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The ACT-Up Agility Club began in early 1995 by a small group of dedicated dog enthusiasts.  This was long before any dog training schools offered any type of agility training and back when we all said, "WOW he actually hit the yellow!" when a dog happened to get a foot in the contact zone.  There was none of this 'standardized' agility training you see now.  We were learning as we went and making history at the same time.

Many of those founding members of ACT-Up are still involved in the sport of dog agility, with many having training facilities and group classes of their own.

The name "ACT-Up" is actually an acronym standing for: Ability, Confidence, Trust with an UP attitude.  And the little graphic dog that is the club logo name is Snap though no one seems able to remember where he got that name from!

The main goal of ACT-Up was to bring the sport of agility to South Eastern MA.  The group offered group beginner classes and open training time for advanced members.  During the winter we rented out a local obedience facility and ran classes on thin obedience mats with small anti-fatigue mats on take off and landing sides of jumps (shock absorbing heavy duty matting that every agility facility has now was way out of anyone's budget) and during the summer we had training times at club member's homes.  The equipment was all hand made, except for our insanely heavy steel framed A-frame and some tunnels shipped in from Canada (many of which we still have, those suckers were made to last!)

ACT-Up ran it's first NADAC/ASCA Sanctioned agility trial in Wrentham, MA in 2000 with club members doing it all from Trial Secretary to Chief Course Building to Volunteer Coordination.  A number of area NADAC judges were also early ACT-Up members.

Since the 'early days' the club has ceased holding beginner classes, as the need has been taken over by area dog training schools, but continues to offer sanctioned agility trials (NADAC, CPE & ASCA), seminars, training days, member potlucks and other fun events.

The club has come a long way since 1995 in Brownie's backyard.