# Recreational Agility vs Performance Classes



## Quossum (Mar 18, 2011)

I'm not sure what the actual difference in the classes is, but I recommend attending a competition focused class. There are all sorts of little, seemingly insignificant things that are super easy to start out doing "right" from the start but are a big pain to retrain if you let them go in the beginning. You can always let things slide if you never, ever compete, but if you've let things slide and decide you do want to give a show a try, you might have a hard time!

Plus, competing is a lot of fun!

--Q


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## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

I would agree with Quossum - I have never wanted to compete, but the competition-focussed classes I took were way better organised and thought through than the "fun" ones. It is very easy to let the dog get into habits like missing contacts, or entering the weave from the wrong side, that are difficult to retrain, and competition people tend to be far more experienced and aware of how your body language affects your dog. I also found a big difference in consideration of safety for both dogs and humans, and in building up slowly and carefully rather than having a go at everything at once.


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

I also agree with Quossum. Lily started with a for fun class. Since I was a newbie I didn't realize how many non qualifying habits snuck into her work. We muddled through and got novice jumpers pretty quickly, but then it took forever to fix enough things to get novice standard. Now we are fine tuning to really be at open/excellent level work.


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## lisasgirl (May 27, 2010)

Thanks so much for your insight, everyone! It's good to know that, as I suspected, the competition-focused classes are usually more precise. I was a little intimidated by the ones I've found, but I'll be brave!

Archie's doing a CGC training class and working on his off-leash skills for the next little while, since I figured that would give us a better self-control foundation to start from, and then we'll gear up for the "hardcore beginners" class. Excited!


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## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

That sounds like a great plan. Have fun.


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## TeamPoodle (Aug 10, 2015)

lisasgirl, don't be intimidated by the competition classes. Riley and I just started "competition" agility with a trainer, and the entire first class was the most fun Riley has ever had in a class. What I like is our trainer doesn't just introduce the dogs to the equipment, she also explains what my hands and feet should be doing at the time, which helps Riley to know what to expect. Have fun!


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## lisasgirl (May 27, 2010)

TeamPoodle said:


> lisasgirl, don't be intimidated by the competition classes. Riley and I just started "competition" agility with a trainer, and the entire first class was the most fun Riley has ever had in a class. What I like is our trainer doesn't just introduce the dogs to the equipment, she also explains what my hands and feet should be doing at the time, which helps Riley to know what to expect. Have fun!


That does sound great! Thanks for sharing your experience!


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