Review Summary

Alongside its outdoor kit and closed tunnel, the Zip & Zoom Indoor Agility Kit is the third member of Outward Hound’s agility equipment selection. Coming from a brand well-known for a diverse pet parent-friendly product catalog, the array of lightweight and space-saving weave poles, tunnels, and jump bars is yet another thoughtfully designed convenience to effortlessly improve your dog’s quality of life no matter where you live.

Since it’s easy to assemble and even easier to store, this simple set is ideal for apartment residents trying to give their dogs a better workout and unique training and enrichment opportunities. The tradeoff for the Zip & Zoom indoor set’s ease of use and portability is its quality.

The individual pieces aren’t large enough for practical use for medium-large dogs, even if you have the space, and keeping the pieces in place can be a struggle with an energetic dog of any size. It’s best suited for puppies or toy breeds, and the indoor kit is a low-cost, low-risk way to introduce your dog to the fun and excitement of agility.

Outward Hound Zip & Zoom Indoor Agility Kit – A Quick Look

Specifications

Stability

Pet parents will love several aspects of Outward Hound’s indoor agility setup versus the competition, such as the price point and versatility, but stability is a significant drawback.

The pole pieces use circular plastic bases, making them much more susceptible to tipping over than if they had T-legs, which several other brands use on their indoor agility pieces. The plastic pieces are light as a feather, making them easy to shift and knock over with the wag of a tail, and the high bar’s loose hold allows it to fall off frequently.

Following this theme, the collapsible tunnel has minimal support. It will slide around on hardwood as easily as any other piece, and while it isn’t guaranteed to cause issues, the flimsy walls can make it more prone to falling and flipping, forcing you to add side supports to allow your dog to use it.

Size

Outside of the unusually spacious tunnel diameter big enough to fit a large dog, the Zip & Zoom Indoor Agility Kit’s dimensions are too small to make it practical for anything other than a small pet.

The tunnel is only about 3 feet long, which is great for building confidence but short enough to disappoint even the tiniest dogs. The narrow width of the jump bar may make a hefty dog hesitate to use it. Generally, the set is ideal if your dog is under 20 pounds.

Ease of Setup/Storage

Besides its nominal price, the Zip & Zoom Indoor Agility Kit’s essential advantage is its efficient and versatile setup. It takes less than a minute to put together out of the bag, with the poles sitting snugly into the bases and the tunnel popping into form with a few quick movements.

Once assembled, you can arrange the pieces in any way you like to accommodate your dog’s size and skill level. You can move individual weave poles as close together or far apart as you desire to change the difficulty, and if you want to add a few extra, the poles from the high jump bar can work for more weaving practice.

The setup gets more complicated if you want to add stability. Since the pieces move and fall so readily, you may need to fix them in place with tape or weights to keep you from constantly readjusting them every time your dog touches them.

Overall, the setup and storage in the kit’s travel bag are quick and hassle-free. The most significant challenge is storing the tunnel, which involves a complicated system of folds to collapse it tidily into the bag. When taking it out of the package, you might want to note how it unfolds to make it easier to put back.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

How Durable Is the Zip & Zoom Indoor Agility Training Kit?

The Zip & Zoom Indoor Agility Training Kit consists entirely of hard plastic, with a tunnel made of flexible synthetic material. The durability is more than adequate for the price, but this isn’t the most long-lasting construction either.

Heavy dogs can easily damage components, and when the kit is disassembled, many pets will see the pieces as mere chew toys rather than agility equipment. To get the most use possible, always supervise your dog when it’s out, and don’t forget to put it back in its storage bag when you’ve finished using it.

What the Users Say

Outward Hound is a well-established brand for nearly anything you might need for your dog, from toys and treats to pet beds and bowls. The Indoor Agility Kit has been a popular item for years, so to give you the best insight into the user experience, we researched what other buyers have to say about the product’s quality and effectiveness.

While reviews are mixed, finding a few notable themes surrounding what customers liked and disliked didn’t take long.  The item’s light weight and flimsiness are a considerable sore spot. Many customers discuss how the weave poles move and topple over with the slightest touch, and the high jump bar won’t stop falling off.

Though they can’t agree on the exact weight limit, customers agree it only makes sense for small breeds. Stability aside, customers enjoy the low price point and ease of use. Many note that the low difficulty of each obstacle makes it easy for dogs to be successful, helping them train and build confidence quickly.

Paired with the affordability, many find it the perfect solution to test beginner’s agility with their pup and provide a unique type of indoor enrichment.

Conclusion

The Outdoor Hound Zip & Zoom Indoor Agility Kit is an excellent way to test your dog’s desire and skill in running the agility course. Though the lightweight pieces require you to pick them up and reposition them constantly, the benefits of the versatility and ease of use make up for any added aggravation. If you’re wondering whether your small-breed dog has the chops for agility, the Zip & Zoom Indoor Agility Kit is a risk-free way to introduce them to the sport.