Sports with a dog
Playing sports with a dog is a great opportunity not only to have a great time with your pet, but also to get to know your four-legged friend better, as well as strengthen friendly relations with him. Also, by doing special sports with your pet, you can improve its physical shape.
It is worth noting that a lot of active sports for four-legged human friends currently exist. Doing them with pets is a real pleasure. It should also be noted that the trend of increasing sports for dogs is only increasing every year.
Agility
Agility is a sports competition that is characterized by high dynamism.
The main essence of this competition is that the dog will have to overcome an obstacle course for a while. It consists of several shells. The total number is 20. Projectiles located on the obstacle course are divided into two types. Some of them are contact, and others are contactless. Contact shells are those on which the animal must pass. These include a slide, a swing and others. Contactless are such projectiles, past which the dog must pass without touching them. These include a barrier, a tire, and others. Points are awarded to the animal during the competition for each obstacle passed.
The management of the process of passing obstacles should be carried out by the owner himself. You can do this not only by voice, but also by giving your pet special gestures. Also, the owner of the dog can run along with him during the passage of the pet. However, it is not allowed to touch or give him any treats, as well as training items. The owner is also not allowed to punish the dog or shout at it if the pet made mistakes or failed. An animal passing an obstacle course should not have a leash and collar. This is necessary so that the dog does not get caught on any of the obstacles, which can lead to the risk of injury.
Each time the projectiles are exposed in a different sequence
Therefore, running through the same lane, each time the dog gets the impression that this is a new track.
Not only pedigreed pets, but also mongrel animals can take part in this type of competition. It doesn’t really matter what height the dog has, what weight and size it has in general. On an individual basis, all obstacles are installed for each pet. However, small dogs that show incredible activity show the best results. Such pets include Jack Russell Terrier dogs.
It should be noted that there is a list of dog breeds that should not engage in this sport. There are puppies in it. They have not yet formed ligaments, so passing the obstacle course, they can simply tear them. Sudden movements are also contraindicated for dachshunds. Making sudden movements, the animal can pinch the nerve. I note that this happens quite often in pets that have an elongated body.
I am engaged in this kind of sports competitions, you will not only strengthen the health of your animal, but you will also be able to learn how to establish contact with your four-legged friend without a word.
Dog Frisbee
Many people have probably heard about such a game as frisbee. It consists in the fact that the players launch a flying saucer to each other. If we talk about the dog version of this game, then it’s the same, but here one of the players passes a flying saucer to his pet.
In this game, the main point is that the trainer should throw the disc as far as possible. The dog needs to catch him. In this game, points are awarded for the accuracy of throws and for their range. An accurate throw is only when the dog has caught the launched plate in a certain zone. For the range, points are awarded if the animal was able to catch the launched disk in a certain zone. If she did, she gets more points. A plus for the dog is when she catches a plate in a jump, while at the moment of capturing the object there is no touching of the ground.
During this game, it is not recommended to use plastic discs as the main projectile
There is a high risk that during their fishing, the pet may damage its teeth or get a mouth injury. For this game, it is best to use soft plates that have high strength characteristics and have a special shape. Thanks to this, it will not be a problem for a competitor to lift an object from the ground.
It should be noted that this sport will be an excellent choice for dog owners who are distinguished by jumping ability and constantly demonstrate high activity, while not having a large body weight. An excellent candidate to participate in such a game is the Jack Russell Terrier.
Animals with a shortened jaw are not suitable for such games. Also, you should not play dog frisbee with pets whose body weight is quite large. You should not connect puppies to this game either. When your pet’s musculoskeletal system is fully formed, you can start full-fledged training. If you have a desire for the puppy to get used to this sport, then during training it is necessary to throw the disc not up, but on the ground so that the little pet just runs after him.
Freestyle with a dog
Among all kinds of sports for dogs, freestyle is the most artistic. It involves a competition, when a person and a dog demonstrate different movements to the music that sounds during the performance of a dance number.
In this sport, the performance shown by the team is evaluated as a whole. The synchronicity of movements is taken into account when evaluating, and in addition, how well coordinated the actions between the animal and the owner are. There are no restrictions in this sports competition. During the performance, the dog can make various turns, show sideways movements, and also arrange jumps, as well as demonstrate stands and other movements that its owner has taught it. The same applies to a person. The most important thing is that the performed dance fully corresponds to the music. It should be filled with harmony.
This sport is very colorful. Following the performance of a dog and a person, you can watch a real bright performance when the owner dresses up in a suit corresponding to the music and together with his tailed friend shows a real performance.
Flyball with a dog
Translated from English, this word means “flying ball”. The essence of the game is that the dog must catch the thrown ball and bring it to the owner. For the minimum amount of time, the animal must bring the owner the largest number of balls, which are launched using a special machine. In addition, the dog itself has the ability to launch balls. To do this, she must learn to press a special button on the car.
Before the ball is caught, the animal will have to overcome a certain number of barriers and obstacles. Pair races are quite often arranged to make the competitions look exciting and their viewing was quite spectacular. It is not uncommon when, during a flyball competition, two dogs start on a parallel track and bring balls to the owner. They strive to do this as quickly as possible in order to defeat the opponent.
One of the residents of California invented this sport. He was tired of throwing a ball to his dog. At some point, the idea came to him to make a device that would throw balls to an animal. As a result, a special machine was created. The lever was pressed by his pet and the ball flew out of the box. Later, the task was complicated — barriers were added that the animal had to overcome in order to grab the thrown object.
Coursing with a dog
This competition refers to the pursuit of prey by a dog. This sport can be considered as an imitation of hunting.
Currently, there are two types of coursing. The first involves the pursuit of live prey, and the essence of the second variety is that the dog is chasing a mechanical hare.
Usually such competitions are held in an open meadow. The regulations impose certain requirements on the field where the competitions are held. So, if large breeds participate in competitions, then the length of the field should be at least 1 km. If the competition is arranged by dogs of small breeds, then the minimum length of the field is 500 m.
In order to be as reliable as possible, the imitation of a hare running, which loops, trying to confuse the dog, there are several turns on the track.
Animals run in pairs while chasing artificial prey. During this competition, as a mandatory requirement, a dog must be muzzled during the pursuit
Pet actions are evaluated according to 5 criteria. Resourcefulness is taken into account, as well as speed and endurance, along with intelligence and enthusiasm. The mind refers to the accuracy of the trajectory when chasing a pet hare. Resourcefulness — how quickly the dog reacts to an obstacle that has arisen on the track. The enthusiasm of the animal is the excitement that the dog demonstrates when chasing the victim. With speed and endurance, everything is well understood by everyone.
If, during the pursuit of prey, the dog leaves the distance or begins to hunt for a rival instead of chasing a hare, then such a pet is immediately removed from the competition.
Greyhounds and hounds in competitions related to the imitation of the pursuit of the beast show the best results.
Springpole with a dog
By springpole, it is customary to understand competitions in which the duration of hanging on the rope of a dog is estimated. Animals that have crossed the age limit of 1 year are allowed to participate in these competitions. It was at this age that the bite was fully formed in dogs.
Before the start of these competitions, the rope is fixed on a secure mount. Parallel to the ground, a soft noose made of durable material is attached to the hanging end to hold it.
The fixing of the rope attachment and its height are selected in such a way that the dog, who grabbed the free end, could not touch the ground with his hind legs. The starting point is fixed 5 meters before the location of the hanging rope. A pet is taken to the start before the start of the competition. When the handler gives the animal a command, the dog rushes to the goal. The main task facing the dog is to run up to the rope, and then firmly grasp it with his teeth. Three attempts are given to the participant of the competition to perform the capture. When the rope is captured, the pet is given 5 minutes for this exercise. When this time passes, the dog is given a command to let go of the rope. Or the owner forcibly removes the pet from the projectile.
In this type of competition, the assessment is made of the attempt with which the dog managed to grab the rope. It is also estimated how tightly the dog held the rope. Especially welcome when the dog is hanging motionless on the projectile and there is no swinging of the animal like a pendulum.
Most often, the Staffordshire terrier and Pit Bull terrier win in such competitions. Often the Jack Russell Terrier turns out to be the winner in these competitions.
Dog-pulling
This sport is a tug-of-war, in which dogs act as rivals.
Pets older than 12 months are allowed to participate in these competitions. In this competition there are three weight groups in which the competition takes place. Group 1 is animals up to 25 kg. The second group includes competitors whose weight varies from 25 to 35 kg, and the third group is formed by pets that have a weight in the range from 35 to 45 kilograms.
The main projectile in this competition is a ribbon, which is usually made of tarpaulin. The length of this projectile is 3 meters. The grips are fixed at its two ends. The red color marks the central place on this tape.
The barrier acts as another projectile for these tug-of-war competitions. The height of the barrier is usually 2 meters. It should be opaque so that the dogs cannot see each other and are completely focused on the competition.
When the “start” command is given, dogs participating in competitions are bred on different sides of the barrier. A tarpaulin tape with a marked center is placed on the barrier. At the same time, the ends of the tape on both sides of the installed obstacle hang down.
Each of the handlers picks up his end of the tape and when the command “Start” sounds, they let the dogs in. The animals should grab the tape and start pulling it on themselves. Two trial attempts are allowed by these competitions. They are provided in case the dog could not grasp the tape firmly from the first time. The animal that first touched the barrier is considered the loser.
Pitch and go with a dog
Dogs of different ages can participate in this sport. There are also no restrictions on the breed of participants. This competition is aported, in which one team is a dog and its owner.
The main essence of this competition is that the owner should make as many throws with different objects as possible into the pre-marked areas of the site. Getting the object into the desired zone, the team receives points.
During the competition, a person is given 90 seconds. During this time, he is given the opportunity to throw a ball, puller or disc into the desired zone. Toys can also be provided. The task that the dog faces is to bring the abandoned objects, spending as little time as possible on it. The more accurate the throws of the owner are and the more items the animal can bring in the allotted time, the more points it will get. This increases the chances of winning.
Note that in all the competitions listed above, Jack Russell Terrier dogs can participate. But the competitions that will be listed below will not suit terriers and other breeds that have small sizes. Only dogs of large breeds that have incredible strength can participate in them.
