I'm afraid that you may find that your preferences are at cross-purposes. Dogs who excel at agility are going to be exceptionally smart, focused, high energy, and high drive - not the laid back couch potato type. But if you just want to fool around with agility obstacles in your backyard, then most any breed with a functional brain will do. It all depends on how seriously you intend to take agility training.

I have had standard size Aussies. I've never known a mini, but I would expect them to exhibit the same intellect and high drive of the standards.

Laurie

a pembroke welsh corgi would meet most of your needs. they do, however, shed copious amounts of fur all. year. long. they take daily brushing to keep that under control.

corgis are smart, loyal, very trainable, eager to please and they excel at agility. i did some agility with both of mine and it was undoubtedly the MOST fun i ever had with a dog!!!

the only caveat i will add is that if you consider this breed, make sure you buy from a breeder who tests for the degenerative myelopathy gene. this is a devastating disease that is running rampant in the breed.

good luck with your search!

I do like the personalities of the Welsh Corgi, never met one I didn't like. But it seems to be they have been bred to have such an odd shape, that problems like that are inevitable.

I'm not super-competitive, but a dog with natural ability and a predisposition for agility seems like it would be more fun and less of an uphill battle. Plus I love a well-trained dog. So is it really not possible to find a dog like that, that is not super high energy? I don't want a couch potato, just not a dog that is bouncing off the walls all day.

Anyone with experience with either of these two breeds? I'm also intrigued by the new "breed" toy aussie, I guess it is often a cross with papillon or sheltie in there. Can anyone weigh in on their temperament/needs?

Funny you should mention agility. My daughter just started one of her dogs into agility training and the first night out he was high scorer after seven heats. Breed? LOL Labrador/beagle mix. She says he is a 'weaving fool'. Ditto what Laurief says......dogs who do very well at agility are ' exceptionally smart, focused, high energy, and high drive' only a beagador doesn't fall into that category, does it. LOL. Her dog is very intense and sensitive and needed esteem boosting and confidence, is quite large for that mix, but very muscular and strives to please. I think it's a sport with no boundaries as far as breed unless you are out for titles.

Border collie??? Although I don't think they are good with cats...

I took a walk this am in the neighborhood and I old man was walking a papillon across the street. It was barking like it wanted to kill me!

Border Collies often excel at agility, but they are also known to be more than a little hyper, requiring lots and lots of daily work. But a bc cross could be a possibility. My pooch is a bc/lab cross (we think) and we had a lot of fun in agility class, although we never went competitive.

Miniature ausies are very tiny! We had one in one of our obedience classes. All I could wonder is, where would one find suitably miniature livestock for them to herd? I think my cat is bigger....

I think a Papillon would be a would be a wonderful choice for you. They are intelligent and trainable and there is a lot of information on the internet about their participation in agility.

I have a Papillon/maltese cross and she can be a bit yappy, although not as yappy as my toy fox terrier. I think this is a tendency for most small dogs, but mine respond well to either a spritz of water while telling them, "Quiet" or to a can of pennies being shaken. You can train them to be less yappy, in other words.

Speaking of the toy fox terrier, they are another good agility choice. They are intelligent and energetic and remain playful their whole lives. They do shed a good bit, though.

The thing about high energy toy breeds is their behavior never really rises to an intolerable level because they're so small. Mine love to chase each other through the house, but it doesn't bother us at all because they're only eight pound dogs. The other nice thing about it is if you're unable to take them out for exercise, they can get plenty right inside the house. Mine exercise each other and you can even play fetch in the house with dogs that small.

I am very biased to the toy breeds as I find them easy to care for, entertaining, and all around great little companions. They do have the drawback of being hard to housebreak. It can be done, but takes longer than most dogs and you have to be extremely consistent and diligent to keep bad habits from developing. I also find it helpful to shrink the size of the area they're being asked to consider their "den" by making some areas of the house off limits to them.

The other important thing about toys is that you must let them know that you are in charge and not allow them to take over the house, just as you would a larger dog. A lot of people let small dogs get away with bad behavior because they don't think it matters and the result is snippy, hard to manage dogs. My toy fox terrier tried to boss me around when she only weighed two pounds, but after setting her straight, I've never had another moments trouble with her in eight years.

Good luck with your decision and I hope this is helpful.

I am on a waiting list for a wheatie and am also interested in agility training! They are bigger than papillons, non shedding (which means you have to groom regularly and have them trimmed), wonderfully affectionate, family oriented, DID NOT bark until my husband and sons COACHED it to bark (boy, did that come up in convos when they were annoyed with his barking) and generally smart. I think wheaties are considered one of the most easy going of the terriers. You can check you tube for agility wheaties (or any other breeds for that matter.) Good luck.

Thanks so much for all the feedback and insight! I am leaning more and more back toward the papillon or pap mix. I just like everything about them including the fact that they always look and smell good! It also seems like a lot of "cat people" go to the papillon when they decide to get a dog.

I am concerned about the yappiness and house-breaking, but hopefully i can be smarter than the dog and train that out. I also discovered last night that they can use a modified litter box! Very interesting, could be very helpful. My neighbor just threw out all his rugs, ruined by Yorkies.

Now I have to decide whether to look for a rescue/foster dog, or contact breeders about "pet quality" dogs, or both. All of my cats have been rescues, I'm inclined that way, but maybe I would be less likely to get a problem dog from a good breeder?

I have two rescue dogs and neither has ever had health or behavioral problems. Mixes sometimes are better dogs than purebreds. People surrender dogs for personal reasons sometimes, not for any issue the dog might have. Good luck with whatever you decide. Papillons are cute.

Okay, I am adopting a papillon mix from a dog rescue organization. Not sure what the other half is, but he is about 12 pounds I think. 2 years old and very cute. Super agile--I watched him clear a 4 foot fence from a standstill! Also very happy, inquisitive temperament, we'll see how training goes. If I have any training ability, he will do really well in agility and also with a frisbee.

We've got two weeks to get things ready, and I am really nervous. You'd think I was bringing home a baby! Everything has to be just so...Hoping there are no suprises I can't deal with! Any words of advice/encouragement?

While I believe certain breeds might be more apt to be an 'agility' dog, the breed does not guarantee that the dog will do agility. My brother had an Australian shepherd who had no interest in agility. I have friends with labradoodles who are not interested in playing 'fetch'. I had a cockapoo who loved swimming more than my parent's lab. Sometimes rescuing a young dog (12-24 months) gives you the best window in to the real personality of a dog. You might be surprised as to what you get?

Congratulations on the new family member, Sarabera! My advice is to start out treating the dog the way you intend to continue. So if you are going to have the dog confined in a small space when you are away, start with crate training right away. Get a good book about doing basic dog training and stick to it. Go to a class and have the whole family use the methods taught and follow the rules for the dog. I prefer positive training methods like clicker training and I will recommend that you go to the Whole Dog Journal web site and consider subscribing or purchasing an e-book.

Here is a link that might be useful: Whole Dog Journal site

My daughter has a pap and I think you would love one. Hers is happy, loving, smart, friendly, agile, just the right level of energy. We do have to keep him brushed and take him to the groomer some. I've heard they do very well in agility.

My daughter's pap is not a particularly yappy dog. He also potty trained fairly easily and is very reliable in his potty training. However, I think my daughter must be the dog whisperer, because I've heard paps are hard to house train due to their small bladders.

Thanks for the feedback, interesting articles on the WD Journal website, but I don't really want to subscribe to anything. I've been doing a TON of reading on training, and my views have just about done a 180! I thought for so long Ceasar Milan was the end-all and be-all of dog training. Now I'm a big believer in positive reinforcement and clicker training. I gather that the "pack hierarchy" theories are all pretty much debunked now.

Tomorrow is the big day! I've worked my butt off all week building a kennel, getting everything set up and ready. He will have 24 hour access to an outdoor area via a doggie door. Biggest concern right now is his marking--I'm going to try a belly band in the house.

Sarabera,

Happy days with your new puppy. Sounds like you are ready to go. I've enjoyed all the contributions, still hoping for a wheatie puppy at the end of July.... keep your fingers crossed.

Short legged dogs have specific purposes other than being "bred funny". Welsh Corgies were bred by the Welsh as cattle hearding dogs who nip at the heels of cattle. Dashhounds were bred to roust out badgers. Then there's rat terriers.

My great grandfather came here from Wales, and we have had Corgis for generations. I currently have a Pembroke and a Cardigan. For the unwashed, one has a tail and one doesen't. Other than that they are noticably different dogs.

Big congratulations on your new little dog! I agree with you totally about positive reinforcement training. Also you should have luck with a bellyband. It was a big help to me in getting my little rescue dog to catch on to house training etiquette.

I hope your new family member becomes an agility enthusiast. You should have a lot of fun together.

Big congratulations on your new little dog! I agree with you totally about positive reinforcement training. Also you should have luck with a bellyband. It was a big help to me in getting my little rescue dog to catch on to house training etiquette.

I hope your new family member becomes an agility enthusiast. You should have a lot of fun together.

We are three days in with the new dog, and we totally adore him! So glad I went with the Papillion mix, and took the leap even though it was a bit nerve-wracking (very quick decision needed). He is super smart and well behaved, lots of fun! I cannot recommend a Papillon enough to anyone looking for a smart smallish dog. Even my husband, the "big dog" guy, loves him.

So far he has not had any "accidents", and only caught him about to mark once. So I may not use the belly bands (he hates them). He's got the run of most of the house now.

Wordie--good luck with your soon to be new addtion, hope he is a joy!