Fenzi Dog Sports Academy - AG190: The Glue for Future Agility Stars

Course Details

Building the Glue Skills

This course is different from most foundation classes. Rather than focusing on obstacles or traditional flatwork, this class teaches the critical foundation skills (the “glue”) that will help your dog succeed as a learner in agility classes, seminars, and high-energy training environments.

Glue skills give your dog the self-regulation, focus, and clarity needed to work and process information efficiently. Without them, your dog may become frustrated, anxious, over-aroused, fearful, or develop undesirable behaviors that interfere with learning and performance.

For All Sports or Life Skills

While this course was initially designed for dogs that will eventually compete in agility, any dog (whether destined for any sport or just basic life skills) will benefit from learning these skills. Whether your goal is competitive dog sports or simply better life skills for a family companion, glue skills create a strong framework for clear communication and efficient training.

We have had dogs being trained to eventually compete in agility, dock diving, obedience, rally, freestyle, herding, rescue/foster (to prepare for placement), and more.

Who Is This Class For?

Open to dogs of any age
Puppies 4 months and older are welcome (the younger puppies will progress more slowly)

Dogs between 6 months and 2 years often benefit the most
Suitable for a dog that is:
- Just beginning training
- Already attending classes or seminars
- Currently trialing in agility

Skills Your Dog Will Learn

Stationing
Focused waits
Standby behavior
Release cues
Collar and leash skills
Transport procedures
Down stays

Skills You Will Learn

How to plan and organize efficient training sessions
How to keep your dog focused between repetitions
Why lack of speed is often desirable during learning
How to improve clarity and consistency with handling and communication
How, when, where, and why to use reinforcement event marker cues

Video Example

Here's a video from the last day of class for Ginger and Sprite. In this session, Sprite is stationed during a training session with Ginger's older dog, Gemma. Ginger has carefully layered in more and more excitement while Sprite is stationed. And in this session, there is a lot of excitement as she sequences and rewards Gemma with tugging while reinforcing Sprite on the station. Look at how relaxed and quiet Sprite is on her station during the training.

Teaching Approach

This class takes a step-by-step approach to building various skills. Each step will have written instructions. In addition, most steps will have at least one corresponding video. Lectures are released in one batch at the beginning of the week. Feedback will mostly be written. Occasionally there will be video feedback done to help with subtle changes.

Warning!! This class is heavy on information during the first three weeks. However, the background and introductory information set you and your dog up for future success in training the skills. The last three weeks have less to cover and won't be as heavy on assignments.

This class will have a Teacher's Assistant (TA) available in the Facebook study group to help the Bronze and Silver students. Directions for joining that Facebook group will be in the classroom after you register.

Podcast

Here's a discussion Nancy had with Melissa Breau about this class on the FDSA Podcast:

Fenzi Dog Sports Podcast: E221: Nancy Gagliardi Little - "What it takes to learn agility"

Instructor: Nancy Gagliardi Little

Nancy Gagliardi Little (she/her) has been training dogs since the early 1980s, when she put an OTCH on her Novice A dog, a Labrador retriever. Since then she has put many advanced obedience titles on her dogs, including 4 AKC OTCH titles, 6 UD titles, 3 UDX titles, and multiple...(Click here for full bio and to view Nancy's upcoming courses)

Syllabus

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Week 1

Clean Cues
Duration Behaviors
Freeze in Position (Offered Stay)
Release
Event Markers (Introduction, why, when, where, location specific event markers)
Training Session Goals
Speed vs. Thoughtfulness
Mistakes
Station Introduction

Week 2

Station - Increase Duration
Transport - Treat magnet, Tugging
Crating Suggestions and Discussion (dogs won't work on crating in this class but we will talk about strategies and issues that come up)
Standby
Leash & Collar On
Collar Give
Collar & Leash Pressure
Small dogs - Consent to be picked up

Week 3

Station - Reduce Reinforcement, Add Distractions
Down Position
Offered Down Stay
Down Stay - Eye Contact, Vary Handler Position, Slight Duration
Standby - Freeze, Duration
Transport - Leash, Carry Dog
Transport - Treat Magnet - Increase Distance

Week 4

Down Stay - Duration and Simple Distractions
Work Away From Reinforcement
Station - Eliminate/Reduce Reinforcement, Increased Distractions
Transport - Station to Recall
Standby - Add Work

Week 5

Station – Add Work
Down Stay - Lengthen Duration, Increase Distractions
Waiting Strategies

Week 6

Down Stay - Eliminate Reinforcement, Add Work
Station - Advanced Training

Prerequisites & Supplies

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A portable dog cot or any type of portable station.

Dog mats or beds that lay flat on the ground cannot be used to teach stationing behavior during this class. You will need a cot or some type of elevated surface that has a distinct boundary. The surface should allow the dog to comfortably stand and turn around.

I have used the portable/fold up Carlson cot with all my dogs. I use the large for my medium dogs. It’s much larger than what they need but I love the portability. It is also very reasonably priced. If you have a very powerful dog, you might want to look into something more expensive that is built to handle a powerful exit from the station. There are some nice cots that are made for kids in daycare. If you do a search for "daycare cots" in your browser, you can find examples of these.

Other favorites are the Cato Board: https://catooutdoors.com/. The Cato Board is a very stable outdoor platform that is made specifically for dog sports activities. It can be used in all weather and it is supported so that it doesn't move when your dog gets onto or leaves the board. They are pricey, but I think you'll like them. Some dogs initially have trouble with the Cato boards because they are so close to the ground and the dog can easily step off.

The Klimb with a mat to prevent it from being slippery is okay as long as it is stable for your dog. There should be enough room for your dog to stand and turn around comfortably.

There is no required position on the station.

Sample Lecture

Speed in Agility

Agility trainers struggle with the belief that they should allow their dogs to be slower and more thoughtful when training agility obstacles and concepts. Many agility dogs are expected to learn complex behaviors while being asked to pick up energy and speed, often in a stimulating environment.

Ask any successful athlete, and they will agree that it is more important to learn to execute the skill or routine first - slowly and accurately - before adding more energy, intensity, or speed.

When your dog is learning something new, it will take time to become proficient at the skill. However, this slow and accurate learning process has its benefits. Allowing the dog to perform the skill slowly with helpful reinforcement procedures will build confidence in the dog. This confidence, in turn, builds enthusiasm and speed. A dog that is frantic and hectic while performing is not focused on the execution. Building speed into an exercise before the dog understands how to use the body properly will cause many incorrect responses during the learning process. When that happens, it becomes difficult for the dog to figure out – especially when the human wants speed on top of it all.

After becoming more confident with their jumping skills or other obstacle performances, some of my fastest dogs picked up even more speed. It's crucial to understand that rushing for speed before knowledge or precision can lead to many mistakes. And depending on how you or your dog responds to those mistakes, anything can happen. You might have a dog that learns to ignore handling (creating off-courses at high speed) or a dog with frantic behaviors that cause more errors. You can even create the opposite of what you want - a dog that learns to move slowly. So, it's essential to be mindful of the learning pace.

Imagine if you were learning a new app or software package, and the instructor pushed you to execute faster than you could process. It would be frustrating, confusing, and stressful. Now, let's think about our dogs. They're learning a new skill; just like us, they need time to process and understand. Let's be patient and allow them to ask questions, just like we would in a learning situation.

Testimonials & Reviews

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A sampling of what prior students have said about this course...

I wish all agility dogs had the skills that you teach in this class! You encouraged me to test JJ's skills and we have some new reward strategies. We are certainly going to carry on with stationing before work and practicing ring entries and exits. I'm really happy that with the extra stationing practice she is choosing to lie down on her bed when I am conditioning the other dogs. I also feel like this class has put a bit more focus in our training. I really haven't been all that interested in progressing her agility training until she gains some confidence. This class gave us easy, fun, things to do together. ~ Debbie Dust

This has been one of my all time favorite classes and has been incredibly helpful to me and Cricket. It clarified so many things in my mind and has greatly enhanced our communication. My only suggestion would be to change the title to: Glue for Future sports dog stars, or Glue for Future agility, field, and obedience stars. The course may have targeted agility students initially but all the content is equally important for the rest of us! By putting it in the agility section, I bet a lot of other people don’t realize it would be great for non-agility folks as well! Just a thought. The course was amazing, and Nancy was amazing. She carefully studied our videos an answered every question thoughtfully and astutely. She was kind to everyone and met each of us at whatever level we were working, regardless of age of the dog or breed. She definitely went the extra mile. Thank you!!!

Thanks for an amazing class! Sexy life skills for agility is my new title. So thankful we took this class and I gleamed lots of valuable information. I loved the progression and your thoughtful breakdown of each skill. ~Jillian Neff

Nancy's instruction was terrific - both the written lectures and the video feedback. I saw so much improvement in my dog over the term. She can do things now that I never thought would be possible!

This is the first class I have taken with Nancy. I am a seasoned Fenzi student and how is it I never realized what a dedicated and fabulous instructor she is!!!!! If you are interested in agility and want to create a solid foundation before you even look at an obstacle then this course is for you. Or if you have started agility and need to refresh the basics before you even enter the ring then this course is for you! She covers the importance of clean marker cues , stationing , stays, moving from place to place, how to keep your dog focused on you while you wait ,....and much more. She takes each of these topics and explains both with written word and video how to achieve these goals. Her feedback to her students is top notch and very individualized. A super class and one not to miss . Thank you Nancy

I found the exercises in class to be fun, relevant to what I had hoped to learn, and released at a good pace in order to keep up. Nancy provided helpful and personal feedback, and always had positive things to say about our work. Avery and I thoroughly enjoyed this class and will continue to work on the skills we've learned over the last 6 weeks!

This class is absolutely FANTASTIC! It was so helpful in preparing myself and my dog for future dog sporting events. Nancy's feedback was so well delivered and thorough, always having positive things to say as well as simple step by step guidance of how to take each skill to the next level. Nancy's lectures were top notch and gave so much valuable information without being overwhelming. As my first Fenzi course, it went above and beyond what I ever could have expected!

The GLUE for a future agility star is exactly what we got from this course. This course helped me focus on the little skills that make a huge difference to future success. Nancy breaks down each skill into easy to train steps, with clear instructions on how to build the behavior as the course moves through the weeks. These skills are the sexy life skills that everyone should have but we always push aside for the flashy agility skills!

Nancy is a fabulous instructor. She is very patient and has an eye for the details that I can't see. She is an excellent problem solver and comes up with tailored solutions to the dog in front of her!

Registration

Next session starts: February 1, 2026
Registration starts: January 22, 2026
Registration ends: February 15, 2026

Registration opens at 9:30am Pacific Time.

AG190 Subscriptions

	Gold	Silver	Bronze
Tuition	$ 260.00	$ 130.00	$ 65.00
Enrollment Limits	12	25	Unlimited
Access all course lectures and materials	✔	✔	✔
Access to discussion and homework forums	✔	✔	✔
Read all posted questions and answers	✔	✔	✔
Watch all posted videos	✔	✔	✔
Post general questions to Discussion forum	✔	✔	✖
Submit written assignments	✔	✖	✖
Post dog specific questions	✔	With video only	✖
Post videos	✔	Up to 2	✖
Receive instructor feedback on	Questions All videos	Questions All videos	✖