I am thinking about getting my Malinois Toni involved in Flyball. We would never do any competitions, as she just turned 6, but I think she would get a kick out of it. We've done Agility and she absolutely LOVES it, but she's so damn fast I can't keep up and I keep tripping over my own feet.
I would like to hear from those that have some experience with flyball to see if this would be something for Toni to try.
It's GREAT, especially for the dogs with insane ball drive. Easy to train, much simpler then agility. My old boss run Agility with her Collies- sometimes the dogs that are not motivated enough to run a course under time enjoy flyball. Although, her MACH2 Collie girl hates it... odd!
I am thinking about getting my Malinois Toni involved in Flyball. We would never do any competitions, as she just turned 6, but I think she would get a kick out of it.
Ah never say never. Lots of Flyball enthusiasts in Thor's family. I looked into it but 10 years ago there weren't many options available in my area. And Kel, I think at almost 11 it might be a little too late.
The link below though old; does a decent job of describing the sport and the requirements for the dog. This link is so old it might be older than you.
The instructor that taught Drift's Therapy Dog class ran a beginner's flyball class right before ours. The dogs (mostly Border Collies) seemed to totally get into it.
They will be starting a new beginner's class in a couple of weeks and I think I will take Toni and see how she likes it. Who knows, maybe she will compete... as long as I don't have to run along with her she might have a chance to win something!!! (I like to joke that my Malinois are handler impaired, but patiently training me )
Make sure your trainer is an expert if you get into flyball. There is danger of repetetive motion injuries to the dog if not trained correctly, and even then it can be really hard on joints.
Disclaimer: I'm passing on secondhand info, not personal experience as my dog hates tennis balls.
The trainer that will be instructing the class has trained the upper levels of flyball. Her last dog was a flyball champion- Gold. Her philosophy is very much like mine so I think it will be a good experience.
Believe me, nothing is more important than keeping my dogs safe and healthy. I would never do anything that would harm Toni Baloney
I've done flyball with a couple of my dogs, Toni will probably LOVE it. The big thing is teaching a proper box turn. We never taught Cali one, and I had to retire her a couple years ago because of the impacts, it was just to hard on her and she was sore the next day. Course she was also 9 or 10 at the time, with a long history in FR and Sch, so she started flyball with some pre-existing damage from other sports.
Nexxus is my current flyball dog, and I took the time to teach her a proper box turn. IMO this will make a major difference long term for her.
Oh, and Cali was 6 when she started flyball, so her age shouldn't be a problem for Toni. She's 11.5 now, and if she had a better box turn, she'd still be competing just because she LOVES it.
Thanks for the info. It's nice to know that 6 isn't "elderly" in flyball as it is in some other sports. Toni is SOOOO active and I like having her involved in different sports. She appears to enjoy the different experiences as well.
I will ask the instructor about how they train the box turn, and make sure that it will be something that Toni will be able to do safely. Thanks for that tip, too
I saw a small clip on a news show about flyball a while back. The dog they were talking about lost a hind leg, and he was still able to keep competing. That was really cool to see.
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Anyone do flyball??
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Lots of Flyball enthusiasts in Thor's family. I looked into it but 10 years ago there weren't many options available in my area. And Kel, I think at almost 11 it might be a little too late. 
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