What Is a Double Q in Dog Agility?

When your pooch starts in dog agility, you just hope she'll make it through the courses without stopping to take a break. Once she knows what's expected of her, you can start aiming for big scores that will garner your pup the championship title. Don't get confused by the use of "Q" alongside the numerical scores. When your dog gets a "Q", it means she has earned a qualifying score in a class.

  1. Significance of Q

    • As your dog runs through a standard or jump course, she'll be racing against the clock. She'll earn a point for each full second that she runs below the course time limit. In "The Golden Retriever Handbook," published in 2009, author D. Caroline Coile notes that your dog can lose points for knocking down a jump, refusing obstacles or taking them out of sequence, failing to hit a contact zone or taking longer than the allotted time limit. When points have been tallied, your dog has to score between 85 and 100, with 100 being the highest score possible, in order to earn her Q.

    The Double Q

    • When your dog qualifies for both the standard class and the jumpers class within her level, she'll get a Q for each. That is what is known as the "double Q" in dog agility scoring.

    Importance of the Double Q

    • Within the two classes your dog will compete in, the standard agility class and jumpers class, your dog will work her way up through the ranks, first competing as a novice, then moving to the open level and eventually becoming so skilled she can compete at the excellent level. When your dog gets a double Q for competing in the excellent standard and excellent jumpers at a trial, that counts toward the 20 double Q's required to earn a Master Agility Champion title. The other requirement for the coveted title is an accumulated score of 750 speed points.

    Q Clubs

    • If you have aspirations of double Q's for your dog, she could benefit from joining a club like the Double Q Agility Club of Western New York. It's not just for those who have earned Q's times two; the club welcomes all dog agility competitors who strive for double Q excellence. A recognized AKC club, the Double Q Club's members come from all breeds.