Farewell to Dog Agility Founder Bud Houston
22 Dec 2024
Dog agility has lost one of its founders. Folks newer to our sport might not have even heard of Bud Houston. But, we’ve all been influenced by him, at least indirectly. Bud wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea; he was direct, and he had strong opinions. I think a couple of his seminars were the first dog agility seminars I ever attended - way back in the ’90s. He was a founder of Clean Run magazine and many, many folks learned about handling, training, and competing from its articles.
He also enjoyed the challenge of training and working dogs at a distance and inventing/playing dog agility strategy games. In that era winning the strategy games (Snooker, Gamblers, etc.) really brought out a level of competition we don’t really see in today’s competitions.
For me Bud’s “Laws of a Dog in Motion” were probably the first “handling system” ever codified and have been absorbed and extended by trainers across the generations and the world. They still apply today and are something I’ll always remember when I think of him.
Rest in peace Bud and my condolences to his friends and family.
https://www.lamberttatman.com/obituary/bud-houston
If you enjoyed this article won't you please: 
Thanks!