You know those amazing dogs on Animal Planet that run the agility course – over teeter-totters, through tunnels, across high, narrow dog walks – in mere minutes? This is how they started.

And everyone who attended the Mighty Mutts 4-H Club Ruff-N-Ready Dog Fun Match on Saturday, May 17 at the fairgrounds in Enterprise can attest to the fact that watching young trainers in the early stages of training is just as dramatic as watching a “pro” dog run the course in minutes.

The tension of watching third-grader Kobe Ketscher of Joseph coax his Border Collie/Kelpie mix “Blaze” up the A-Frame had all the suspense the crowd of parents, competitors, judges, 4-H leaders, and spectators could stand and the eruption of cheers and applause when Kobe’s excellent training methods succeeded was a joy to experience.

Kobe and Blaze, like several other competitors, had never seen a course before, since Kobe is too young for 4-H. the duo came to the event to check out the 4-H dog program for next year.

The event is meant to be a practice or an introduction,” said 4-H Leader Karen Rinehart of Joseph. “Judges, Brian and Andi Foley came up from Boise and both judged the event and gave the kids a lot of tips.”

The show also featured showmanship and obedience classes but agility was, as usual, the favorite event.

“Agility is a favorite among spectators and kids because it’s so fast paced and challenging,” Rinehart agreed. “We are one of the few clubs that does dog agility in our program. Our show Saturday was great, we had a really large turnout. We had kids from Union County, kids in the third-grade and under, and even an adult show.”

Agility for dogs began as an exhibition sport in Great Britain – patterned after show jumping for horses – and was imported to the United States in 1977. Agility is meant to be a fun, non-regimented sport, with a lot of spectator appeal. Obstacles include jumps, tunnels, a dog walk, a see-saw or teeter, an A-frame and weave poles. dogs generally love this event once they learn it, and learning it provides trainer and dog with a bonding experience that just can’t be beat.