Council are a few of the organizations that sponsor the competitions.

Mason, who first began entering Boomer in competitions less than a year ago, said she became interested in dog agility trials while watching televised competitions.

“I always thought, ‘This is something I’d like to do,’” Mason said.

She has entered Boomer in agility competitions in Pensacola, Tallahasee and Mobile, Ala., to name a few, and has walked away with several awards.

The comradeship that develops between competitors, who know each other and their dogs, is a big draw, Mason said, as is the pleasure owners and pets get from the events.

And, win or lose, she’s proud of Boomer’s eager attempts to excel on the course.

“It’s no different than a parent who enrolls their child in a beauty pageant,” Mason said.