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Amber McCune shares her Westminster 2026 Agility win with Border Collie “Prove-It,” highlighting teamwork, training, and their unique bond.
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Amber McCune: I am so incredibly honored and proud to have won the 2026 Westminster Masters Agility Overall Championship with my young Border Collie Prove-It. This is such a prestigious event, and to come out as the overall winner is so amazing! Especially with my baby dog, Prove-it. He is so special to me, since I hand-raised him and bottle-fed him since birth. He is my best friend, constant shadow, bed buddy, and teammate. I am so incredibly proud of my baby!
Amber McCune: Yes! The sport of Dog Agility is 100 percent all about teamwork! Our teammates might be fluffy and four-legged, but we need them to work with us as a team just as a human partnership would. From the moment we (Agility handlers) meet our new puppy, then throughout that dog’s career, the main focus is being a “team.” The bond and relationship that Prove-It and I share is a HUGE reason we came out on top this year at Westminster. In Agility, you and your teammate (dog) are running as fast as you can, negotiating obstacles at lightning speed. You need a teammate that is constantly trying to read your body language in milliseconds! Prove-It’s desire to work with me as a teammate is the key to our success.
Amber McCune: I have been doing Dog Agility for just over 20 years. In March of 2003, American K9 Country in Amherst, New Hampshire, was born as the brainchild of Celeste Meade Maurer, my mother! As a fully family-owned business, being owned by my mom and myself, American K9 Country boasts as being the LARGEST all-inclusive pet care facility and show event center in the country, complete with an indoor facility that is over 32,000 square feet and situated on over 32 acres of land. This is where I got the Agility “bug!” We started this facility to help clients better enrich the lives of their pets with the best in specialized dog training, canine sport events, grooming, boarding, canine rehab and daycare services, as well as educational seminars for the professional and non-professional dog owner. Dog Agility was just starting to emerge in the Northeast at the time, and as soon as I tried it… I was in love! They say the rest is history.
Amber McCune: Border Collies naturally excel in Dog Agility for many reasons, particularly since they are so fast and athletic, and they are born with such a phenomenal worth ethic as well as a huge “want to please” attitude. Most Herding breeds perform well in Agility, but the Border Collie is the Tom Brady of Agility by far! But Prove-It is “more.” He is not only ridiculously fast and incredibly accurate, but he has phenomenal reaction time so that he can make changes in his path so quickly, which can cut seconds off our time. He is the most talented dog I have ever owned.
Prove-It was born a singleton puppy, meaning, he did not have any siblings in his litter. His mom was having major pregnancy complications, so she was put on strict bed rest and high doses of medication to prevent her from aborting. This medication caused hormone imbalances which prevented her from making milk. So, from the moment he was born, I was Prove-It’s sole food source. I bottle fed him every two hours, played with him like another puppy, and didn’t leave his side until he was eight weeks old. It was QUITE the crazy undertaking! But I wouldn’t trade it for the world. We are inseparable, and our crazy codependent bond honestly helps us on course, since I feel he is so obsessively in tune with my movements. Sometimes I think he knows what I’m going to do even before I do it. Most people would probably feel that he is a bit annoying, always staring at me and following me around, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. He is a very special little soul and I am so very grateful to be his person.
Amber McCune: If you have ever taught a dog to do a trick, as insignificant as a “sit” command, then you CAN do Agility! Agility is just a set of “tricks” put together in a numbered sequence. It’s as easy as that! ANY dog can do Agility. ANY person can do Agility. It’s such a cool sport since men, women, young or old, mixed-breed dogs or dogs from champion bloodlines—anyone—we all compete together. The Dog Agility community is just that, a community of people that LOVES their dogs so much that they play this crazy sport with them for FUN! I tell people all the time, if you want to have fun with your dog that creates an amazing bond, try Dog Agility. I promise, you and your pooch will be hooked!
Agility
Watch the inaugural AKC Agility Team Challenge on ESPN2 as six cities compete in a fast-paced team Agility competition.
