Trendy dog sport Dog Frisbee: How to teach your dog to play it
Dog Frisbee or Discdogging is a dog sport from the USA: In August 1974 in Los Angeles, Alex Stein took his dog Ashley onto the field during a break in a baseball game and threw a Frisbee disc for him, which he caught with impressive jumps from the air with his mouth. Stein then founded the Ashley Whippet Invitational (AWI), which held its first world championship just one year later.
Your dog doesn't have to compete right away - the first thing is to get him used to the disc and find out if he enjoys this fast-paced game.
Find outhow in this article by dogfrisbee trainer Angela Tederke (Instagram: @zoomintomylife_mr.zoom).
What you need for Dog Frisbee
Dog Frisbee is especially suitable for very agile and sporty dog breeds such as Border Collies, Terriers or Australian Shepherds. Young dogs should not play Frisbee. Their bones and joints need to fully develop and harden.
Basically, your dog should enjoy playing. Very important: Celebrate every small success with lavish praise - this will bond you more and more into a special team.
Every dog is individual and training should be adapted accordingly. Use soft discs (for example, rubber/ or neoprene) at first and switch to regular Frisbee later.
Your equipment:
- Treats
- Your dog's favourite toy
- Soft Frisbee
Step 1
Befriend your dog with the Frisbee: Let him sniff it or eat a dog treat from it.
Then, for example, place the disc upside down on the floor and work on prey motivation: by wiping the floor or rolling the disc across the floor away from you so that your dog runs after it and retrieves the disc. You can always praise with treats, voice or play.
Step 2
Hold the Frisbee as a take (human holds the disc without throwing it) at the dog's head height and the dog takes it from your hand as it runs.
If this works, you can start with a light floater. The disc should be in the air in front of your body during a normal lift. During the spin, the Frisbee gets the necessary height with the throwing hand. In addition, it is lifted upwards with the hand. For the lift to work well, the Frisbee must not be held too loosely or too tightly. Your dog has the task of catching the Frisbee in the jump and bringing it back to you.
Step 3
Later, another Frisbee is added. Through communication - for example: CATCH/ DROP (catch/ off) - your dog learns to exchange the prey. Always position the discs with the running direction of the dog.
Step 4
Later on, you can also add tricks to the game and then throw a confirmation disc.
This is how you combine tricks with throws.
Step 5
Now you can gradually put together a "freestyle" - your own little routine that includes different throwing techniques, tricks and maybe even acrobatic elements - the sky's the limit.
Always play what your dog and you enjoy the most - 5-10 minutes of training 1-2 times a week is okay - but keep in mind that dog Frisbee is a sport that demands a lot from the dog's joints and bones. Make sure that the training field is free of holes, molehills and stones. For further professional guidance, seminars or experienced trainers are recommended.
Have fun training!
