About Us

Dordale agility training society is based in Belbroughton, West Midlands. We are approximately 4 miles away from Bromsgrove town centre. The club was originally founded by Ann and Roger Deakin in 1996 at Little Royal Farm, where we still train today. We currently have approximately 40 members, ranging from complete beginner’s right through to grade 7. Any well behaved, reasonably fit dog over twelve months old can take part in agility; we have a wide variety of breeds who train at Dordale, from a Jack Russell Terrier to a Boxer, proving agility isn’t just a sport for Collies.

During the winter we practice indoors in a barn which has a sand floor. Next to the barn is a large secure field, where we train during the summer months. All beginners start in class one, which is on a Wednesday at 7-8pm and is taught by Ann Deakin. In this class the dogs and handlers learn how to negotiate each piece of equipment, before learning how to handle their dog’s around an agility course. We focus on positive training methods’ and believe that playing is the key to success, after all agility should be fun! The dog’s will then, in time, be able to progress to group two which runs between 8-9pm on a Wednesday, and afterwards one of our Thursday sessions.

Each class has a maximum of ten dogs, and our beginner’s class also benefits from having experienced handlers present to assist our Wednesday night trainer.

Thursday’s training sessions are conducted by Mark Douglas and are for the more experienced handlers, many of whom compete on a regular basis. These groups are organised based on the dog’s grade and ability, and run for an hour each between 6.30pm – 9.30pm, alternating each week, as shown on our training timetable page.

The club also takes part in the Great Western and Three Counties Starters leagues. These are home and away matches against other local clubs which run during the winter months.

Dordale agility training society is registered with the Kennel Club and holds two open KC shows a year, usually over the Mayday and August Bank Holiday weekends. All members are expected to help run these shows, as the profit from these subsidise our training fees, keeping them as low as possible. We also provide reciprocal ring parties for selected local clubs, and encourage our members to enter their shows.

Training fees are currently set at £2.50 per week, per dog. Membership is £15 per year per person.

We also enjoy taking part in social events such as skittles evenings and a Christmas meal. We hold an annual general meeting, which usually takes place in June. The whole club gets together and celebrates everyone’s agility achievements over the past year.

Trophies are given to those who have won the most points in competition, in their grade and height category. Trophies are also awarded to the members who have made the most progress at training. We discuss how our previous year’s shows went, how we did in our league matches and the future direction of the club. Afterwards we celebrate with a barbeque.
More information about agility can be found on the Tips page.