Flyball facts for kids
Flyball is a relay race between two teams of dogs. Each team is made up of four dogs and handlers and a ball loader. There are also two reserve dogs and handlers who can be swapped between legs. Each race consists of three legs.
History
Flyball started as a dog sport in the late 1960s and early 1970s, in Southern California. Some dog trainers combined scent hurdle racing with the dogs bringing back a tennis ball to the finish line. Then a tennis ball-launching apparatus was added and the first flyball box was born. Herbert Wagner is credited with making the first real flyball box, and he also demonstrated flyball on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.
The first Flyball tournament was held in 1983 in the United States.
Flyball has now expanded into many countries including Australia, Canada and South Africa, and in Europe countries such as Belgium, Czech Republic, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland, Austria, Hungary, France and the United Kingdom have National flyball tournaments and also hold joint annual European championships.
The European championships which are the largest international Flyball championships were held in the United Kingdom in 2007 and 2012, the Czech Republic in 2008, Belgium in 2009, 2010 and 2013 and Germany in 2011 and 2015, France in 2014.
Nature of the sport
Flyball provides an entertaining and active way to interact with one's dog and other dog enthusiasts in an environment that is fun while allowing the dogs exercise and enjoyment. It is an especially effective way to burn off the energy of dogs with a high drive to work, such as Border Collies and Staffordshire Bull Terriers.
A large part of flyball's popularity stems from the fact that it is one of the competition activities available to mixed-breed dogs, allowing rescued mutts and non-pedigree dogs to shine alongside their purebred canine counterparts. Though herding dogs currently dominate the courses, many champion teams have mutts on them. Dogs earn titles and awards based on points earned by their team in racing.
As the sport has developed better dog training regimes have been introduced as knowledge has increased within the sport. Specific training has been developed to promote the dogs using ‘swimmers’ type turns on the Flyball box when catching the ball and turning.
Flyball is not limited to the size of the breed, as smaller dogs such as Patterdale Terriers, Jack Russell Terriers, Whippets and even miniature poodles, often compete with great success in mixed-breed teams (teams consisting of dogs of various sizes and breeds). Smaller dogs are often prized as the hurdle height is based on the height of the smallest dog in the team, commonly known as a height dog. Their only limitation is whether they can trigger the release pad, and small dogs often have to fully jump on it to do so.
Flyball is one of the non-hunting dog sports in which dogs and people work as a team. Many casual pet owners use their flyball time more as a way to relax and socialize with other dog owners than as a competition, and many champion flyball dogs are essentially pet dogs with a hobby, rather than dedicated sporting or working dogs. On the other hand, modern flyball has become the fastest growing teamsport, a sport for dogs, handlers and coaches. First division teams have well trained dogs and handlers and are trained and coached to perform. Some teams use dedicated special bred sportdogs.
Competitions
Competitions are usually hosted by a specific local flyball club but under the sanction of a national governing body. The host club may be devoted solely to flyball or to many other types of dog sports. The host flyball club uses Head judges who are licensed by the national sanctioning organization and the club will apply to the national sanctioning organization for permission to hold a competition on a specific date or weekend; most competitions are two-day weekend events.
Although competitions may vary, teams are normally seeded into divisions against other teams of similar speed. This allows the races to be closer and much more exciting. Each team in the division will usually race against all the other teams in a round robin format. The overall winner is the team with the most wins in a race.
In competitions all teams will also be trying to improve their own individual team's best race time. Teams that underestimate their speed may "break out" of their division in competition. The break-out time for a division is typically set at 1 second faster than the top seeded team in each division. The break-out rule is intended to encourage teams to seed themselves accurately, as any heats where a team breaks out do not count and are recorded as losses.
The largest single regularly held flyball competition is the North American Flyball Championships which is called the CanAm Classic. In the 2009 Championships there were about 300 teams competing held over a 3-day event.
Images for kids
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The dog jumps on a box releasing a tennis ball.
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A dog jumps hurdles in an outdoor Flyball competition.
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A Patterdale Terrier 'height dog' turning on the box after catching the ball during a race.
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Dogs & handlers lining up to race.
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Dog in competition on grass.
