Austin Agility: Dog Training, Behavior, And Sports Academy

08/20/2024

What’s one of your favorite things to do with your dog?

We have two speeds we like going, super fast, and super stopped. 😂

Sometimes it’s just nice to sit and watch the world go by, even if you’re a border collie.

If you’d like help installing an off switch, hit us up!

We’ve got you covered on creating that perfect level of chill. 👌

08/18/2024

Attention all people and four-legged friends!

If you’ve got a reactive pup and have been struggling to find a safe place to get them the physical exercise and mental stimulation that they need, I’ve got just the thing for you.

Owners of reactive dogs are often very limited in safe options of places to go and fun things to do with a pup who has big feelings about people and other dogs.

I’ve lived that life and can attest to how isolating it can feel. It is as though you’re stuck on your own little island, longing to find a safe space and community of other people who truly understand what it's like, and can offer moral support.

So, in honor of my formerly reactive girl Indi, I’m starting up a Therapy Through Sports program, made specifically for dogs that struggle in the presence of other dogs or humans.

This program will offer reactive dogs and owners the opportunity to partake in a sport called Agility and join a supportive community of other owners who just “get it”.

I’ve found over the years that reactive dogs participating in sports get better, much, much faster.

Agility opens up a whole new world of opportunity for these dogs, it creates a positive change of perspective and aids them in letting go of all those big feelings they’ve been carrying around with them.

Therapy Through Sports classes will begin in September, but you don’t have to wait until then to get the ball rolling in the right direction. If you feel like this might be a good fit for you and your pup, reach out today to get some more details and see how you can join this group of like-minded individuals of the two and four-legged variety.

Just know that you don’t have to walk this path alone, there’s always someone out there who would love to help walk you through your training journey.

512-720-1664
[email protected]
austinagility.com

08/15/2024

Does your dog bark and lunge when they see another dog? 💥📢🚫

Do you want your dog to be the one that just walks on by, feeling no need to respond to the dog barking at them? ☮️❤️🌻

Well let me tell you, Role Reversal is my specialty in the reactivity department. 😎

Here’s a tiny snippet of one pretty little lady only 12 days into her transformation process.

If you want to be the one out for a leisurely stroll in Mueller on a Saturday night, let me know, I’ll show you exactly how we get there.

Text me at 512-720-1664 if you’re lookin for change.

www.austinagility.com

07/17/2024

To say that I love my job would be an understatement. Big big wins for this guy, from barking/lunging/pulling to loose heeling like a boss. We’re gettin there and smashing our goals as a team.

07/07/2024

Such handsome boys!!

07/03/2024

The crew waiting for me to unlock the gates of paradise ❤️

07/02/2024

She always does her very best to be a well behaved little lady while we shop ❤️

06/30/2024

Bellatrix on a day training adventure! I just love the process of working training dogs up to off leash freedom!

Pro tip: A long line can be extraordinarily helpful in the process of training a full proof recall. I typically recommend clients start out with a lead anywhere from 30 to 50 feet and scaling up from there (if even necessary)

Once that recall cue has reached a 100% success rate we can start the next leg of our journey in enjoying all the off leash freedom you and your pups hearts might desire.

Of course, with great freedom comes great responsibility, so be sure you’re always following those leash laws!

06/29/2024

Can you guess what breed these beautiful girls are?

I’ll give you some hints:

**They are in the hound group, specifically considered to be Sighthounds.
**They are considered the oldest Irish breed.
**They were bred to hunt 3 different types of large game
**They are the worlds tallest dog breed

I’ll give yall some time to guess and post what type of dog these lovely ladies are tomorrow! ❤️

06/26/2024

The amount of pure joy on this girls face is absolutely priceless 😍🥰🤩

06/23/2024

Incoming for belly rubs!!! ❤️ Hazel is a private training client staying for some boarding and training this week while her momma’s on a trip taking care of business!

It’s such a convenient way for our clients to reinforce all that positive behavior change they’ve made with their pups and alleviates any worry that their training might be impacted by inconsistency while they’re away!

06/18/2024

Loved catching some pics of the boys in the blue bonnets this year. ❤️ I just love how Chuck couldn’t help but sniff each and every flower he could.

05/18/2024

Just the absolute cutest pair!! ❤️

03/07/2024

Chuck teaching board and train Sasha how to be calm in the house. Working on off leash loose heeling, and fetch ❤️ She’s been here less than 48 hours and is absolutely rocking it all!

02/26/2024

Miss Maggie loves her morning training walks every Monday and Friday ❤️

She has come such a long way since we first began our training journey together and I couldn’t be more proud of her!

Team work makes the dream work!

01/28/2024

The happiest of boys! ❤️

01/01/2024

Leap into the new year with some new skills!

We’ve got another Foundations Agility group class starting up this month and we’d love to see you there! 🤩

This class is designed to introduce dogs and their humans to all the agility obstacles that make up an agility course, as well as basic skill sets you’ll need to navigate that course while moving from one obstacle to the next. 🐾 🐾 🐾🐾

It is the perfect time of year for agility with this beautiful weather, so come soak up some sun and have some fun with us! 😎

Class starts Saturday, January 30th, 2024!

You can register at this link: https://www.austinagility.com/dog-training-services/dog-agility/

For any questions feel free to contact Kelly Springer directly at 512-720-1664

12/24/2023

Got treats?
Well for a wonderful boy like you, yes sir I do. ❤️

12/12/2023

We’re always posting the big guys, but we just love the little ones too!

She may be small, but she sure is mighty. 💪

08/18/2023

Please be careful out there, it looks like the toxic algae is back again in some of our waterways. ☹️

The Lower Colorado River Authority detected toxic algae in Lake Lyndon B. Johnson and Inks Lake.The test results received this week detected high levels of toxi

08/18/2023

Love getting pics of these two! They are just so photogenic and always have the cutest smiles. 🥰

08/18/2023

We always love our outings to Pet Supplies Plus - Austin, TX - Highway 183 💝 Just have a look at those cute smiles!

08/16/2023

When you have a young dog that’s loaded with natural ability, you have to constantly remind yourself not to push your dog too much. Because your dog is making so much progress and learning quickly, it’s easy to fall into the trap of training too much too soon.
Sometimes handlers mistake talent for maturity and continue to ask for improved performance when their young dog isn’t ready for it. This can include working too long, asking for too much pace, too much precision, extending outruns, driving too far, putting your dog in with testing sheep, pushing your dog off, etc.
While it may result in your dog being successful in the nursery, that same dog, because too much pressure was applied too soon, may not be competitive or sometimes even keen, when they’re 7, 8, 9 or 10 years old.
You have to respect your individual dogs maturity and mental fortitude, (irrespective of his ability), or risk ruining him. Being patient and making learning intuitive and fun when your dog is young leads to having a positive, enthusiastic sheepdog when he’s older.
—Patience prolongs performance—
You’ve got the rest of your dogs life to work on the finer points, you’ve got this moment, while he’s young, to foster his initial enthusiasm.
Getting a dog to work the way you’re asking isn’t remarkable. Getting a dog to WANT to work the way you're asking is the key.

Patricia Alasdair MacRae

07/08/2023

Look at these cuties 💝 We love to play around here, but we also love to “station” too!

Breaking up play is so important in regulating arousal levels within any group of dogs.

I know I’m always talking about it, but I truly do believe that unregulated rough play as young pups can be a cause for some of the frustration based reactivity that I see clients for on a regular basis.

We allow our pups to be rough and tumble off leash, then expect them to behave perfectly around other dogs while restrained on leash.

It’s important to remember that leashes are not natural things within the canine world (or any animals world for that manner) Imagine how frustrating it must be for them to be held back from engaging in a natural behavior that we regularly allow.

We, the human, should be our dogs key to accessing interaction with other dogs. If we are the key, then we can help our dogs to understand when it’s okay to go be rough and tumble, as well as when we’ve got to take it down about 50 notches and maintain a calm state of being.

An understanding of those basic concepts can go a long way in creating and maintaining behavior that we like, whilst preventing and eliminating behavior that we don’t like.

We don’t just focus on obedience around here, we focus on a way of living that creates happy, healthy, well balanced canine companions.

05/04/2023

Not quite sure what type of dog training you’re looking for? Or perhaps you’re just ready to take the leap and start you and your dogs training journey together. We’d love to join you on your adventure together.

All new clients are provided with a free 10 minute phone consultation so we can gather more information about your dog and your training goals, as well as answer any questions regarding our training programs!

You can quick start your process now by scheduling your call at this link: https://atxagility.as.me/free10

We’ll look forward to meeting you and your pup soon.

Schedule your appointment online Kelly Springer, Dog Trainer and Behavior Specialist

05/04/2023

Just look at these cuties taking a break from play on their station! It’s vitally important to manage social interactions between dogs during play. I’ve found that teaching all dogs a “place” cue as a station that they can go to when asked, or by choice themselves, to take a break from all the action within the environment helps them to learn how to self regulate and self soothe over time.

It’s just one simple behavior we can teach that helps develop essential life skills our dogs need to navigate the environments we put them in. 💕

03/05/2023

Happy Friday! Here is a beautiful example of why the muzzles are made as big as they are. Without this extra room dogs cannot act as they normally would, which includes panting without restriction- an important part of relieving stress and regulating temperature.

Thanks to the ever handsome Dak and owner Beck for the comparison!

12/29/2022

Pilling dogs is never fun, here’s a few tips I’ve found for some of those Gordon Ramsay’s:

1. Teach your dog to catch balled up treats from a drop a few inches above their nose - use balled up cheese, liverworst, pet deli roll, or anything soft enough to wrap around a pill and delicious enough for them to have a hard time passing up. Do this away from where you’d normally give meds.

2. Through the day, fiddle with the pill bottle, ensure your dog sees. Take your fake pill bottle, act as though you are wrapping up pills. Make three to four balls, the more the better. Drop these balls to your dog.

3. Wrap up your pills, but make at least two more fake pill balls. Go to your dog to play the treat drop game, or if they’re already there observing, drop a fake ball, drop the med ball, drop at least one more fake ball.

4. If your dog was there observing, and they didn’t fall for it, wrap the pill ball in secrecy. Prepare the balls out of view. Some dogs are easily able to smell the pills within the balls. This is why the drop above their head is so helpful, if it’s a trained Behavior outside of actually giving the pills, they’ll be less likely to suspiciously sniff at the balls.

For maintenance purposes for those particularly tasteful treat connesuirs, you may have to play the fake treat ball drop sans pills through the day. Alternate where you play the game so that your dog does not connect a specific location to being fed pills. It is also quite possible that your dog has connected a formerly tasty food item with the aversive of being fed pills, so you just might need to switch foods in order to teach this behavior. I recommend starting now so that should you have to give pills in the future, you’ve already built up a long history of positive association to this game.

Happy training!

12/24/2022

Jelly did amazing amongst the hussle and bussle of Academy Sports + Outdoors on Christmas Eve! She’s such a little rockstar for a 15 week old pup. 🤩

12/22/2022

Teamwork makes the dream work 💕 Ever since I started agility back in 2007 it became extremely obvious to me how beneficial it was to the dog and handler team as a whole. In almost all my cases I try to incorporate some form of sport, but specifically agility, into the dogs program. My intent with the majority of these behavior case dogs is not to enter them into competition, but simply to build on our understanding of each other, lines of communication, and bond. Here’s our current board and train making such a fine example of working through passing triggers in order to remain as focused and engaged as he possibly can be in the tasks at hand.