sports spotlight
By Ellie Roberto
Fur-st Place
Crank and her border collie P!NK were Westminster Kennel Club agility champs in March 2020, earning the title 2020 Masters Agility Champions with the time of 29.35 seconds.
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og agility trainer and Pickerington resident Jenn Crank says dog agility is like American Ninja Warrior for dogs. In agility shows and competitions, handlers – the owners – guide their dogs through predetermined obstacle courses using their body language and verbal cues. Every course is different, so the handler must approach each one strategically. “It’s really about the dog’s athleticism and the handler’s ability to navigate them around the course,” Crank says. Crank is the owner and founder of IncrediPAWS Dog Training, a dog agility center located in Pataskala. Offering private lessons, seminars and group classes based on each dog’s experience levels, Crank and her staff teach others how to train their dogs either to compete in agility competitions or exercise as a hobby. Agility is an inclusive sport, Crank says, meaning any dog can participate regardless of age or breed. Just like human athletes, some dogs are born with a more athletic build, however there are no restrictions and dogs compete in divisions based on height. “A little dog like a dachshund or Chihuahua is not going to be competing against a Doberman or a Rottweiler,” Crank says. Crank started competing in agility when she was 7 years old with her family dog. Her mother, a canine obedience trainer, often brought Crank along to training classes, and when dog agility became a sport, the two excitedly picked it up. “Most people see it on TV, or they see some equipment or something at a dog park,” Crank says. “But for me, it was just a hobby that I grew up around, found a passion for and kind of excelled at and ended up turning into a career.” Since her start, Crank and her furry friends have become quite the competitors, winning the FCI Agility World Championship three times, World Agility 26
Since every dog is different, that means the positive reinforcements differ, too. Some dogs are highly food motivated and others prefer toys, so it’s important for trainers to get to know each dog and owner to figure out the best method for the team. The most difficult part of training isn’t always the dogs – sometimes, it’s training the handlers. In order for dog training to be effective, handlers need to make sure they remain consistent and predictable in their response to a dog’s behaviors. Crank compares it to a teenager coming home past curfew. Like parents, handlers must provide their dogs with clear expectations and a consistent reward system to get the desired results. “I think it’s easy to want to blame the dog,” Crank says, “when, in reality, the dogs are only a result of whatever we’ve taught them and trained them.” Crank uses a similar metaphor to explain how dogs act as part of the family. Owners often get their dog involved in agility to provide them with a physical outlet for their energy, much like parents might sign their kid up for tee-ball. Like any sport, agility trainers practice warmups, cooldowns and stretching techniques because many dogs are prone to joint and arthritis issues. Agility can help combat some of those issues, Crank says. There’s more to agility than simply the physical health benefits. Crank notices that a dog’s mental health often improves with training. A special dog-human relationship blossoms when a pet knows their owner is more than a source of food but instead a person to have fun and learn with. In other words, when they’re a team. Ultimately, Crank says, agility is not about the competition. It’s about the relationships that result from it.
Open Biathlon Gold Medal, 2014 Grand Prix national champion and more. Despite her gilded record, Crank’s biggest source of pride is her students. “It’s not about my accomplishments,” Crank says. “As a business and as a business owner and as an instructor, (it’s about) what I’m able to get my students to do.” Many of her students have earned prestigious agility titles and some have even become instructors at Crank’s facility. In March 2021, Crank’s student Betsey Lynch entered her papillon named Lark into the American Kennel Club National Agility Championship. Lark earned the title of eight-inch agility champion. Crank says agility is huge in central Ohio. Clients come from all over the country to learn from the staff at IncrediPAWS. During classes at the indoor turf facility, Ellie Roberto is an editorial assistant. trainers teach handlers how to use posi- Feedback welcome at feedback@ tive reinforcement to get desired behaviors cityscenemediagroup.com. from their dogs.
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Photo courtesy of A. Wooten Photography
What it takes to be a canine champion
