ARFF Current 2025 Practice Schedule

ARFF practices at our home field in Carlisle, Massachusetts from late April until November (weather permitting). Our practices include full courses from USDAA, AKC, CPE and NADAC trials, as well as exercises designed to teach and refine handling skills. Members of the Practice Committee offer insights and assistance during practice for those who would like training help. ​
Wednesday 5:00 Playtime
5:45 Setup
6:00 Practice Time
7:00 Practice ends
Saturday 9:15 Setup
9:30 Practice Starts
11:00 Practice ends
11:00 Playtime
Sunday 3:00 Playtime
3:45 Setup
4:00 Practice Starts
5:00 Practice Ends
5:00 Playtime
Please bring the course/exercise maps to practice. You'll find them by clicking the link at the top of each description.
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Weekly Practice and Field Info

  • Fun with Straight Tunnel
    Straight tunnels present many challenges on course. They act as “dog accelerators” and can block approaches to other obstacles you need to reach. A straight tunnel may be easy for your dog to do, but it’s not necessarily your “friend” on course. To manage this menace and cut down on the amount of huffing and ... Read More
  • More Contact Discriminations
    These are the classic setups of tunnel-under-A-frame and tunel-under-dogwalk that you encounter so often at trials. In either case, you’ll have a chance to “flip” your dog from the end of the dogwalk or A-frame into the tunnel behind him. It’s a useful skill. Try Exercise 1 on Wed, 7/30, and Exercise 2 on Sat, ... Read More
  • Weavemania
    Nancy Gyes offers a setup for testing your dog’s weave entries and some advice for dealing with pop-out dogs. Four options. Sign up and see who else has signed up at https://bit.ly/ARFF_Practice Please remember to bring your course maps with you to practice
  • Distance Work with Crosses
    This exercise from One Mind Dogs will keep you on your toes with sends to the tunnel and jumps and crosses. See which works best for you. And be mindful of the line you set for your dog. Sign up and see who else has signed up at https://bit.ly/ARFF_Practice Please remember to bring your course maps ... Read More
  • Finding the Tunnel Entry
    This setup will help your dog search for a tunnel entry he may not initially see and to get comfortable with your going around the “backside” of a curved tunnel. Jackpot his successes. Sign up and see who else has signed up at https://bit.ly/ARFF_Practice Please remember to bring your course maps with you to practice.

Signup and see who else has signed up at ARFF Practice Signup Sheet