When Burnaby’s Dove Cresswell took in Torque, a rescue dog from Idaho, he was so fearful, he would hide under the table in terror if she moved too suddenly. The dog had been kept on a chain for more than a year, before a rescue group took him in.
But then Cresswell adopted Torque and after a few years of agility training, he is now ranked among the top canine athletes in the country. He’ll be competing with hundreds of dogs in the upcoming Canadian National Dog Agility Championships in Burnaby next week.
“I’ve been in competitions since 2004, and doing any of the competitive dog sports really increases your bond with your dog, your relationship with your dog, and it makes for an all-around better canine companion. My dogs absolutely love it,” Cresswell said.
Cresswell said her dogs love agility, and Torque aims to please.
“He tries his little heart out for me to get everything right,” she said.
Cresswell is so hooked on agility training she’s entering all three of her dogs in the contest next week.
The Agility Association of Canada is hosting the five-day event, which kicks off Wednesday, Aug. 19. An estimated 500 dogs from across Canada will descend on Burnaby’s Swangard Stadium to compete.
The contestants have already made it through the regional championships to qualify for the nationals, so the championships will feature the best and brightest “canine athletes” in the country, organizers promise.
The dogs come in all shapes, sizes and breeds, and they are pets first. They perform a variety of stunts: jumping, tunnelling, weaving around poles or scaling A-frames. Certain events focus on speed, while others highlight the dogs’ ability to follow verbal cues.
"This is the Olympics of Canadian Agility - fast, fun and exciting to watch. Many of the sports best handlers going head to head, and sometimes an unlikely team will sneak in and snag the top prize,” said Nicole LeBlanc, the association’s president.
And just like the Olympics, the championships is hosting an opening ceremony.
Besides the agility competition, there will also be a mini pet fair with pet-related items for sale, and non-profits will bring rescue dogs.
Swangard Stadium is in the northwest corner of Burnaby’s Central Park. Wednesday’s events are closed to the public, but anyone can attend from Thursday to Sunday, and admission is free with a donation to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank. The events run from morning till evening; for a detailed schedule, go to http://www.aacnationals2015.ca.
