> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://dogsports.be/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Every Agility Obstacle Explained - URL: https://dogsports.be/en/agility-obstacles-explained/ - Published: 2026-02-13T16:50:28.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-09T18:08:42.000Z - Description: Hurdles, tunnels, weave poles, the A-frame, dogwalk and seesaw: a clear guide to every FCI agility obstacle, how it's judged and what dogs find hardest about it. - Author: Giovanni Vandewaetere - Tags: Agility, Beginners, #en An agility course looks like a playground, but every piece of equipment has precise specifications and its own rules. Knowing how each obstacle works, and why dogs make mistakes on it, will make you a better trainer and a better spectator. All dimensions below come from the current [FCI Agility Regulations](https://www.fci.be/medias/AGI-REG-en-23672.pdf?ref=dogsports.be) (effective 1 July 2025). The obstacles are much the same everywhere, but heights and some details differ between organisations. In Belgium, VOE is a member of the international federation IFCS and DSAB uses the World Agility Open's five jump heights, so check the rulebook of the organisation you train and compete with. The FCI groups the obstacles into three families: **jumps**, **contacts** and **others**. ## Jumps ### Single hurdle The most common obstacle on any course. A hurdle is one bar resting in cups between two wings. A standard competition set contains at least 14 hurdles, and every course must include at least seven jumps. - **Height:** S 25–30 cm, M 35–40 cm, I 45–50 cm, L 55–60 cm - **Width:** 120–130 cm - **Bar:** wood or safe synthetic material (no metal), 3–5 cm diameter, with at least three contrasting colour segments **Judging:** knocking the bar down costs 5 faults. Running past it, or going under the bar, is a refusal (also 5 faults, and it must be corrected). **Training tip:** knocked bars are usually a handling or a jumping-skill problem rather than a lack of effort. Grid work, where the dog jumps a line of low bars at set distances, teaches a dog to judge take-off points. ### Spread hurdle Two single hurdles placed together with the bars at ascending heights, 15 to 25 cm apart in height. The total depth may not exceed 30 cm (S), 40 cm (M), 45 cm (I) or 50 cm (L). Spreads are not allowed in level 1 classes and must always be placed so the dog gets a straight approach. ### Wall A solid-looking hurdle made of separate elements, with 3 to 5 half-rounded units on top that fall if touched. Heights match the hurdle heights for each category. Some dogs jump walls more carefully because they can't see through them; others need practice to take them seriously. ### Tyre A ring with an aperture of 50–60 cm that the dog jumps through. The centre of the opening sits at 80 cm (L), 70 cm (I) or 55 cm (S and M) from the ground. Modern tyres are breakaway: they split into two to four parts under a force equivalent to 8 kg, to protect dogs that misjudge it. **Judging:** if the tyre breaks apart while the dog jumps through, that's 5 faults. If it breaks because the dog refuses it, the team is eliminated. Jumping between the frame and the tyre is a refusal. ### Long jump Two to four low units in ascending height (15 to 28 cm), with marker poles at the four corners. Overall length is 40–50 cm (S), 70–90 cm (M), 90–110 cm (I) or 120–150 cm (L). **Judging:** stepping on or knocking a unit is a fault; running past, cutting in or out from the side, or not covering the whole jump is a refusal. Touching the corner poles is not penalised. The long jump is often underestimated. Dogs need a straight approach and enough speed, and handlers should avoid turning their dog in mid-air. ## Contact obstacles Contacts are the obstacles the dog runs over rather than jumps. Each has a coloured **contact zone** at the bottom of the ramps (never white, black or brown). The dog must touch the down contact zone with at least one paw or part of a paw. Missing it costs 5 faults. ### A-frame Two ramps forming a steep inverted V. - **Apex height:** 170 cm for all categories - **Ramp length:** 265–275 cm, width at least 90 cm - **Contact zone:** the last 106 cm of each ramp **Judging:** the dog must touch the up ramp with all four paws, or it is eliminated. Jumping off before reaching the down ramp is a refusal. Missing the down contact is 5 faults. The A-frame is where big dogs gain or lose most time, and where you most often see "leaping" contact errors. Most handlers train either a running contact or a stopped position (see [Contacts: Running vs Stopped](https://dogsports.be/en/agility-contacts-running-vs-stopped/)). ### Dogwalk A narrow plank bridge: an up ramp, a horizontal plank and a down ramp. - **Height:** 120–130 cm - **Plank length:** 360–380 cm each, width 30 cm - **Contact zones:** the last 90 cm of each ramp The narrow 30 cm plank asks a lot of a dog's balance and confidence at speed. As with the A-frame, all four paws must touch the up ramp, and leaving the obstacle before the down ramp counts as a refusal. ### Seesaw (teeter) A plank on a pivot, 60 cm high at the centre. When the dog passes the pivot, the plank tips and lands. The FCI specifies that with 1 kg on the down contact the board should tip in 2 to 3 seconds, so even small dogs can bring it down. **Judging:** the dog must touch both the up and the down contact zone. Jumping off before passing the pivot is a refusal; leaving before the plank touches the ground is a fault. The seesaw is the one obstacle that moves under the dog, so it needs careful, positive introduction. A dog that has a fright on the seesaw can take weeks to regain confidence. Start with a lowered board and let the dog learn to ride the movement. ## Other obstacles ### Tunnel A flexible tube 60 cm in diameter and 3 to 6 m long, laid straight or curved (U-, C- or S-shapes). Tunnels must always be fully extended and are held down with sandbags (at least one per metre). A course may include up to five tunnel performances. Dogs adore tunnels, sometimes too much. "Tunnel suck", where a dog takes the tunnel instead of the obstacle next to it, is one of the classic agility errors and a great test of handling. The **chute** (collapsed tunnel), which used to be part of agility, is no longer included in the FCI obstacle list for safety reasons. ### Weave poles Twelve upright poles, 100–120 cm high and 60 cm apart, that the dog must slalom through. Weave poles must be on every course and can be taken only once. **Judging:** the dog must enter with the first pole on its left shoulder. A wrong entry is a refusal (5 faults); further mistakes in the same attempt cost one fault (5 points). The dog must correct the error, either at the point of the mistake or from the beginning. Weaving backwards through more than two gates is elimination. Weaves are the most technical obstacle to teach and the one beginners worry about most. We compare popular methods in [Teaching Weave Poles](https://dogsports.be/en/teaching-weave-poles/). ### What about the table? Older readers will remember the pause table, where the dog had to wait for five seconds. It's no longer part of the FCI obstacle list, though some national or club competitions may still use it. ## Start and finish The first and last obstacles must be jumps. When electronic timing is used, the sensors sit right next to those obstacles and define the start and finish lines. There should be at least 6 m of space for the dog to jump in a natural line at the start and finish. ## Course rules worth knowing - Courses are 100–220 m long with 15 to 22 obstacles. - On the dog's path there's at least 5 m between consecutive obstacles, and no more than 7 m in a straight line. - Agility courses must include all three types of contact obstacle. - The handler must be able to pass each obstacle on either side. For the full scoring system, see [FCI Agility Rules Explained](https://dogsports.be/en/fci-agility-rules-explained/). Want to design a course yourself? Our [course designer](https://dogsports.be/en/course-designer/) warns you when distances or the number of obstacles are off. ## Introducing obstacles safely - **Foundations first.** Body awareness, rear-end awareness and toy drive make every obstacle easier. - **Lowered equipment.** Start with low bars, a lowered A-frame and a short, straight tunnel. - **One new thing at a time.** Don't introduce the seesaw on the same day as the weaves. - **Respect growth plates.** Full-height jumps and repeated contacts should wait until your dog is physically mature. Read [Puppy Foundations for Future Agility Dogs](https://dogsports.be/en/puppy-foundations-for-agility/) for what you *can* do with a young dog. - **Train at a club.** Good clubs have equipment that meets competition standards and trainers who know how to introduce it. ## Further reading - [FCI Agility Regulations (official PDF)](https://www.fci.be/medias/AGI-REG-en-23672.pdf?ref=dogsports.be) - [What Is Dog Agility?](https://dogsports.be/en/what-is-dog-agility/) - [Agility Glossary](https://dogsports.be/en/agility-glossary/)