PRINEVILLE — A nationally licensed dog agility trial is absolutely a competition. There is a physical aspect — for both owner and canine alike — hours of training, and an equal amount of thoughtful preparation. Even a bit of strategy comes into play when deciding how best to run an obstacle course.

But if you ever meet the owner of an agility dog, and talk with them about their quick and nimble pooch, you’ll find that there is much more to it than winning a race.

“Agility (competition) is really about the bond between the handler and the dog,” said Barb Brandt, club president of Bend Agility Action Dogs. “The dogs have to have a love for it, obviously, but they also have to trust us. That’s a big part of it.”

Sunday was the final day of a weekend agility event licensed by the United States Dog Agility Association, which brought more than 100 dogs and their owners to the Crook County Fairgrounds.

The dogs make jumps, run tunnels and bound through slaloms for the best times.

Owners meticulously walk courses before each event, looking for the best path by which to achieve the best score on obstacles that graduate in difficulty and points.

“It’s a game of strategy,” said Brandt, who says her 6-year-old border collie, Dillon, isn’t the fastest pup in the event he is about to race. “But he knows what he’s doing. And he’s out here having a good time.”

Brandt said her four dogs are “pets first” and she wouldn’t do this if they weren’t having a good time. And it’s clear, as the dogs jump around and pant wildly after a run, that most competing are enjoying the workout.

They’re not the only ones. Take a look at Sally Hildt, 60, of Seattle. She said she lost 60 pounds two years ago because of Em, her 4-year-old Shetland sheepdog.

“I lost it because of her,” Hildt said, holding her dog in her lap. “I have to keep up with my dog. I owe her that. I ask her to do this sport and I need to keep up. She is the wind beneath my wings.”

Sandy Schneider, a Tumalo resident and BAAD member, said she loves hearing comments like that. A few years back, Schneider was told that her Shetland sheepdog, Typhoon, would never do agility trials again.

“I was told he was too crippled,” Schneider said. “So I went off to a massage school in Colorado.”

Schneider now gives Typhoon a massage regimen and acupuncture treatments. On Sunday, Typhoon was bounding about the course with that happy-dog look.

“You can give up on the dog,” Schneider said, “or you can believe it has something to teach you. He has taught me.”

For many, it isn’t about the results. It’s about the journey. Still, Brandt was going for her third “top 10 percent” finish with Dillon.

Brandt and Dillon came up short.

“I kind of changed my mind (on which course to take) when I got up there to go,” Brandt said. “That kind of messed me up. But it’s okay. The next chance to get a top (finish) will be in Vancouver (Wash.) in August.”