Reddit mentions: The best dog agility equipment

Such a cutie! My shepherd/bloodhound mix is a champion chewer, so the usual fluffy toys would get destroyed in a couple of minutes. Even though he loves to shred a fluffy toy (he always goes for the eyes first!), I usually stick to the more industrial-strength chewies. He loves kongs with peanut butter, nylabones, and especially bully sticks (dried bull penises - gross, I know, and kind of expensive, but great for chewing).

Rawhide is bad because it shreds and they can choke. May want to ask your vet about bully sticks and when they are age-appropriate, though, and you will want to make sure that you supervise them closely with the small piece when they get it down to a couple of inches. They can swallow the nub and it can lead to problems.

Also, don't get any edible dog treats that are not made in the USA. A lot of treats from Asia have been found to be terribly contaminated and lethally poisonous.

Another great option are sweet potato chews - you can make them yourself in a low oven (lots of recipes online), a dehydrator, or you can buy them in pet stores. They don't last as long as meaty treats but they can be a good change of pace for the dog. Dried chicken tenders are also good but don't last very long in my experience (and again, make sure they are made in the USA).

Antlers are a wonderful treat, but are very expensive. Bones...well, I'm on the fence about bones. I will occasionally give my guy knuckle bones, but shin bones and other marrow bones can chip teeth pretty easily. Talk to your vet about bones in general, they would be your best resource on that topic, I think.

Another thing my pup loves is when I take a paper towel tube, fold one side over, and put in some good stinky training treats. Then I fold down the other side of the tube and have him sit in the kitchen while I hide the tube for him to find in the other room (usually under a cushion or chair or a blanket). He'll spend a few minutes searching for it, then a few more minutes gnawing through the tube to get at the treats. It keeps his mind and his jaws occupied! I usually take the empty tube away from him as soon as he's gotten the treats out, but he's never tried to eat the paper or anything.

Yet another fun thing to do when the weather is a little warmer (or on a nice sunny cold day) is to make ice cubes with sodium-free chicken broth and then let the pup chew on them. I prefer to do this outside because it can be a little messy. Indoors I give my guy ice cubes as treats, which he enjoys a lot too (just not as much as the chicken broth cubes, those are his favorites).

About the kong: it's kind of spendy, but you won't have to buy another for a long time if you keep up with it. You can fill it with either wet food or peanut butter, and you can also freeze it once it's stuffed, which makes the pup have to work harder for his reward. I usually keep a frozen kong with peanut butter on hand to give him when I need to leave the house for any length of time; this keeps him occupied for a long time and keeps him away from shoes or other off-limits chewables. Keep it clean with a hot water soak every now and then.

GSDs are super-smart dogs as a rule and very much enjoy doing nose work and puzzles. Google up some dog puzzles and see what strikes your fancy; experiment with your guy to see what he likes the best. The ones my guy really love include the Kong Wobbler and the treat star pictured here. But he also loves it when I simply spend a few minutes hiding small stinky training treats all over the house for him to sniff out and devour.

The best thing you can do is spend time with him every day playing with him and engaging his mind. GSDs really thrive on agility games and hide-and-seek. We got our guy an agility course tunnel for Christmas and he's been scampering through it all week, he loves it and loves the praise and treats he earns for doing it. We also have him jump over stacked blocks and broomsticks for fun. The most fun I ever had with him was taking a 10 week agility training class. He loved it so much that I hope to do the advanced one next Spring.

Sorry I wrote so much, and I know it's not all about chewies, I just love my guy! Here's wishing you many wonderful years with your new best friend.

I got stuff to set up a cat agility course for my kitten. He loves the tunnel and the hurdles, but isn't so keen on the weaving. He screams at me multiple times a day for me to let him into the room where it's at and take him through the course. I bought orange cones for the weaving, a cheap tunnel, and these hurdles: https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B075MSPYVG

I have a feather toy I keep in that room to lead him through the course. It's the only feather toy I have in the house and he only gets to play with it when he's successfully done what I'm trying to get him to do. So it adds a mental challenge as well, and by not letting him use the toy unless he does things right it keeps the toy more special.

If I forget to take him through the course on my schedule, he screams at me until I do. He loves the hurdles most. We just started this around two weeks ago but he's already learned pretty well (again, not the weaving, lol). I just have the hurdles at about six inches but will eventually raise some of them up. I have a dedicated room for this but I think keeping the stuff in a closet and pulling it out twice a day would be fine.

For toys they can play with by themselves, both of my cats like sparkle balls and the captive ball on track toy. I can hear my older cat playing with the latter right now. He's lazy so he likes that he can just lay down and play. He recently had a leg injury so I haven't tried the agility course with him yet but will when the vet says it's ok.

https://smile.amazon.com/Bergan-Turbo-Scratcher-Colors-vary/dp/B000IYSAIW

Thank you! My boy loves the tunnel, if I leave it out he will lay in there and just go back and forth on his own. He's a year and a half old and has always been pretty brave about things. I did throw a treat in there originally, and for his first time I used the stakes and attached it to the grass, that way it wouldn't move a lot on its own when he went through or if there was a big gust of wind 🤗 Same here he just loves games, and totally thrives on this stuff.

Here is the tunnel I bought, seems really durable and comes with the stakes 😁 Good luck!

HDP 18 Ft Dog Agility Training Open Tunnel https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0046HWA4W/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apap_ZUDaaQrTImZkF

So this is Judge in the garden with a sprinkler. It's not indestructible but he loved this toy.

Here is an entire album of destructible toys. Don't buy these.

So now you know I am the voice of experience. Here are some toys Judge enjoyed that were more durable:

Orbee ball

Boomer ball

Snack Ball

However, Judge ENJOYED destroying toys, so every now and then I would buy him one to tear apart, just because he loved it so much. Here were his favourite destructible toys:

Rope tug toy

Squeaky duck or pheasant. Watch out for the squeaker - they can be a choking hazard.

These are hard wearing toys he did not play with much. They tend to be boring, non-interactive toys:

Bone

Frisbee

And, if your dog turns out to be a smart little thing, you can always get one of these: Obstacle Course. Judge could do all kinds of tricks and even jump through a hoop.

Bullies are very affectionate and learn quickly if you put in time with them, but they NEED that human interaction. They want to play with you, not by themselves :p

If I win, please take something to your local animal shelter for me.

This website has pretty easy to follow directions. I literally just made the ladder this afternoon.

If you are just starting amazon has a super basic agility course kit. It is pretty easy to put down/pick up. And a great set to see if you/your dog actually have an interest.

You can google agility course specifications to see what they require if you want to DIY. There are also tons of sites showing you how to diy.

Hey! We use the same training set for our doggie in our backyard. We don't expect our dog to ever be an agility superstar, but it's fun to practice with and pretty darn cheap. He definitely enjoys the attention and the challenge. Worth doing, even if he's never going to do it "well."

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B00MRBF4ME/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I have spent probably $250, probably a little more, on my equipment. I have 8 jumps , 3 sets of 6 weave poles that can be connected to make a set of 12 or 18, this tunnel from amazon , and a full size teeter totter. All of it was made from pvc minus the teeter board.

I made my own tunnel bags (4 sets) out of cheap drawstring bags with a bunch of Walmart bags lining the inside, and filled it with sand. Tied two of them together with enough rope to hold the tunnel down, but not constrict it.

I was lucky, and my parents surprised me for my birthday a few weeks ago by building and delivering a full sized a frame, so I didnt have to buy that.

All in all, I've spent about $100 on pvc, another $50 on all the fittings and end caps, the teeter board for around $15, that tunnel for $40, and then the rest on various supplies like paint, tape, a handsaw, nails, etc.

The tunnel is really good for beginners, but it does not curve well. A slight s or u bend is not a big deal, but you can't really do any u turns without it getting really bunched up and unsafe for the dog to navigate. I am looking at buying one of the cool runners tunnels as they seem to allow for more variety in tunnel layouts.

The Ruffwear Slackline leash is an adjustable padded leash that I find particularly comfortable. If you want something even shorter, there's the Knot-a-Long. Another option is getting a regular nylon leash of the length that you like, and looping the handle through a sturdy rubber/plastic ring that will not cinch around your hand when your pup tugs. I honestly just find that a convenient way to carry training toys on walks - something like this.

This video was awesome, I didn't even think about this before. I just bought one for my two dogs off Amazon. Here's the link & it's under $40! Happy Dogs :)HDP 18 Ft Dog Agility Training Open Tunnel https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0046HWA4W/ref=cm_sw_r_sms_c_api_oB2bzbTS7E6W7

GoPet Treadwheel ToySmall (<25lbs) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006GR9EAS/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_Y7CSAbZAMC180.
My favorite part is when someone asked if it could support a small child, and then a CPS worker answered.

Sounds like a good idea. Maybe you could get one of these things for the van.

Fan and a cheap duct. Blower and a duct.

They were branded as CanineGym. I found them on Amazon:

CanineGym® Dog Agility Kit https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TUL68PG/ref=cm_sw_r_awd_4BJMwb503136D

They weren't very cheap, unfortunately. You might be able to assemble an equivalent setup from other sources.

Maybe someone can give me someadvice on buying jumps. So I live in a city apartment which means I only get to practice agility once a week at class. I wanted to pick up some jumps that were designed for portability so I could take them somewhere and set up. So I have been looking at the affordable agility jumps which is like 4 jumps and a bag. And I have been looking at clip and go jumps which are significantly more expensive so I'd probably only buy 2 also buying a bag to hold them if I want one costs like $30 extra.

So regardless each option would be around $160 and it would be 4 jumps and a bag vs. 2 clip and go jumps alone.

I know most people just make their own jumps, but that doesn't make it easy to transport or store. Opinions?

There are basic agility sets on amazon that aren't too expensive - one linked below. We are planning to get one eventually, but still waiting to get our fence installed first.

http://www.amazon.com/Kyjen-DG40105-Obstacle-Starter-Obstacles/dp/B000VB0DKK

Just leaving this here... https://www.amazon.com/Gopet-Treadwheel-Indoor-Outdoor-Exercise/dp/B006GR9FCK

https://www.amazon.com/Gopet-Treadwheel-Indoor-Outdoor-Exercise/dp/B006GR9FCK/

http://www.amazon.com/Gopet-Treadwheel-Indoor-Outdoor-Exercise/dp/B006GR9FCK/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1426161639&sr=8-3&keywords=dog+wheel

I would just buy one of these and wheel it out to that sign, and just sit in a lawn chair while my dog ran on it, then if someone ever said anything to me, I would just say, "I'm not exercising him, he's exercising himself."

Zip Zoom Indoor Dog Agility Starter Kit with Dog Tunnel Weave Pole, High Jump Obstacles by Outward Hound https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MRBF4ME/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_imfIAbRM4EBDR

Hi, I am also looking for a set. Mainly to use indoor (at least for now because of my living situation). I found [this one](Zip Zoom Indoor Dog Agility Starter Kit with Dog Tunnel Weave Pole, High Jump Obstacles by Outward Hound https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MRBF4ME/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_moBMzb5YYGH0A) online for $23.
Do you guys think it could work?

Tried to get creative here since it's weirdly difficult to find a squishy or low-resistance Pilates ring...

Squishy donut toy

Flexible dog toy ring

Similar ring, purple

Another dog toy ring

Maybe an inflatable ring?

Frisbee ring?