A training manual for competitive handlers and
their dogs
Written and illustrated by Peter Lewis
Reviewed by Martin Gill
 Description:
Following on from How to Teach Agility Obstacle, this
manual deals largely with all the necessary skills between the obstacles and includes methods
of teaching fast passages of contact and weaving obstacles.
Contents
include:-
- About Peter Lewis
- Introduction
- Foundations
Handling and speed
Play
Control
Commands
Release command
- Hurdles, contacts and weaves
Hurdles
Contact obstacles
Weaving poles
- Close directional control
Body language and signals
Teaching response to signals
Obstacle discrimination
- Early basic exercises
Changing sides
Recall and jump
Working ahead
Land and turn
- Remote directional control
Calling the dog out
Working to the side at distance
Turning the dog ahead
- Sequences for enhanced learning
Situation sequences
Simple line abreast hurdles
Pull throughs
Reverse turns
- Conclusion
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Best
Features:
This training manual is for competitive handlers and dogs.
It includes good training patterns to encourage better and
faster control of your dog as well as ideas and suggestions on course negotiation, fast turns
and direction commands. The information in there is useful and the points
well made. Apart from the chapter on teaching the Channel Weaves which I found most
complicated, the other instructions were clear.
I feel this is a book for the keen competitor who wants to improve the
performance of their dog and themselves. It is not a book I would use in a training environment
like a club, but I would take ideas from it to use at club level.
 Worst
Features:
There are four things which I feel could be improved.
- Text is printed in columns. Across the page would make for easier reading
and would allow a slightly larger type face.
- The illustrations are strictly amateurish and sometimes pointless. Why,
for instance, in a manual for competitors, is there a picture of a see-saw? Some pictures
don’t really seem to help at all. (e.g. see page 33)
- The English is often too complicated and verbose. You have to do a lot of
reading to find the good points. Altogether it makes the book difficult to use as a handy
reference in a training environment.
- The Introduction is a bit verbose, too and it rambles on for a while. In a
small book, you only need a small intro, especially when it is one of a series and each has
an introduction.
- There is an irritating number of references to other books in the series.
These would have been better referenced to an appendix.
 Presentation,
design & format:
Being pocket-sized and spiral bound
makes it a useful as a training manual. The pages lay flat and do not keep flipping from one
page to another.
Overall Rating:
5/10. There are a lot of good training ideas and useful pointers
for handlers but the difficulty in accessing the information and confusing diagrams bring the
score down.
Price:
£7.99 including post and packing.
Value for Money:
Good
Enquiries to: -
Canine Publications
Dept AN
21 Burridge Road, Burridge, Southampton SO31 1BY
Tel. 01489-885112
Also available from
YOUR FIRST STOP, ONE
STOP SHOP FOR AGILITY THINGS
 About
the Author...
Peter Lewis has been training dogs for in excess of 40 years. During that time, he has
trained many dogs for competition disciplines and taken them to the top of each sport. They are
Obedience, Working Trials and Agility, and he is in demand to judge and teach all of these dog
sports across the world.
He has been involved as an instructor and teacher of instructors for very
many years and has also founded four dog clubs. Apart from club work, he has spent many years
working professionally teaching pet dog owners how to
have a well behaved dog. Such has been his success sin this field that over 50 different
veterinary surgeons refer owners to him. He is also a member of the Canine and Feline Behaviour
Association.
With agility, he has been acknowledged as having played a major part in
establishing the sport in the UK and around the world.
Although most of his time has been spent hands-on with dogs and dog people,
he has also found time to write and produce in excess of ten books and videos.
 About
the reviewer...
Martin Gill started agility with Flikka at The
Vyne in 1995. His first show was in 1996 where he picked up the agility 'bug' as well as his
second dog Lucky from Valgray!
Flikka won out of elementary in '97 and Starters in '98.
At Longleat that year he picked up another Valgray, Leo and at Severnside in 1999 he gathered
Tansey, also from Valgray, into the pack. More recently he has added Fagin to his string, but
this time from the local dog warden.
He's had plenty of top 10 success in Novice and 10-20
success in Intermediate. He says that he doesn't compete enough for his taste, but possibly too
much for his wife Rosie!.
Martin took his first judging appointment this year at
Cranbourne.
If you would like to comment on
this book or add your name to the Agilitynet list of reviewers,
email your name and details to Ellen Rocco at
Agilitynet today.
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