Episode 002 - Create Your Own Path in Dog Agility Training

Season #1 June 10, 2025

Show Notes

Create Your Own Path in Dog Agility Training

In this episode of the Maximum Fun Agility podcast, Lorrie Reynolds shares a powerful story about a handler who was told by her instructor to quit dog agility altogether. Instead of giving up, she chose a different path and discovered what was possible with the right guidance, training approach, and mindset.

This episode is a reminder that every agility team progresses differently, and that the right support and training strategies can make a tremendous difference.

In This Episode You’ll Learn

• Why discouraging advice can derail an agility team’s confidence
• How motivation and confidence affect your dog’s agility performance
• Why clear communication between handler and dog matters in training
• How small training breakthroughs can rebuild confidence for both halves of the team
• Why finding the right instructor or training environment can make a huge difference

Episode Overview

Every agility team faces challenges at some point in their training journey. Sometimes those challenges come from the dog, sometimes from the handler, and sometimes from outside influences.

In this episode, Lorrie tells the story of a student who was told by her instructor that she should simply quit agility. Her dog struggled with motivation and tended to stay close to her on course, making distance work difficult and slowing down their runs.

Instead of accepting that advice, the student attended a seminar to look for solutions. Through focused exercises, better communication, and confidence-building games, she began to see progress with her dog. By the end of the day, the team achieved a breakthrough that showed them what was possible.

The lesson is simple but powerful: don’t let someone else define what you and your dog can achieve in agility training. With the right information, support, and persistence, many challenges can be overcome.

Key Training Concepts Mentioned

• Motivation and reward value in dog agility training
• Building confidence in agility dogs
• Improving communication between handler and dog
• Developing independence in agility obstacles
• Finding supportive coaching and instruction

Key Takeaway

Every agility team has its own journey. If you encounter discouraging advice or setbacks, focus on finding solutions, improving communication with your dog, and building confidence through training.

The right instructor, training approach, and mindset can make a tremendous difference.

Resources Mentioned

Maximum Fun Dog Sports
https://www.maximumfundogs.com

The Agility Playground membership

Join The Agility Playground

If you want to build a successful agility team where runs with your partner feel flowing and in sync, join The Agility Playground.

The Agility Playground is a low-cost membership designed to help agility teams improve communication, independence, and confidence through structured training exercises and supportive coaching.

Start your free 7-day trial here:
https://courses.maximumfundogs.com/2025-bb-tap1-7D

Related Episodes

If you’re interested in improving communication and clarity in your dog agility training, listen to:

Episode 049 – Determine and Plan Performance Criteria Before Training

Additional Resources

Website: https://www.maximumfundogs.com
Shop: https://courses.maximumfundogs.com/shop
Email: [email protected]
Articles: https://www.maximumfundogs.com/articles
The Agility Playground: https://courses.maximumfundogs.com/2025-bb-tap1-7D

Episode Transcript

Lorrie [00:00:08]:
Welcome to the Maximum Fun Agility podcast. I'm Lorrie Reynolds, owner of Maximum Fun Dog Sports. We help your agility team build your relationship, communication, confidence, and fun in training so that you can joyfully succeed on any course. In this episode, we'll dive into how to ignore negative opinions and forge your own path for agility. Years ago, I had someone come to a seminar and tell me a story that was frankly pretty shocking. We'll call her Sue, although that's not her real name. I'd only seen Sue occasionally at trials before the seminar, and I'm not sure how she found me, but she was pretty quiet and subdued when she walked in. As I greeted everyone and took a bit of time to talk to people, Sue told me why she was there.

Lorrie [00:00:54]:
And then she said, my instructor told me to just quit. She looked at the floor as she said it, and I could tell she was really embarrassed to tell me. I looked at her in disbelief, not even sure what to say. I was so mad that it took me a minute to answer. I'd never seen any signs at trials that Sue's dog was dog or human aggressive. He wasn't out of control, unsafe, or physically unfit for agility when he was on the course. Her dog's problem? He was what people call a Velcro dog who had always worked close to Sue, and he didn't seem to have a lot of motivation to run fast. Constantly looking at Sue caused him to knock bars, and they were frequently over time at agility trials because of his lower motivation.

Lorrie [00:01:40]:
She had never qualified on a course that required distance. I'm not sure why this made her instructor decide she should quit, but she ended up in my seminar because she was looking for help. After I shook off the initial shock of having someone blatantly discourage a student that way, I said, let's see what we can do to change her mind. I told her that she could tell me at the end of the day if she still thought she should quit. Sue obviously didn't want to quit. She'd invested the time and money to travel to the seminar. She was disheartened, embarrassed, and frustrated, but she wasn't ready to throw in the towel on a dog she loved and had been training for several years, and I didn't blame her. For the entire day, Sue took in every bit of information like a sponge.

Lorrie [00:02:28]:
She took lots of notes, asked good questions, and tried her hardest on every exercise. We talked about motivation, rewards, and building the dog's confidence. I introduced games people could play to increase motivation, talked about high value and low value rewards, and explained how motivation is tied to confidence. If dogs aren't confident, it often presents as a lack of speed and drive. She learned how her cues were interpreted by her dog, and what she could do to clarify her communication so her dog would trust her cues. She worked really hard. She followed direction, repeated the exercises, and borrowed my dog to practice with off and on so her dog wouldn't get tired of playing. All day long, she dedicated herself to learning the pieces that could help build their relationship, communication, teamwork, and her dog's confidence in both Sue and in himself.

Lorrie [00:03:22]:
On the second to last exercise of the day, her dog took a series of jumps 10 feet away. Not at top speed, not at full height, but also not while glued to her leg. You would have thought she won nationals by her reaction. She was smiling ear to ear. As she was packing up and getting ready to leave, I walked up to her and said, well. She looked at me with determination in her eyes and told me, I'm not quitting. Then she laughed and said, but I am finding a different instructor. I'm not sure why her instructor gave up on her team or why she would tell a student to quit, but I don't think the instructor realized the impact she had had on Sue.

Lorrie [00:04:01]:
There was nothing wrong with that team that couldn't be improved with some focused training and an understanding of how to communicate and some confidence building exercises. Today's podcast tip for you is, don't let anyone tell you what you can't do or who you can't be. Create your own path that aligns with what you want. Find people who can help you get on the right track and ignore the ones who try to drag you down or sow doubt. With the right guidance, information, hard work, and attitude, you can accomplish anything you set your mind to. Thanks for listening to this episode of the Maximum Fun Agility podcast. If you want to build a successful agility team where runs with your partner feel flowing and in sync, join us in The Agility Playground. The Agility Playground is a low cost membership that meets you where you are on your dog agility journey and helps you propel your team to new heights.

Lorrie [00:04:59]:
You can check out The Agility Playground and join our community at www.maximumfundogs.com. See you next time!