Making it in Agility all the way from Puerto Rico!
By Annette Alfonso

Agility on the Beach!

5 years ago I got a dog with plans to train her and have her as my constant companion. Little did I know that the club I chose was just introducing this new dog sport called agility.  Since our first basic obedience class where I saw all the equipment being set up I knew I was going to be hooked.

Desperate to try agility and with little experience in obedience training, I rushed my Toy Fox Terrier through advance obedience and signed up for beginners agility.  I was having the time of my life going to practice and learning the rules of the game.  We worked hard for the 2 local USDAA trials we entered but my dog was not interested in the game and she was way to dominant and aggressive towards other dogs, making it hard for us to trial. Of course we did not qualify. With only 3 trials in 5 years I did not have the experience you can only get when trialing, but I was ready to give it another shot.

I got my second dog in 1996. I knew exactly what I wanted to do with her and knew how I was going to do it. I researched breeders and got a Border Collie bitch. This time I was patient and built a solid relationship with her and a strong obedience base, then I introduced her slowly to agility.

She was not old enough when we had a USDAA trial in December 1997 so we would have to wait. A year went by and no trials were scheduled, but we kept practicing hard. In December 1998 I could not hold myself any longer and entered an AKC trial in Miami. This was our first try with a full course. In practice we did short sequences and didn't even have all the contact obstacles. We did not qualify but I got an idea what competing in agility was all about and where we were lacking and needed practice.

Still no trial in Puerto Rico, so once again I got the itch to compete and went to the Border Collie Specialty held at Purina Farms in Missouri. I just wanted to qualify, after all we were going to compete with one of the fastest, if not the fastest breed in agility, plus I thought people in the U.S. had more ring experience than me.

Practice and commitment paid off, we qualified and placed second with a score of 95 on Saturday and a 1st place with a score of 100 on Sunday.

Winning there was like a shot to increase my addiction to agility and after experiencing the sweet taste of victory I no longer wanted to qualify, I wanted to win.

Still there were no plans in Puerto Rico for a trial. Our AKC agility club got the approval in October 1999, but it is a bit frustrating to make people understand that agility is a fun sport but you have to practice and work hard, setting up equipment, finding a park that will allow us to practice, etc. Agility is a thing between you and your dog, you can't focus on what everyone else is doing or not doing. You have to find what works for your team.

Once again we jumped on a plane and went for our third agility trial, this time not only did we qualified both days finishing our Novice title and getting our first leg in Open but we also placed 1st and 3rd.

Every time I come back triumphantly from one of our trips I brag and glow with excitement, but mostly I want other club members to understand that they too can do it. I am not a good handler, I just work hard to get more experience and I'm not afraid of failing. If I were I wouldn't spend all the money I do on plane tickets, car rentals and trial entries.

Finally, in October 21-22, 2000 our AKC club will be hosting it's first agility trial. For me 5 months was too much to wait. This past June 3rd and 4th we competed in the South Dade Kennel Club agility trial. We completed our Open title with 2 first places and scores of 100 and 98 and came back to Puerto Rico with hopes of getting everybody excited about our upcoming show.

Puerto Rico, even though a small island, is very fast paced, so in order to make it in a not so popular sport like agility you have to have commitment and interest to do it.  All of us instructors are finding out for ourselves what is a good technique and what isn't. We don't have experienced handlers to watch and learn and can only rely on all of you good authors out there to pass on your knowledge and of course the team spirit to help each other make it.

Annette Alfonso & Nina CDX OA CGC
San Juan, Puerto Rico - now Miami, FL.