A contact training aid for use in animal training, the training aid comprising a base plate 10, a contact plate 20, and a sprung-loaded tongue element 30. The contact plate overlies the base plate and defines a gap there between. The sprung-loaded tongue element is located in the gap between base plate and contact plate and supports the contact plate and spaces it from the base plate in a rest configuration. The sprung-loaded tongue element emits an audible click when the contact plate is deflected out of the rest configuration. The training aid can be used in conjunction with animal agility training apparatus e.g. ramp. The aid may further include a deflection sensor (350, fig 3) which emits a wireless sensor signal when the contact plate is deflected out of the rest configuration thus allowing the aid to be used as an aid to judges during competitions.
