Tell me about having a tiny dog

[Anonymous]

Yes! Agility paps are awesome. I have a papillon cross (half papillon) to get something a bit sturdier, but she has been the most fun dog I’ve ever trained. Agility, flyball, disc—she’s down for it all.

Plenty of papillons do great in agility. They are barky (nicknamed “yapillons”), but super fun little dogs. The tricky part will be finding one that is fully health tested and available. Their litters are tiny and their waitlists are long.

Are you local? Are you willing to travel to get the dog? Where do you intend to train? There is a local-ish guy in PA who teaches agility classes in Frederick who runs papillons.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes! Agility paps are awesome. I have a papillon cross (half papillon) to get something a bit sturdier, but she has been the most fun dog I’ve ever trained. Agility, flyball, disc—she’s down for it all.

Plenty of papillons do great in agility. They are barky (nicknamed “yapillons”), but super fun little dogs. The tricky part will be finding one that is fully health tested and available. Their litters are tiny and their waitlists are long.

Are you local? Are you willing to travel to get the dog? Where do you intend to train? There is a local-ish guy in PA who teaches agility classes in Frederick who runs papillons.

We are local. I imagine we will wait for our current dog to pass before we get a new puppy, so at this point we are just thinking. But maybe we could get on a waiting list?

What is your dog crossed with? Are there other breeds you would look at for a small agility dog?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes! Agility paps are awesome. I have a papillon cross (half papillon) to get something a bit sturdier, but she has been the most fun dog I’ve ever trained. Agility, flyball, disc—she’s down for it all.

Plenty of papillons do great in agility. They are barky (nicknamed “yapillons”), but super fun little dogs. The tricky part will be finding one that is fully health tested and available. Their litters are tiny and their waitlists are long.

Are you local? Are you willing to travel to get the dog? Where do you intend to train? There is a local-ish guy in PA who teaches agility classes in Frederick who runs papillons.

We are local. I imagine we will wait for our current dog to pass before we get a new puppy, so at this point we are just thinking. But maybe we could get on a waiting list?

What is your dog crossed with? Are there other breeds you would look at for a small agility dog?

She’s crossed with a border collie, but is only 15 lbs.

Any dog can do agility. Truly, I’ve seen chihuahuas and Danes and everything in between run. There is a 4” height class. The only issue is the teeter takes a bit longer to drop when you’re tiny! I’ve had Classmates run shelties, bostons, min pins, Jack russels, bichons, norwhich terriers, Lhasa apso…find the dog you want to live with and then train it to love agility. It’s just a game! It doesn’t require any natural instincts like some dog sports. Unless your child wants to make the US junior nationals team, the dog will spend more time as a pet than an agility star, so find the best pet for your household. Also important is to find a breeder who does structural testing on parents so that you stack the deck in terms of physical ability.

The hardest part will be finding a class in the area though. There are only a handful of programs and they’re all pretty far outside the city (leesburg, Frederick, Severna park). There are a couple “intro to agility” things at various pet training places or Fairfax parks and rec closer in, but if she’s serious about getting to competition level you’ll have to commit to a commute.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes! Agility paps are awesome. I have a papillon cross (half papillon) to get something a bit sturdier, but she has been the most fun dog I’ve ever trained. Agility, flyball, disc—she’s down for it all.

Plenty of papillons do great in agility. They are barky (nicknamed “yapillons”), but super fun little dogs. The tricky part will be finding one that is fully health tested and available. Their litters are tiny and their waitlists are long.

Are you local? Are you willing to travel to get the dog? Where do you intend to train? There is a local-ish guy in PA who teaches agility classes in Frederick who runs papillons.

We are local. I imagine we will wait for our current dog to pass before we get a new puppy, so at this point we are just thinking. But maybe we could get on a waiting list?

What is your dog crossed with? Are there other breeds you would look at for a small agility dog?

She’s crossed with a border collie, but is only 15 lbs.

Any dog can do agility. Truly, I’ve seen chihuahuas and Danes and everything in between run. There is a 4” height class. The only issue is the teeter takes a bit longer to drop when you’re tiny! I’ve had Classmates run shelties, bostons, min pins, Jack russels, bichons, norwhich terriers, Lhasa apso…find the dog you want to live with and then train it to love agility. It’s just a game! It doesn’t require any natural instincts like some dog sports. Unless your child wants to make the US junior nationals team, the dog will spend more time as a pet than an agility star, so find the best pet for your household. Also important is to find a breeder who does structural testing on parents so that you stack the deck in terms of physical ability.

The hardest part will be finding a class in the area though. There are only a handful of programs and they’re all pretty far outside the city (leesburg, Frederick, Severna park). There are a couple “intro to agility” things at various pet training places or Fairfax parks and rec closer in, but if she’s serious about getting to competition level you’ll have to commit to a commute.

What age makes one a junior?

How often do you go to classes?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Yes! Agility paps are awesome. I have a papillon cross (half papillon) to get something a bit sturdier, but she has been the most fun dog I’ve ever trained. Agility, flyball, disc—she’s down for it all.

Plenty of papillons do great in agility. They are barky (nicknamed “yapillons”), but super fun little dogs. The tricky part will be finding one that is fully health tested and available. Their litters are tiny and their waitlists are long.

Are you local? Are you willing to travel to get the dog? Where do you intend to train? There is a local-ish guy in PA who teaches agility classes in Frederick who runs papillons.

We are local. I imagine we will wait for our current dog to pass before we get a new puppy, so at this point we are just thinking. But maybe we could get on a waiting list?

What is your dog crossed with? Are there other breeds you would look at for a small agility dog?

She’s crossed with a border collie, but is only 15 lbs.

Any dog can do agility. Truly, I’ve seen chihuahuas and Danes and everything in between run. There is a 4” height class. The only issue is the teeter takes a bit longer to drop when you’re tiny! I’ve had Classmates run shelties, bostons, min pins, Jack russels, bichons, norwhich terriers, Lhasa apso…find the dog you want to live with and then train it to love agility. It’s just a game! It doesn’t require any natural instincts like some dog sports. Unless your child wants to make the US junior nationals team, the dog will spend more time as a pet than an agility star, so find the best pet for your household. Also important is to find a breeder who does structural testing on parents so that you stack the deck in terms of physical ability.

The hardest part will be finding a class in the area though. There are only a handful of programs and they’re all pretty far outside the city (leesburg, Frederick, Severna park). There are a couple “intro to agility” things at various pet training places or Fairfax parks and rec closer in, but if she’s serious about getting to competition level you’ll have to commit to a commute.

What age makes one a junior?

How often do you go to classes?

Depends on the venue. There are multiple agility organizations, each has their own rules. In akc, it’s under 18.

Classes are usually an hour a week, at some point between 5 and 10 pm.

[Anonymous]

Get a chipoo, papillon hair can be a pain (tangles, burrs, poop) and they are very prone to hip dysplasia (many breeds are but with a papillon it seems most likely). They are still pretty great personaliry wise, and beautiful, so if you like the look and don't mind all the hair care, I doubt you'd regret a pap.

[Anonymous]

Maybe a Yorkie.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Get a chipoo, papillon hair can be a pain (tangles, burrs, poop) and they are very prone to hip dysplasia (many breeds are but with a papillon it seems most likely). They are still pretty great personaliry wise, and beautiful, so if you like the look and don't mind all the hair care, I doubt you'd regret a pap.

Really? I've never come across a pap with HD--google doesn't say they're prone to it either. Knee issues and teeth issues (like almost all small dogs), yes.

Mini poodles are great sporty little dogs though. Definitely a good one for OP to consider.

[Anonymous]

OP here,

What I really want are issues related specifically to size. For example, I've heard that hypoglycemia can be an issue. I also know that socialization is important for all dogs, and particularly for dogs that will hopefully be spending time in classes and settings with a lot of other dogs, but I don't know how that works with a tiny dog. Is it risky for a tiny dog to socialize with bigger ones?

We have time to make this decision, hopefully a lot of time since I don't think we'll add a new dog while our older dog is still with us. He's doing OK, but he's 16, so he won't be with us forever. But I know that these breeds can have waiting lists for puppies that are checked out, so we want to research now.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here,

What I really want are issues related specifically to size. For example, I've heard that hypoglycemia can be an issue. I also know that socialization is important for all dogs, and particularly for dogs that will hopefully be spending time in classes and settings with a lot of other dogs, but I don't know how that works with a tiny dog. Is it risky for a tiny dog to socialize with bigger ones?

We have time to make this decision, hopefully a lot of time since I don't think we'll add a new dog while our older dog is still with us. He's doing OK, but he's 16, so he won't be with us forever. But I know that these breeds can have waiting lists for puppies that are checked out, so we want to research now.

Hypoglycemia can be an issue in small breed dogs, especially as puppies. You just feed them more frequently. It is not any riskier for a tiny dog to socialize with bigger ones, so long as it is in a controlled setting (Not the local dog park). I'm the one that posted earlier about my friend's min pins. They live with Dobermans. I have fostered pups as small as 4 lbs. and my resident was a 100 lbs. Great Pyrenees. I have dog sat for friends' small dogs, at a time when I owned an 85 lbs. Malamute mix, and a 110 lbs. Great Dane. As I said, you do not throw fragile dogs in with larger unknown dogs.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
What is your dog crossed with? Are there other breeds you would look at for a small agility dog?

I do agility and the current trend in my club is border paps. There are 4 highly-experienced, multiple border collie-owning members who have gotten border paps in the last few months.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
What is your dog crossed with? Are there other breeds you would look at for a small agility dog?

I do agility and the current trend in my club is border paps. There are 4 highly-experienced, multiple border collie-owning members who have gotten border paps in the last few months.

Where do you get a border-pap?

Also, can anyone suggest a local club?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
What is your dog crossed with? Are there other breeds you would look at for a small agility dog?

I do agility and the current trend in my club is border paps. There are 4 highly-experienced, multiple border collie-owning members who have gotten border paps in the last few months.

Where do you get a border-pap?

Also, can anyone suggest a local club?

From a sports mix breeder. On facebook there is a group called "borderpaps in competitive dog sports". There are only a half dozen breeders in the country. Be prepared to wait. I waited 2 years. If you are okay with a mixy-mix you can find litters sooner. In Tune Sports Dogs breeds in Maryland and has papillon mixes. She has a facebook page.

"Local" training facilities:

Leesburg: https://www.aclickabovellc.com/
Adamstown: https://dynamicdogsports.com/
Reisterstown: https://branchwaterbc.com/
Severn: http://www.kinder-pup.com/index.html
Halethorpe: https://orioledogclub.org/
Silver spring: https://cdtc.org/agility

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
What is your dog crossed with? Are there other breeds you would look at for a small agility dog?

I do agility and the current trend in my club is border paps. There are 4 highly-experienced, multiple border collie-owning members who have gotten border paps in the last few months.

Where do you get a border-pap?

Also, can anyone suggest a local club?

From a sports mix breeder. On facebook there is a group called "borderpaps in competitive dog sports". There are only a half dozen breeders in the country. Be prepared to wait. I waited 2 years. If you are okay with a mixy-mix you can find litters sooner. In Tune Sports Dogs breeds in Maryland and has papillon mixes. She has a facebook page.

"Local" training facilities:

Leesburg: https://www.aclickabovellc.com/
Adamstown: https://dynamicdogsports.com/
Reisterstown: https://branchwaterbc.com/
Severn: http://www.kinder-pup.com/index.html
Halethorpe: https://orioledogclub.org/
Silver spring: https://cdtc.org/agility

Thank you!

I will check all that out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP here,

What I really want are issues related specifically to size. For example, I've heard that hypoglycemia can be an issue. I also know that socialization is important for all dogs, and particularly for dogs that will hopefully be spending time in classes and settings with a lot of other dogs, but I don't know how that works with a tiny dog. Is it risky for a tiny dog to socialize with bigger ones?

We have time to make this decision, hopefully a lot of time since I don't think we'll add a new dog while our older dog is still with us. He's doing OK, but he's 16, so he won't be with us forever. But I know that these breeds can have waiting lists for puppies that are checked out, so we want to research now.

Small dogs have the same needs as large dogs. Mental and physical stimulation, training, housebreaking, etc. They really aren't any easier/harder. People let them get away with more because a 10 lb dog jumping on you isn't the scary danger that a 100 lb dog jumping is, but it's the same process to train it. Housebreaking might take longer because their bladders are little, but I haven't had a noticeable difference.

A good sports dog is handler focused, not interested in other dogs. "Socializing" a sports dog (of any size) means exposing them to things but asking them to focus on you. When you are on course and there are barking dogs and judges shouting scores and teeters banging and timers buzzing and the next dog walking into the ring, you want your dog to look at you. We practice walking through petco without "saying hi" to any people or dogs, rewarding focus. Standing on the corner as the cars and busses go by and training goofy tricks as vehicles rumble. Walking on 9283579 different surfaces and textures and things of various levels of stability. I put my puppies on grass, concrete, carpet, tile, wood...but also bubble wrap and warped cookie sheets that make weird noises and those blow up butt cushion things that wobble a little bit and a trash can lid that collapses when they go over it. My puppies get used to car rides and crates and people touching their ears and paws (we go to the vet/chiro a lot...I need them to be comfortable with being manipulated) We go to the dog park and stand 10 feet outside the fence practicing sit/down/stay with chaos on the other side--we never go in.

My sports dogs (both large and small) have only ever interacted with a handful of known dogs. The most critical skill they can learn is to walk through a crowded staging area on leash without approaching any other dog or person to go to the line focused and ready to work. There are a lot of super reactive, overstimulated sports dogs that will justifiably snap at nosey dogs that get in their space.

I have never had a hypoglycemic episode with any of my dogs (all under 20 lbs). I feed them 3 times per day as puppies, but only once a day as an adult.

Common small dog issues are teeth. Their teeth are almost universally too big for their tiny mouths, so they have to have some pulled/end up with dental issues.

Many papillon breeders will not sell to a house with a large dog or small children. They are fragile. Sports breeders seem to be more flexible than show ring breeders (but also much rarer). You will just have to reach out and see.

Sara Brueske is a phenomenal trainer who just got a papillon named Pop Rocks for sport (she also has border collies, koolies, and malinois). She's created a patreon to detail her journey taking a tiny puppy to what will surely be a successful agility career. Might be worth checking out. https://www.patreon.com/poprockspuppyjournal