Erin,
The way I understand it and I cant find the post that I read 
.... is that in Intro a dog can jump any height the handler wishes it just cant be higher then the standard jump height.
If the handler has the dog entered in some novice and some intro then the secretary can add the dog twice under the handler with like an I after the dogs name ie. Fluffy - I and just Fluffy for Novice. That way you could put the dog at the desired jump height for each level.
Jeannie
That is correct Jeannie. Intro can enter at any height, as long as it isn't higher than their measured height.
It has been "assumed" that the reason for entering Intro is that it is a young dog that isn't ready for prime time yet and needs some positive ring time experience or an older dog that needs some shorter courses and a positive experience.
For those reasons, it is also assumed that it is in the best interest of the "need ring experience" or older dog that the dogs would be jumping lower. It is not a requirement, but it is an assumption.
If a dog needs some positive ring experience, many times those dogs do not approach jumps in the safest manner due to their lack of experience and the older dog certainly doesn't need a higher height.
Since Intro has so few jumps on the courses, one hadn't thought about Intro being an option for those wanting to work on bar knocking issues, but I guess that could be an option. Most handlers at the Intro level want the lowered height so the dog learns about flow and teamwork and doesn't have to focus as hard on the height of the jumps.
But if a handler is working on jumping performance issues, then they would want to jump their Proficient height. I am just hoping that it would be a minimal number of handlers with those issues and that most realize that agility is about teamwork and not about a jump height. If an experienced handler choose their Proficient height for a dog with bar knocking issues, I would support them. I do hope that the other handlers would choose a lower height for their dogs during their Intro ring experiences.
Sharon
