The AKC Agility Advisory Committee Recommendations
By Brenna Fender, photos by Clean Run
Back in June, the American Kennel Club Agility Advisory Committee met at the AKC’s Raleigh, North Carolina offices to review 616 pages worth of suggestions from the agility community in an attempt to improve the sport. Committee members Marquand Cheek and Katherine Leggett (California), David Nauer (Colorado), Karen Paulukaitis (Alabama), Randy Reed (Florida), Kimberly Reeher (Pennsylvania), and Pamela Sturtz (New York) joined senior agility field representatives Carrie DeYoung and Gail Storm, Manager of Companion Events Pamela Manaton, and Director of Agility Andy Hartman to carefully examine and discuss competitor suggestions and to formally present recommendations to the AKC Board of Directors.
In early September, most of the committee recommendations were made available to the public on the AKC’s website at www.akc.org/events/agility/advisory_committee.cfm. This is an unprecedented move; in the past, recommendations were available to the public only after presentation to the Board, according to Hartman. The extensive list of potential revisions addresses material in 10 different chapters of the AKC rules and regulations.
Some suggestions deal with the mechanics of having agility trials. For example, one recommendation concerns the possibility of a parent club offering a specialty trial concurrently with another club’s all breed trial. Another involves changes in the offering of refunds. Other possible changes affect title accumulation, including elimination of point multipliers in calculating MACH points and the addition of Preferred Agility Championship and Silver, Gold, Platinum, and Century titles.
There are also recommendations about equipment changes, including a reduction of the A-frame to 5' tall for 4" and 8" jumping dogs, moving the spacing between weave poles to 24", and a reduction in tire heights to approximately 4" less than a dog’s normal jump height. Other suggestions involve changes to the completion of obstacles, like an alteration to a position-less table, where neither a sit nor a down is required.
There are also course design changes recommended. For example, a 180° turn from a tunnel exit to the ascent of the A-frame would no longer be allowed. Also, a maximum of two open tunnels would be permitted, with only a total of two performances on the course. In addition, in the 8" and 24" jump heights, there are suggested changes to standard course times.
Despite a wide-variety of recommendations, a few are getting a majority of the attention from the agility community. The reduction of tire height has some competitors concerned that their dogs will bump their heads on the top of the tire, especially since the tire jump heights in AKC agility will now be significantly lower than those in some other registries. Others feel that dogs can be taught how to judge varying tire heights successfully. Director of AKC Agility Andy Hartman says that the tire recommendation came from the standpoint of making the performance safer for dogs: “Jump bars are straight across but the tire is round, so the only place the tire is the correct hump height is on the very bottom. If a dog jumps at an angle then he is jumping higher.” By lowering the tire height, dogs will not be forced to jump higher than their required jump height, which may make for a safer obstacle.
The position-less table has many cheers from people whose dogs are slow to assume the sit or the down position, and especially from competitors with dogs that have a natural posture that makes determining their position more difficult for some judges. Hartman says, “The idea is to remove some of the subjectivity.” Some competitors wish the AKC had gone a bit farther and removed the table altogether, at least at the Excellent level.
The switch to 24" weave poles seems to be well-received. Most of the public complaints about that suggestion are addressed toward the 24-month implementation period. Many competitors would like clubs to be required to comply within 12 months. Some handlers have also expressed their appreciation for the recommendation to no longer allow 180° turns out of a tunnel and up an A-frame. They believe moves like this are physically taxing on their dogs, and potentially dangerous as well.
Comments about the recommendations have been about 95% positive, according to Hartman, who says that a few more Committee suggestions will be up on the AKC’s website by the end of October. Ken Kennedy, an Italian Greyhound owner from Seattle, Washington, says “It’s encouraging to see that somebody there has an open ear to change and is listening to the participants in the sport.” Robin Nuttall, Columbia, Missouri resident and owner of an agility Doberman and Miniature Pinscher, agrees that the AKC’s solicitation and consideration of competitor comments are impressive: “It reinforces why I love the AKC. Every three years, we, the exhibitors, get to give input on what we like and don’t like. And the AKC listens to us.” Nuttall agrees with most of the recommendations, and is particularly enthusiastic about the addition of “Metal” titles that don’t require double qualifying, 24" weave pole spacing, and the limitation of only three refusals allowed at the weave poles.
While agility judge and frequent competitor Bonnie McDonald disagrees with one of the recommendations—she thinks that some position (perhaps the handlers’ choice of sit or down) should be required on the table—she believes that the suggestions will bring more fun to the sport. “The spirit of the proposed changes bodes well for the future of AKC agility and promises much more fun for those that play in that venue,” she says. It seems that many competitors agree with her!
Remember that the Advisory Committee’s recommendations are just that: a set of well-thought-out suggestions. The next step toward adoption is presentation to the AKC Board of Directors. The 13 member board (plus AKC president Dennis Sprung) will meet and read through the suggestions together, asking questions if necessary. Most likely, the Board will vote on the changes at the meeting following the first reading, although they may take more time. The Board of Directors has the final say on all changes, so some recommendations may not come to pass. But Hartman expects to have most of the suggestions accepted and on their way to becoming new or updated AKC agility regulations soon!
