Flyball: 5 Tips To Practice It With Your Pet
Playing sports with our pets has become fashionable. More and more terms related to it are heard, such as agility , flyball , canicross , among others. Of the flyball we speak today, a modality that is booming in the United States and is gradually spreading to other countries.
What is flyball
It is a sports discipline that emerged in America in the 1970s and that, over time, was gaining presence in the Czech Republic, Canada, Australia and England. These countries gave rise to it gradually spreading to neighboring countries and today it is a benchmark to practice it with our pets in Europe.
This sport not only provides physical activity to the animal, but also mental. Why? Because doing it successfully depends a lot on speed and ability to overcome obstacles.
In the United States there are already more than 400 clubs that are federated to the NAFA and that each year attract more than 7,000 dogs. When we talk about NAFA we refer to the North American Flyball Association, but there is already another association internationally known as UFLI.
How to practice flyball
This is a sport that tries to form two teams of four dogs each, which must overcome a series of obstacles that will appear along the way. The objective is to reach a machine that throws a tennis ball into the air. The dog that arrives must press the trigger and catch the ball to bring it to the starting point and give the baton to the next dog.
As you might expect, the team whose members come first is the one that wins. Of course, there will also be penalties that will subtract points and that could lead the team to lose despite having finished earlier. So it’s not just a matter of speed, but also skill, stamina, strategy and intelligence. Everything counts.
You do not need a specific breed to practice this sport, and any dog that has the necessary skills can do it. Are you interested in the topic?
How to practice flyball with your dog
If you are already curious, and you would like to start the adventure in this sport with your pet, you need the advice that we give you below.
Teach him from puppyhood
Although there is nothing that says that an adult dog cannot be taught, it is much easier if we accustom our pet since he is a puppy to games such as catching and returning the ball. Also, you can do this:
- Teach him orders. For flyball you need basic commands like ‘here’, ‘ seat ‘, ‘release’, ‘stay’ and a few similar ones. Discipline is necessary in order to carry out the end of the game, since the ball will not be able to leave the box and the dog will have to return it when he catches it on the fly.
- Once he has learned the basic commands, you have to get him used to the box, for which you have to try to get him to step on the spring and catch the ball. It is obvious that he is not going to do it the first time, but with patience you can get him to do it.
- Run with him to the side and make him jump the fences. You must teach him not to be distracted by anything around him.
- Take breaks. One of the most important parts of a workout, especially when it’s intense like this one, is that the animal is well hydrated and that you take breaks every few minutes to help it stay focused. Needless to say, if you do your workouts in the summer, you should do it when the weather is cooler, such as in the morning or afternoon.
The flyball is a sport that not only streamlines the physical activity of your dog, but also mental. It helps him understand commands and, in addition, he will have a lot of fun and socialize with other dogs with whom he will learn to play as a team. Can you think of a better game than this?
