If you've never seen dogs competing in flyball, you have definitely missed a treat! A relatively new dog sport, the first tournament was held in 1983. However, it caught on quickly, thanks in part to a demonstration on The Tonight Show early in flyball's history. Now, flyball is a very popular dog sport, with thousands of dogs and hundreds of clubs all over the world.
What is Flyball? In a nutshell, flyball is a relay hurdle race between two teams of dogs. So where does the ball come in? Actually, if you watch a flyball competition, you have to look carefully to find the ball! Each dog races over jumps, catches a ball from an automated box, and returns over the same jumps with the ball. It all happens so fast, though, that we humans can barely follow the action.
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Basic Flyball Rules In a heat, two teams of four dogs each compete side-by-side. Each team has a 51-foot lane, with four jumps spaced 10 feet apart and the flyball box at the end. Each dog must race to the box, jumping all four jumps, then trigger the box to launch the ball, catch the ball in his mouth, and return over the jumps to the start/finish line with the ball. Each subsequent dog can start their turn only when the previous dog has crossed the start/finish line.
A quick side note... the word "launch" is used rather loosely. The flyball box has a flat angled surface that the dog hits, which would theoretically launch the ball, but these well-trained dogs catch it so quickly you may never even see it. Not much similarity to the "fly balls" we remember from little league...
One interesting rule in flyball is the jump height calculation. The height of the jumps is not standard, but is instead adjusted for each team. The jump height for a team is based on the height, at the withers, of the smallest dog on the team. That height is measured, rounded down to the nearest inch, then 5 inches is subtracted from that number to get the jump height for the entire team (with a 7 inch minimum jump height). So, although small dogs might run a bit slower, they help the team by making the jumps easier for the other dogs. These "height dogs" are not just fun to watch... a well-trained, quick height dog is a real find for any flyball team.
So, if you and your dog are looking for a fun, challenging sport, look for a flyball club in your area!
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