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How Do They Race?

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Flyball - A Sport for Dogs!!!
Each dog runs with a team made up of four dogs. His team is competing against another team of four dogs. Sounds simple but it's not! Each dog learns how to run over a series of four jumps, pounce on a spring-loaded box which shoots out a tennis ball, catch the ball in his mouth, then runs back to the start! His three teammates do the same and hope to do it faster than the four dogs they're running against! This is a fast-paced sport which requires training for both dog and handler. The lane each dog is racing in runs 51 feet and the jumps can be over a foot high!

Besides having a great time, each dog earns points towards titles during sanctioned tournaments. The point system is based on the team time per heat:

less than 32 secs: Each dog receives 1 point
less than 28 secs: Each dog receives 5 points
less than 24 secs: Each dog receives 25 points

What's In It For the Dogs?
Watch Flyball, and you'll see some fast dogs! Dogs earn titles based on the points they accumulate whether they win or not. Teams compete for trophies and ribbons but the dogs compete because it?s fun. The first title a dog achieves is Flyball Dog which means he's earned 25 points. The highest title is that of Flyball Grand Champion at 30,000 points!

What Kind of Human Plays Flyball?
You should be willing to train and be part of a team. The success of each dog depends on the effort of his owner. The typical Flyball person likes to spend a lot of time with his/her dog and works hard to ensure his good health and well being. Dogs who play Flyball are often accomplished at other activities too. Many Flyball dogs compete in Agility, Search and Rescue, Lure Coursing/Tracking, volunteer for therapy work and more!

What Else Should I Know?
Flyball is a sport concerned about the well-being and quality of life for dogs with their owners. We follow guidelines issued by NAFA regarding the care and handling of all dogs. This means we train our dogs safely and promote good sportsmanship and ethical handling of canine participants. Dogs thrive in the sport because it provides an outlet for many of the instinctual drives which make up the canine personality. It is everything a dog loves to do---run, jump, and catch a ball! Owners who compete with their dogs in this sport enjoy a companion who is more obedient, healthy and confident. Flyball is good for dogs and good for people too!