Outdated Information

It's amazing how fast information can become outdated. When I started getting interest in dog things 9 years ago, the premier agility book that you HAD to have was the "Agility Training" book by Jane Simmons-Moake. It was the best resource. But there were a few others. And new things came out now and then.

But today, there's a plethora of agility books and DVD's and resources. On each and every little topic. "Agility" is too big for one resource. You can get weave pole information. Or specific contact training. Or handling. Or foundation. There's so much of it!

On my way out today, I grabbed the _Jumping from A-Z_ by Julie Daniels and Chris Zink. And wow. It does seem quite outdated! There's a ton still relevant and still like what we do. But many reference pieces and training techniques seem so...slow!

An example would be teaching a dog to slow down... put it on cue. Train the behavior by having the dog on leash and using the leash to guide the dog to slow down after you've cued. Not only is that something not taught in many classes.... but probably would not be done with leash pressure.

So...next time you're reading...keep in mind the date of publication. I do like this book and the sections on structure and how the authors break down exercises for the owners. But it's surprising how much has changed since this was published 15 years ago!