Individuals of ANY breed may be excellent. But as a novice with an “easy” breed myself (collie) I could not advise any other novice to START with a breed that is known to be harder to train. I have to show my dog exactly 2x and she gets ANYTHING. I have been trying to teach the neighbor’s labradoodle for 6 months to stay. And she still doesn’t have it down. I cannot imagine tackling a spitz type dog as a first agility prospect. Not unless it was a really abberantly behaved one. They are not known to be easy to train to agility.
^^ yes, any dog can be trained in obedience or agility, but if breed characteristics come through - some will be easier than others.
And it also depends on how important something like agility/obedience is (or hunting, etc.) and how competitive you want to be. I have a hunting breed that was primarily show bred. He’s actually really good as a field dog, but if I was looking to be competitive in field trials or hunt tests, even I would probably look for a dog from different breeding lines. Or, even a different breed, depending on the type of competition and my personal goals.
[QUOTE=S1969;8461752]
^^ yes, any dog can be trained in obedience or agility, but if breed characteristics come through - some will be easier than others.
And it also depends on how important something like agility/obedience is (or hunting, etc.) and how competitive you want to be. I have a hunting breed that was primarily show bred. He’s actually really good as a field dog, but if I was looking to be competitive in field trials or hunt tests, even I would probably look for a dog from different breeding lines. Or, even a different breed, depending on the type of competition and my personal goals.[/QUOTE]
I agree. There are people who love obedience/agility/Schutzhund/ tracking, etc. and who want to be competitive, and they choose dogs that are mostly to be successful in the endeavor they want to pursue. There are other people such as myself, who love X breed or just their particular dog, and they do those things because they enjoy spending time working with that particular dog or type of dog. I know a lady who trains a mixed breed in agility. He is VERY challenging (friendly but difficult to channel) and I don’t believe she has a ton of experience, but she has read a lot, taken a lot of classes, and is very patient. For some other people I know who have a lot of training experience, that dog would be frustrating, but his owner is enjoying the little increments of progress.
There is a Lowchen breeder near me. She had her puppies in the same puppy kindergarten class as my puppies this summer. They were cute. I have Toy Fox Terriers - small (under 10 lbs), athletic, loyal, highly trainable. I knew someone with a Schipperke once. That dog was awesome
[QUOTE=S1969;8461654]
But that’s exactly what the post said.
A better response would have been “would you consider a mixed breed?” in which case the OP might have said “well, I am thinking about doing conformation as well, so no, that’s not what I’m looking for this time.”[/QUOTE]
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I didn’t offer the initial suggestion to adopt from a rescue.
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The OP posted that she was considering a Boston so she is clearly not limiting her search to dogs that are purpose-bred for agility.
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The OP didn’t say, “How do I find a reputable breeder of X breed?” Rather, she asked what kind of dog would fit her criteria. shea’smom simply suggested (verbatim) “I’m of the Adopt don’t Shop mindset. I got a Border Terrier at the local shelter. Smart, willing to please. The shelter’s are full of dogs that will want to please you.”
I don’t understand why shea’smom’s response was hand-slap worthy. It’s totally fine if a mixed breed doesn’t fit the OP’s exact criteria (although they did fit her originally stated criteria, which didn’t mention showing in conformation) since she can just skim over that response like she undoubtedly will to the people suggesting shiba inus (notoriously bad at agility and obedience disciplines) and poodles (grooming required.)
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My Russell Terrier has done really well in Obedience and Agility (we’re just starting agility- but he LOVES it and I like that it’s a sport where he has to pay attention to me). He’s an from an Australian Russell Terrier line and they are real people pleasers - adore people, want to make you happy, good with cats/kids/other dogs, not yappy. He’s been fantastic…
Russells are essentially the “shorter” JRTs (not those horribly crooked puddin’ JRTs I used to see advertised) - when the AKC recognized them the taller ones were Parson Russell Terriers and the shorter ones were Russells. The person we got ours from says that in her experience the PRTs are the much more nutty, hunt-driven ones while the Russells are fantastic to live with.
He’s a lightly broken coated Russell - not much grooming except for every few months pulling out the dead hairs (which I do myself - not too different than pulling a horse’s mane) to make him look neat (granted, not a show groom which would be more intense).
I used to teach/train agility and obedience competitively… The papillon was awesome; the min pin could have done really well had his owner stuck with it.
Some breeds that did really well in agility and obedience (high titles) that you might not expect included our West Highland White terriers, miniature schnauzer, miniature American Eskimo, rat terriers, Pomeranian, and miniature Dachshund. Obviously some have more hair than others, but it was more doable than you might think.
I had friends that had Papillons, and they showed them in the AKC shows to their championships, then they did obedience, or agility, depending on the individual dog’s talents. Some of their dogs did all three. They were the most adorable dogs.
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[QUOTE=french fry;8461800]
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I didn’t offer the initial suggestion to adopt from a rescue.
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The OP posted that she was considering a Boston so she is clearly not limiting her search to dogs that are purpose-bred for agility.
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The OP didn’t say, “How do I find a reputable breeder of X breed?” Rather, she asked what kind of dog would fit her criteria. shea’smom simply suggested (verbatim) “I’m of the Adopt don’t Shop mindset. I got a Border Terrier at the local shelter. Smart, willing to please. The shelter’s are full of dogs that will want to please you.”
I don’t understand why shea’smom’s response was hand-slap worthy. It’s totally fine if a mixed breed doesn’t fit the OP’s exact criteria (although they did fit her originally stated criteria, which didn’t mention showing in conformation) since she can just skim over that response like she undoubtedly will to the people suggesting shiba inus (notoriously bad at agility and obedience disciplines) and poodles (grooming required.)[/QUOTE]
I know it wasn’t your comment. I don’t want to derail this thread, but for breed fanciers/breeders, it gets old fast, so maybe I snapped too quickly. We hear it all the time (“don’t shop, adopt”) as if the choice to own a purebred dog is bad.
I thought it was clear from the OP that conformation was one of the considerations; maybe others didn’t. But even if not, I thought the point of the thread was to identify a breed, not to find a specific dog. Once the breed options are narrowed down you can look in all kinds of places for one - breeders, breed rescue, shelters, rescues, etc.
For those who know Papillons, do you happen to know any breeders that emphasize the Phalene? I’ve been researching but haven’t come across any. Do you just have to wait until a breeder ends up with a drop eared puppy in the litter?
Someone mentioned Schipperke…I have only known one personally, who was a good farm and carriage dog. And saw one years ago at an obedience trial…long story but dog struck me as very intelligent if a little naughty.
Been intrigued by them ever since.
[QUOTE=cbv;8462083]
Someone mentioned Schipperke…I have only known one personally, who was a good farm and carriage dog. And saw one years ago at an obedience trial…long story but dog struck me as very intelligent if a little naughty.
Been intrigued by them ever since.[/QUOTE]
I love them, brilliant little dogs. Not that easy to find though
[QUOTE=vxf111;8462110]
I love them, brilliant little dogs. Not that easy to find though[/QUOTE]
…and rather notoriously naughty about recalls…
Ha. Too smart for their own good 
I have agility friends with Schips. They also do obedience. Not an easy breed. I have terriers, showing in confirmation means you need skill in hand stripping. i still think a Papillion would be awesome for the OP. I do have friends with Rat Terriers from a breeder in Ohio. They are great dogs but my friends are experienced agility trainers. The thing to think about in agility is that there is a LOT of jumping and wear and tear on their fronts. So getting any dog with a good shoulder and rear with appropriate angulation is key
Here is the qualifying list for the upcoming AKC agility nationals. http://images.akc.org/pdf/events/agility/national_agility_championship/2016/NAC_2016_Dogs_Eligible_List.pdf
You can get an idea of how popular a breed is for the sport by how many have qualified.
I saw the lady who I sometimes train with on that list! Very cool. Thanks for sharing.
Sheilah
What are the “all american dog?”
[QUOTE=BEARCAT;8462697]
What are the “all american dog?”[/QUOTE]
Mixed breed/not an AKC breed
What about a whippet? Very athletic, smart, attentive, companionable. Try searching petfinder.org for whippet crosses, if that type of dog might suit and you opt for the rescue route.
