1. What is Dog Agility?
2. What is the Agility Association of Canada (AAC)
    and its rules for Agility in Canada?
3. What are the AAC Agility Regional Championships?
4. Where are the 2006 BC/Yukon AAC Regionals being held?
   And who is this year’s host Committee?
5. What regions must attend the 2006 BC/Yukon AAC Regionals
   in Coquitlam, BC in order to qualify for the 2006 AAC Nationals?
6. What level must my dog and I attain in the AAC
   in order to be able to participate at the Regionals or Nationals?
7. What is the format of the AAC Regionals and Nationals?
   How do you qualify for the Nationals?

8. When are the 2006 AAC National Agility Championships
   and where is it being held this year?

1) What is Dog Agility?

Dog agility is a sport in which a handler directs a dog through an obstacle course in an accurate race against the clock. Dogs must run off-leash with no food or toys as incentives. Consequently, the handler's only controls are voice and body language, requiring exceptional obedience training of the animal. In competition, the handler must assess the course, decide on handling strategies and direct the dog through the course, with precision and speed equally important.For a complete explanation please go to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog_agility

2) What is the Agility Association of Canada (AAC) and its rules for Agility in Canada?

The Agility Association of Canada (AAC) is the largest and predominant Dog Agility Organization in Canada.  It is a volunteer-based, non-profit organization which issues rules, sanctions trials, tracks dog qualification scores, sends out trial setand promotes the sport of Dog Agility within Canada.

For a complete explanation please go to:http://www.aac.ca

3) What are the AAC Agility Regional Championships?

The AAC Agility Regional Championships are used as qualifying events where teams seeking to compete at the Annual AAC National Agility Championships must first acquire 300 points (over 6 events) at the Regional Championships.  While it acts as a qualifying event, the Regional Championships also are a major competition in themselves.  The top Dog Agility teams from the Region compete head to head each year to be honoured as the top Agility teams in their Region.

4) Where are the 2006 BC/Yukon AAC Regionals being held?  And who is this year’s host Committee?

The 2006 BC/Yukon AAC Regional Championships will be held at Coquitlam Town Centre Sports Field between May 19-21, 2006.  This year’s Regional Competition is proudly hosted by the Dogwood Pacesetters Canine Sports Club and Friends.

For more information about the Dogwood Pacesetters, go to: http://www.geocities.com/dpacesetters/

5) What regions must attend the 2006 BC/Yukon AAC Regionals in Coquitlam, BC in order to qualify for the 2006 AAC Nationals?

Each region in Canada hosts Regional Championships and teams of handlers/dogs who reside in British Columbia and the Yukon must qualify at the 2006 BC/Yukon Regionals in order to qualify to participate in the 2006 Nationals.  US teams must qualify at the BC/Yukon Regionals if they reside in the following states: Alaska, Arizona, California, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, and Washington State. 

For a complete breakdown of US States and corresponding Regionals, please go to: http://www.aac.ca/forms%20-%20
adobe/State%20to%20Region%20Breakdown.pdf.

6) What level must my dog and I attain in the AAC in order to be able to participate at the Regionals or Nationals?

There is no requirement for dogs to have attained a certain level within the AAC to be allowed to compete at a Regional event.  However, all dogs entered must be at least 18 months old and must possess a valid AAC Dog Registration Number.  To get an AAC Dog Registration Number, go to:  http://www.aac.ca/forms%20-%20
adobe/Dog_ID_For_E_GST.pdf.

7) What is the format of the AAC Regionals and Nationals?  How do you qualify for the Nationals?

Each dog and handler team has to run two Standard rounds, two Gamblers rounds and two Jumpers rounds at both the Regionals and Nationals.  From those events, at the Regionals, Teams must earn 300 total points in order to qualify for the AAC Nationals.

In Standard rounds the emphasis is on handling and obstacle performance with bonus points for all seconds under standard course time (SCT). The round has to be fault free to earn the bonus points. Standard rounds are based on a total 100 points so if a dog runs clean and 20 seconds under SCT, it would earn 120 points. If a dog runs 20 seconds under SCT but has five faults, it would earn a score of 95 points for that round.

In the Gamblers rounds a successful Gamble is awarded 35 bonus points which is added to your opening points. If you do not complete the gamble, you keep your opening points only. There is no doubling of opening points.

Jumpers is scored the same as the Standard with bonus points for under SCT, fault free.

Faults are based on AAC Masters rules with minor changes. Off course are 20 faults - not an immediate elimination, and all refusals are faulted. There are no maximum faults.

For a complete breakdown of rules relating to the AAC Regionals and Nationals in English: click here.

8) When are the 2006 AAC National Agility Championships and where is it being held this year?

This year the 2006 AAC National Agility Championships are being held in Burnaby, BC, on August 18-20^th, 2006. For more information, go to: www.aacnationals.ca.