Carlo Fazio, Liguria Team Leader ofagility team Beck’s Hill, is a sportsman and a dog lover who has great passionsdog agility and his dogs. Despite having won many awards and has also established himself internationally, Carlo remains a humble person, passionate and happy to spread his knowledge to anyone who has an interest in it.
Below is the interview on the subject of agility dog which opens the doors to this world of jumps e Corsican a 6 legs:
What does the dog agility consist of?
Agility is a obstacle course that the dog, led by a handler, must carry out as quickly as possible and with fewer errors.
Is one sports borrowed from horse racing of which it retains counting of errors and refusals but evolves by itself, being able to perform obstacles other than a simple jump.
How long have you been involved in this activity and how did your passion start?
I have been dealing with agility since '97, passion born with the first dog in the family, Nikita, which was led by my wife Ilaria. Watching them try their hand at this new sport my first dog, Kimberly, border collie, arrived and so we started!
Which are the most suitable dogs for this activity?
All dogs in good health they can do agility, even mestizos. There are also three categories of heights to allow all dog sizes to do agility. Between most suitable breeds we certainly find the border collie and the belgian shepherd malinois in the large category, in the small and medium categories there is more variety, we can find poodles, Shetland shepherds, but also Croatian shepherds, pumi, jack russels ...
Are there special places or can you organize them at home too?
To do agility it is necessary to have the equipment, therefore the jumps, the pipes, the walkway, the wall etc… these obstacles can hardly find a place in the house….
A regular field must be 20x40m, flat, with grass or synthetic grass or in any case a surface that does not cause damage to the dog. So… Yes, to do agility you need a dedicated seat!
How does the dog-man relationship evolve with these activities?
In agility activity you form a unique bond with your dog, you train regularly and this allows the relationship to grow and consolidate. Furthermore, to obtain good performance we motivate the dog a lot, which then finds immense satisfaction in the practice of this sport.
Do you have any advice for those who want to undertake dog agility?
Nothing in particular, if you have a dog friend and you want to try it, contact the center closest to you, now there are excellent ones all over Italy. Your dog will be grateful even for the quality time you give him!
Photo: Carlo Fazio
