Explore every episode of the podcast Fostering Excellence in Agility

089 In this episode, I talk about four key mindset skills that have shaped the way I teach, train, and compete in dog agility.

Join the conversation -> https://www.fxagilityschool.com/signup 

088 In this episode, I share four key areas for improving your front crosses:

- Footwork

- Connection

- Timing

- Application

Join the free community: https://www.fxagilityschool.com/signup  

Grab my Membership Sneak Peek Podcast: https://www.fxagilityschool.com/be-excellent-opt-in 

087 Yep, you do actually need to video your training sessions. You are missing out on valuable feedback and data if you're not, and slowing your progress down when you don't have reliable information to rely on when planning your next training sessions! In this episode, I give tips for how to video and edit your training so that getting it done is just that much easier.

Episodes mentioned: 

Training By Yourself 

Troubleshooting Your Training 

086, Since Sprint's fourth year at the WCO was her best yet, I thought it would be fun to listen to her debut recap again, just to celebrate just how far we've come as a team. From the original show notes:

Megan shares her experience debuting Sprint, her two-year-old Border Collie, in agility competitions. Find out insights into what Megan saw change in Sprint's behavior over time and how well the debut strategy worked.

Resources: 
Episode 32: Are You Ready to Compete?

Youtube: Sprint's First Trial Highlights

Youtube: Sprint's Second Trial, Novice Jumping

Youtube: Second Trial, Novice Agility

Episode 28: How Outside the Ring Behaviors Impact Inside the Ring Behaviors

Episode 31: Using FEO and Fix & Go Effectively

085 In this live coaching call recording, I share my process for problem-solving training sessions in the moment. This flowchart gives power to the students to collect data and bring that information back to the thinking room, making them more observant, creative, and effective when training on their own.

084 In the second half of this interview, I speak with Anna Lee about how to be the most effective with your dog's conditioning programs and talk about who is the right fit for working with her.

Learn more about Anna Lee's work -> https://canineconditioningcoach.com/about-us/ 

Learn how to measure and make your dog's custom fitness platforms -> https://canineconditioningcoach.com/platforms-in-canine-fitness-part-1/ 

Join the free Fans of FxAgility Community -> https://www.fxagilityschool.com/signup  

083 Today I am joined by the creator of Canine Conditioning Coach, Anna Lee Sanders. I get to pick her brain about why starting a conditioning program before you need it is best practice and provides the most benefit for improved performance and reduction in injury risk. 

Learn more about Anna Lee's work at https://canineconditioningcoach.com/about-us/ 

082 Last year, my training partner moved country and left me to train alone for the first time in quite a while! Here's what I noticed was different, and how I've made an effort to change it for the better.

081 This summer was abnormal and full of interruptions. We trained very little and trialed even less. So what have we been doing to catch back up for the opens this fall? This episode breaks down what we've been doing and what we will be doing to be our best at the West Coast and US Opens this fall.

In this episode, I unpack the three main types of training sessions agility people use, and how we reinforce during those sessions could be impacting our transition into the competition ring.

079 To compete well, dogs need to learn to ignore distractions once they notice them. This begins with understanding what they should do when they see something interesting to them. Once they know that, the concept can be applied to a wide range of contexts, including your agility training.

In a previous episode: https://www.fxagilityschool.com/podcasts/fostering-excellence-in-agility/episodes/2149220463 I talk about how to improve the clarity in your training and that is incredibly important to this conversation.

Please join the conversation in the Fans of FxAgility Community: https://www.fxagilityschool.com/signup 

078 You need clear rounds to progress in dog agility, but focusing on clear rounds isn't the answer. Dive into this episode to shift your perspective on the sport and how you train for and compete for clear rounds.

077 Building stamina is a process. Working to increase the dog's workload over time and looking for ways to reduce their cognitive load during events will improve their performance inside and outside of the agility ring. Join the conversation in my free community: https://www.fxagilityschool.com/signup

076 In this episode, Megan shares a list of things that might be different from training to trialing. Understanding these differences and how your dog might respond to these differences shapes the way we train and prepare our dogs for competition. She shares ideas for training these things and invites you into her free community to discuss training plans for your team.

Join the community -> https://www.fxagilityschool.com/signup 

Other Episodes You Might Be Interested In: 

Ring Prep Training

Are You Ready to Compete?

Ring Stress

What Does Proofing Look Like?

Recapping Sprint's Agility Debut

075 Sarah Stremming, Cog Dog Coach, joins Megan to discuss how their two youngest dogs, Rayya (Sarah's Icelandic Sheepdog) and Sprint (Megan's Border Collie) have completely different training plans and are on really different paths, but how those paths ultimately lead to the same place. These two coaches dive in to why these differences are so important and the reality of the extra time and care it takes to adjust each detail depending on the day.

074 Preparing for competition-like situations is possible, even without recreating the entire trial environment. Listen in for what Ring Prep training is and how we can do it!

Additional resources on this topic:

Ring Prep without the Ring Live Session

Ring Prep Bundle

Ready to Compete podcast

073 When should you start competing and what does that look like for each team? How to plan to maximize success all comes down to the splits in behavior that we need our dogs to understand. While this is a repeat episode, the conversation happening in the Fans of FxAgility Community is not! Join us: www.fxagilityschool.com/signup 

Episode 072: Training and Using Stashed Reinforcement Humans understand that in order to compete, rewards have to be left outside of the ring, but does your dog understand that? In this episode, I break down how I train this concept from when my dogs are young puppies, and how I use the concept throughout their education and eventually competition.

Interested in learning more? Join the conversation in my free Fans of FxAgility Community: https://www.fxagilityschool.com/signup

071 Most training focuses on how fast and accurate the dog performs a specific behavior. What if the small details surrounding that performance were also a priority? There are three places in our training that are commonly overlooked can be what's keeping you from making progress in your training.

Join the conversation in the FxAgility Community: https://www.fxagilityschool.com/signup 

070 Agility is full of highs and lows. Injuries. Low Q Rates. Not qualifying for events. It all happens and it’s all a bummer. How we move through it though, impacts how we “get back on the horse”, as the saying goes. In this episode, I share my 3-step process and questions I ask myself for how to move forward.

069 We’ve all heard of using jackpots, right? But what if it really is about making every reward mean more? In this episode, Megan talks about a recent article from neurosciencenews.com and shares how she’s already been applying this information and what she observes in her learners. Here’s the article: Large Reward Events Accelerate Learning Speed by Extending Brain Signals 

Episode mentioned in this podcast: Maintaining the Value of Your Reinforcers or View on Youtube

Join the conversation in the free community and comment directly on this post to share your thoughts. 

Agility is hard and it takes time to get good at it, let alone master it. Megan shares her experience in focusing on the process and using data to improve the overall performance while letting go of outcome results. 

Join the discussion in the (FREE) Fans of FxAgility Community -> https://www.fxagilityschool.com/signup 

067 Feeling low on time? Have a listen to this episode where Megan breaks down how she focuses her training when life gets busy and agility takes the back burner.

066 In this episode, Megan talks about common behaviors associated with ring stress, what could be causing the stress, and how to develop the appropriate training plan to address it.

In this episode, I share my thoughts and feelings about mine and Sprint's performance from the event, my training plans since then, and how I'm moving forward with our goals. I invite you to follow along post-run analyses and training sessions in the (free) Fans of FxAgility Community: https://www.fxagilityschool.com/signup

064 How do we continue to push our dog's understanding of the different obstacle cues and behaviors? By focusing on making training sessions intentionally different, we can expose our dogs to a wider variety of contexts and grow their capacity to perform the behavior under pressure in competition.

Enjoy this Coaching Call Replay! Join the Fans of FxAgility Community to discuss agility, watch (and ask questions about) my training, and join in on the regular coaching calls! All available for free! 

Click here to join. 

062 What holds more power for your dog, food, toys, or the agility obstacles? While we want the obstacles to be valuable to the dog, we need to maintain value and power for the reinforcers that we can more easily control: food and toys. Megan dives into habits around reinforcement that we can apply immediately in order to maintain and build value for our food and toys that we give our dogs during training.

061 In this episode, Megan explains the 3-point system for determining which path on course will be fastest, and how your individual dog fits into that guiding system.

Checkout all the ways you can learn from Megan at www.fxagility.com and be sure to join the free community, Fans of FxAgility, where Megan shares her training, answers questions, and offers coaching calls for all members: www.fxagilityschool.com/signup

060 In this episode, Megan expands on how to set dogs up for success when entering their first group classes in order to avoid problems. She gives ideas for group class instructors and individuals for focusing on the essential skills first and the agility skills second.

059 This episode is from a Coaching Call inside Fans of FxAgility, a free community. Make sure you sign up to join the next coaching call! https://www.fxagilityschool.com/signup

058 In this special crossover episode with Cog-Dog Radio, Megan is joined by friend and colleague, Sarah Stremming to talk about every agility person's favorite buzzword: Arousal.

057 In this episode, Megan is joined by the host of Before the Q, Rose Cybulski, to talk about stepping out of one's comfort zone and what the road to the 2026 Canadian Open might look like—interested in learning more?
Check it out:

Before the Q Podcast

Watch Episode 2 of the Vlog!

Support Rose & her projects

056 What is pressure, and how can we train for it? Find out in this episode!

055 In this mini-sode, I break down my different types of offers: free, self study, coaching program, and guided programs.

Free Content: 
This Podcast! Make sure you've subscribed! 
Social Media: Facebook and Instagram
Fans of FxAgility Community: Signup or Login 
Plan with Excellence Mini-Course 
If you aren't currently on my email list and want to be, scroll to the bottom of this page. 

Self-Study Programs: 
Verbal Cue Webinar
Startlines that Stick Webinar
Ring Routines Bundle
Loopy Agility Training
Teeter Training
Running Aframe
Weave Pole Training
Handler Skills Bundle
Handler Mechanics Microskills

Train with Excellence Coaching Program: 
Learn about the program here. 
Claim the 2025 Black Friday promo here. 
Check out current members' favorite lessons here. 

Guided Programs: 
January 2026 Handler Mechanics Microskills 

Send this episode to your friends! Reach out via email if you have any questions about my offers: megan@fxagility.com 

054 Let's unpack some definitions of positive and negative reinforcement, a real-life training example, and why focusing on the use of positive reinforcement will benefit your team overall.

Video examples of skills trained with positive reinforcement, but may also be benefiting from negative reinforcement, are available inside my free community, Fans of FxAgility. 
Login here or Join here. 

053 There are seven ways to observe behavior and look for signs of learning. In this episode, Megan shares those seven ways for a quick definition and then unpacks how she uses those forms of measurement in her own training.

When I set out to record this episode, I referenced my well-loved copy of Learning and Behavior by Paul Chance. 

Join the Fans of FxAgility free community here: https://www.fxagilityschool.com/signup 

052 Preparing for competition-like situations is possible, even without recreating the entire trial environment. Listen in for what Ring Prep training is and how we can do it! 

Additional resources on this topic: 

Ring Prep without the Ring Live Session

Ring Prep Bundle 

Ready to Compete podcast

051 When I first started competing, we had limited options on how to maintain our habits from training to trialing, but now with FEO and FNG available is most (all?) organizations, it's easier to be consistent in our habits. In this episode, I talk about how I use each opportunity to bridge the gap between training and trialing for teams of all levels.

Episode 031 Using FEO & FNG Effectively

Join the Fans of FxAgility Community 

050 How we respond to mistakes and use mistakes in our training is based on our values and how we choose to train. We have so many tools available to us that allow us to build confident and resilient learners that don't involve confusion or frustration. Learning to control our own emotions plays a huge role in how our dogs navigate playing this game with us. Take a listen, and join the Fans of Fx Agility Community to keep the conversation going. Log-in at fxagilityschool.com or sign up: fxagilityschool.com/signup

049 What is engagement, how do we get it, and what do we do when we don't have it?

048 There's a lot that goes into training startlines, but it can be broken into four main categories: skills, motivation, chains, and ring sustainability. check out the online program that starts on June 2nd!

fxagilityschool.com/startlinesthatstick

Megan talks with student, friend, and colleague, Sarah Espinoza-Sokal all about raising a puppy responsibly. The two coaches talk about their values and priorities when choosing what each puppy needs, and how that benefits them both in life and in dog sports. Sarah is starting a new puppy program: Limitless Agility Foundations where she plans to support puppy owners through this process and cultivate passion for living, training, and competing with these special creatures. To find out more, visit Sarah's FB Page: Agility Odyssey and look for the pinned post.

046 Should you keep trialing when a problem behavior crops up or take a break? I unpack my process in this episode!

045 I am often asked about preparing for big events, but is it really any different than preparing for a local event? Listen in to find out how I prepare for the competition weekend.

044 Tips on planning and prioritizing your training when your access to agility equipment is limited.

043 Megan explains the five phases of walking the course and planning her strategy. This blog: https://fxagility.com/blog/the-five-phases-of-course-analysis/ outlines the same information and points you toward additional resources inside Megan's school.

042 Megan shares her general thoughts on using and fading props in our agility training. Check out her website: fxagility.com

041 You need clear rounds to progress in dog agility, but focusing on clear rounds isn't the answer. Dive into this episode to shift your perspective on the sport and how you train for and compete for clear rounds.

Dive into my webinar on more effective coursework training and view my coursework training in the Event Prep Program 

040 Don't wait for problems to be big ones, get curious about your dog's behavior and uncover small gaps in their understanding before they become impossible chasms to overcome.