Agile, not fragile

By The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Corgis. Pomeranians. Shelties. Yorkshire terriers. Miniature poodles. Basset hounds. Mixed breeds. All dogs, all small in stature. All eligible to compete in “teacup agility” — those diminutive dogs can indeed jump. Not always high, but with varied measures of grace and enthusiasm.

Most people think of agility as an activity for larger dogs, such as border collies and Australian shepherds. That’s what we see on televised competitions in which dogs navigate courses where they jump hurdles, leap through hoops, climb an A-frame, tip a teeter board and zip through tunnels.

But throughout the United States, small dogs are getting in on the act. In Arkansas, they’re doing it through Little Rock Agility Running for Fun, a member club of the national Teacup Dogs Agility Association.

On Sept. 27-28, little dogs and their owners turned out for a teacup agility competition at Burns Park in North Little Rock. There, a scaled-down agility course was set up in a portion of the fenced dog park: hurdles were low and the distance between obstacles lessened to accommodate the dogs’ short gaits.

Read tomorrow's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.

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