Brown Pigs Can Jump (Clix Agility Jump)

Member Name: rolletrog

Product:	Clix Agility Jump
Date:	25/04/09 (210 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Easy to set up/dismantle, lightweight, cheap

Disadvantages: If only I could get the dog to set it up

~~*~~*~~ Clix Agility Jump ~~*~~*~~

As if poor Pig didn't have enough of a training schedule (the chocolate Labrador does get Saturday to relax (unless we're at a show and then she has to perform doubly hard)), her taskmaster of a mother (that's me) has now purchased her own agility equipment much to Pig's bewilderment.

If you're confused as to what the hell I'm on about when I write 'agility' then feel free to gain an insight by reading my review on Canine Agility (it's not right good but it'll give you a little bit of a background into the sport). A quick summary is that agility is an obstacle course for dogs (and their handlers).

~~*~~ Who makes them and why do they bother? ~~*~~

The Company of Animals are a magnificent group of highly intelligent people who know how to make and market good animal products. You're probably already familiar with the word Halti if you've got a pulling freak of a dog and it's the same people that make this. They give their training products the sub-heading 'Clix' presumably as in 'clicker training' (I don't really know, I'm merely surmising but it is such fun to do so). Agility isn't only for those desperate to win trophies and little rosettes to line their walls (we've got 2 and they take pride of place in the kitchen but that's because we're sad), it incorporates training and physical exercise into your pooch's life. Cleverly, the Clix jumps are contained in their own pack so they've made it easy for any eejit to practice agility even if, like me, you've got a garden the size of shoe-box - just carry it to the nearest field or park and, ta da, you've got an instant agility course, nearly. Although some may say they're merely jumping on the 'obese band wagon' by marketing it to keeping dogs fit and trim, I don't care - anything that makes my life easier and Pig fitter is all good.

~~*~~ What you get for your hard-earned pennies ~~*~~

You may be forgiven for thinking that a jump is a jump - that's the mistake my neighbour made - bless him: his heart's completely in the right place and he loves the little Piggle so he made her a jump which she promptly broke on her second attempt to clear it. You see, the thing about proper jumps is the pole should fall off if it's knocked: primarily so the Pig doesn't break her leg, but also so the fat bugger doesn't cost you a fortune. The Clix Jump is, of course, correctly made and the middle pole rests on the 'cups' included in the pack.

This kit is brilliant because it all comes in a handy carry bag - just unzip the top of the lightweight bright blue material and empty the contents onto the floor (at which point your Pig will likely come across and steal one of the vital pieces and bugger off with it) but be careful because there's no spare bits. You get 2 sets of jumps which means in your hot little hands, you'll have: 2 horizontal poles in a lovely royal blue colour, 4 vertical poles in attractive yellow, 4 bright blue cups and 4 green bits that you put the vertical pole into and twist it into the ground (I've no idea what these are called so I'll call them twisties). You also get a training guide which is brief but good for the complete beginner (though to be fair, it's not really rocket science). Marked on the vertical poles are 3 different positions which are supposedly the correct Kennel Club height for the 3 different sizes (small, medium and large): though it's not particularly important as the jumps are only a training device, it's nice to know the averagish height the Pig can comfortably clear (they'll never be the correct height because it's difficult to screw the green bits completely into the ground, presumably because the park we go to is built on concrete). Basically, in 7 easy steps, the jump is put together which is fantastic as I don't have to concentrate on setting the equipment up for too long whilst Iggle Piggle is roaming free to do as she pleases - to be fair, as soon as she sees the blue bags coming out of the car she doesn't leave my side anymore as she knows fun and, more importantly, biscuits will be on the cards.

~~*~~ Will they last longer than the dog? ~~*~~

Probably, considering I threaten Pig with either 'cement & canal' or 'magic injection' on a daily basis (if you lived with her you'd understand - she, on the other hand, doesn't and completely ignores me infuriating me further). The poles are really sturdy (so far) and have been battered somewhat by the pig's hooves (she's not the most delicate and definitely not the most agile of jumpers so they spend a lot of time on the floor). Pig also finds it incredibly difficult to pay attention to me and to watch where she's going, hence a few times she's run straight into an upright pole and it's not snapped under the weight of her skull (it's very dense as there's little brain within). The 'twisties' are particularly solid and I've managed to screw them deep enough into the ground so that even the gale force winds we experience at the park aren't a problem. The cups that hold the vertical pole are probably as good as you can get - they're just deep enough to hold the pole on against the wind but will fall off when hit by a hoof, they also pop off from the vertical pole nice and easy so I don't think they'll break any time soon. The bag itself isn't that great and I think the sharpish end of the twisties will tear it eventually but that's probably because I'm quite a careless person.

~~*~~ The cost of this lovely training tool ~~*~~

After much searching on Tinternet, we found one for £18.61 (a very random price, I know) from pet-supply-store.co.uk but petplanet.co.uk has them for £20 with a two week wait and good old Ebay has them for varying prices but none as cheap as the bargain we got. Interestingly, The Company of Animals sells them for £29.35 on their website.

~~*~~ The final hurdle... ~~*~~

If you're looking for inexpensive jumps and quite frankly, who isn't, then these are probably the bestest for the price. For one, they come in a bag - hurrah! No, this is important as a normal set of jumps with 'wings' (the big gate type things you see in real competitions) would never fit in the back of the 206 and I wouldn't be able to carry them easily to the park - there's a shoulder strap and a hanging hook. They're very lightweight and dead easy to set up - if I can manage it, then a carrot could. They're sturdy and, hopefully, made to last. Because you get 2 sets of jumps in a pack, you can pretty much train your pooch to do most things; such as turns, ins and outs and go ons (Piggy has yet to master jumping without me near her but we're working hard on her going on to the next jump without me) - these are all pretty basic skills that we don't want to waste time practising at the club.
We're both very impressed with these jumps and Piggle loves to practice her 'skills'.

If you're at all interested and would like to thank The Company of Animals for their ingenious creation then you could give them a tinkle on 01932 565979 or email them at office@companyofanimals.co.uk, or if you'd prefer to write them a letter of adoration, then send it to this address: The Company of Animals Ltd, P.O Box 23, Churtsey, Surrey, KT16 9WQ. Feel free, I'm sure they won't mind.

Caroline & Pig
April 09.

Both asking the boss: "how high?"

Review will appear elsewhere, probably.

Summary: Buy one and get your pig jumping for joy