Dutch Shepherd Forum

HI I am Rachael from Kansas City Kansas. Looking for my next agility dog have done a lot of research and think a Dutchie will fit perfect thought this would be a great place to start to learn more and possibly find my new champion.

Welcome Rachel! That's how I ended up with my Dutch Shepherd. I was looking for an agility star and boy is he proving himself. We've been training for a couple months now. I've also come to find out that they're way more versatile than my previous dogs, and we'll probably end up competing in a bunch of different sports.

What specifically would you like to learn more about? What breeds have you had experience with in the past? I went from English Setters to my DS Odin, so it is quite a bit of adjusting. For one, he's A LOT faster than me, so we are working on more send outs and distance work. Another thing, he gets mouthy if frustrated or really excited. For us, it meant less treats during agility training and more balls and tugs.

Dutch Shepherds are also more intelligent than many dogs. If Odin "learns" of a short cut, than that is his standard right away. It's a constant game of sharp observations and quick corrections. He is constantly keeping me on my toes and testing me as a trainer.

I adopted him at 21 months, so I don't have any experience with puppies of the breed, but there are a few on here that do.

Welcome!! I did agility with Thalie for a while, boy is she fast! There was no way I could keep up with her. Alot of handlers learn to handle from the center of the ring and send out, I worked alot on that. That may be where you want to work towards.

Welcome to the forum, and congrats on a great decision. I trained my 2 older DS for agility, but only competed sparsely. I am sure Heather Sather from MN will pop on here at some point, but in the meantime, check out her YouTube channel! She competes heavily with her Dutch Shepherds....in agility and everything else!

Well I used to have a GSD and I also had a chihuahua who was a shinning star at agility belive it or not lol. My next step is finding a good breeder I am trying to find a female puppy.

I am sure there are many good breeders, but I can only recommend a few. Asheley Winters/McCleary is Utah is one of the best. She bred 2 of Heather's competition Dutch Shepherds and one of mine. She also bred the sire to one of my litters - producing some awesome dogs for a variety of sports. Ash's webssite is http://www.dutchshepherds.us and her facebook is https://www.facebook.com/groups/241789192547570/.

Good luck in your search.
Below is a picture of Brink - a pup from my Willow/Aaron (Ash's A-litter) litter.

Hi Rachael - welcome to the board!

My oldest DS, Vada, is my main agility dog. I also trial my BorderJack, Seven, quite a bit too. Although he's due for a break til we fix his trial anxiety issue with weave poles. Not bad timing since my young DS, Letty, is starting to trial. Occasionally I'll trial Prozac, a mix, and Narc, a DS. Both don't get as much training time as I would like.

I did post some pics and videos in the Agility section of the board. I've got some videos on YouTube also - http://www.youtube.com/k9katet

Both of my DS girls came from Asheley. She is a great breeder! Let her know exactly what you are looking for and she can tell you if she's got a match or not.

I don't know what to tell you about. As you've discovered any breed of dog can do it. They all have their challenges and strengths.

Let me know if you have any specific questions.

Welcome!

welcome!

Welcome.

Welcome!! I see that Heather has made contact so you are definitely in good hands now. You lucked out because she is one of the most knowledgeable concerning DS doing agility. I follow her on FB and her posts and videos are awesome. I am sure she would take you under her wing and teach you the ropes. With a Dutchie you best get your running shoes on!!!!!

Awww, thanks Denise!

You definitely need running shoes! And good timing and to be able to think fast. One of the things I struggle with Vada with is dropped bars. When my handling is perfect then we don't have dropped bars. She gives me very little margin for error. I'm often fighting with her on control things like start line, table, contacts, etc. Part of that is me not maintaining criteria in the ring but it's hard to stay calm and not let her push me when we're doing something so thrilling like agility. Letty is different. We're still working on becoming a team and she's gaining confidence as I throw tons of new environments and equipment and surfaces at her. She's slower than Vada now as she's trying to be correct but when she's confident - holy cow she is fast. Hopefully I am a better handler and trainer now and Letty will give me a bit of leeway. Time will tell.

They are big and powerful though. Probably to running your GSD. I see people do things with Border Collies where they get in their way. With a DS that is asking to be plowed over and killed. BCs just get out of the way. Vada got hurt at a seminar once and I finished out the day running a BC. It was quite a difference. They are so light and flexible. I think I would be more successful if I had a Border Collie but I don't care for them (my husband has 3 that I have to live with). I love my Dutchies.

It is interesting to see Letty in agility where she is trying to hard to be correct vs Schutzhund where the instinct kicks in and she has no questions.

Hello! I am in south KC and have a DS named Ozzy I have been thinking about doing some agility training with him, but have not found anywhere nearby that sounds promising. Let me know if you find a good place

Now all I need to do is find one I am looking for a female puppy up to 1 year old if anyone knows of any I would be interested.

Welcome to the list Rachael.

Welcome.

Welcome