Pam O'Day
The philosophy behind Competition Agility with Pam O'Day is simple. Pam builds meaningful relationships with every student based on their goals, their needs, and the unique abilities of their dogs. She is committed to helping each team reach its full potential. A lifetime of involvement in dog sports, including conformation, obedience, tracking, and agility, has given Pam a strong foundation in evaluating a dog's movement, temperament, and motivation.
Pam's greatest strength is her ability to tailor training to the level of each team while still working within a group setting. She brings together a thoughtful mix of instruction, challenge, and encouragement so that students continually learn and succeed at new agility skills. Her students have qualified for and competed successfully at national events. Pam has coached three AKC National Agility Champions (2002, 2019, 2023) and a Westminster Agility Champion (2024), achievements that reflect both her knowledge and her students' trust in her coaching. Her students have achieved innumerable AKC MACh’s and PACh’s and also AKC AGCH’s (Agility Grand Championships).
Agility classes with Pam O'Day are highly interactive. Students are encouraged to analyze handling strategies, ask questions, offer suggestions, and support one another. Pam teaches handlers how to break down courses into manageable pieces and how to evaluate handling lines to find the most efficient path for both dog and handler. She regularly introduces exercises that develop stronger communication and increase each dog's potential. Agility is about more than simply running a course. Students in Pam's classes often discuss preventive health care, conditioning, injury prevention, rules and regulations, and insights from their own trial experiences. Pam's background as an AKC agility judge (1997), combined with more than 30 years of involvement in the sport, provides students with a clear understanding of what it takes to compete at any level.
When you train with Pam O'Day, you receive honest and direct feedback, along with strategies that support long-term growth. Pam has taught more than a thousand successful teams and continues her professional development by attending and hosting seminars with world-renowned handlers, and canine health practitioners. With Pam, you gain more than an instructor. You gain a coach who brings a wealth of knowledge and is genuinely invested in helping you achieve your agility goals.
Many students started with Pam with their first dog, not knowing much about the sport. They have pursued and worked on their skills and have gone from starting from scratch to achieving a MACh or a PACh or PAX ! There are also those that chose not to compete and just choose to hone their skills and communication with their dogs.
Pam’s history of sports, both nationally and internationally has also helped Pam to have a competitive mindset. Other than field hockey, lacrosse, squash and crew, Pam started with horses and rode with The Norfolk Hunt Club for years. Pam was a member of the crew that won the North American Woman’s Sailing Championship (The Adam’s Cup) as well as competing in multiple Nationals in 420’s, Lasers, Solings and Windsurfers and the Soling Worlds (7th) in Denmark and the 420 Worlds in Sweden. Pam coached women's crew, and sailing.
To be considered for Pam's classes, your dog should have a reliable recall, sit, down, stand, stay, and leave it. A sense of humor and a strong work ethic are also recommended!