When and how do you introduce the ball to the flyball box?
I've started swimmers turn training with my 2 BCs today. They have everything down good so far. But, how do I introduce the ball in the box and when? Do I just put it in there one day and expect them to catch it? I made a velcro board i've been teaching them to fetch a ball off of, could I use that someway?
You should introduce the ball to the dog when they have a swimmers turn down.
There are a number of ways to introduce the ball to the dog on a flyball box. You will have to take it slow and it will be dependent on the dog and their ball drive. If the dog is timid and does not have a strong ball drive it will take longer, but if your dog has a strong ball drive it will go quicker.
First thing to do is to determine which way your dog turns naturally. It is similar to people being left or right handed. You can train them to go either way, but if you work with their natural tendency it will be easier.
Place a ball about 20 feet directly in front of your dog and send them for the ball. Make a mental note of which direction they turn as you call them back to you once they have the ball. Do this several times so that you will let you know their natural turn direction.
I will start with how to train a timid dog, you can skip over these as needed as you find out how well your dog progresses.
Start with a ball just in front of the box on the ground and send them to the box. You will want to place the ball to the side of the box that the dog naturally turns. As they pick up the ball and return to you they will build confidence. As they gain this confidence, move the ball onto the box. You may need to tape or Velcro the ball to the box. Keep moving the ball up the ramp till the ball is in the area that it would normally fire from when the box would be triggered. Once the dog is successful at the dead ball retrieve from the box, take a step back and do box work with the box triggering and the dog doing the swimmers turn. If the dog is not phased by the noise of the box, then go ahead and put the ball into the box and have the ball fired from the box. It usually takes a time or two till the dog is not bobbling the ball and gets used to how the ball fires from the box.
If your dog does not have ball drive, work with a loaded ball. This is where you cut a slit into the ball and stuff treats inside. When you do this send the dog to the ball and once they bring the ball back to you, treat them with the treats inside the ball and repeat. They will start to associate the ball with treats and the ball drive will develop from there.
All of this training is without the jumps and they would be added back in after successful box work has been completed.
One key component of this whole training program is having a flyball box. If you belong to a flyball club, they may have one that you can borrow. There are several on the market that are available from about $150 to over $1000, but you get what you pay for with the boxes. A quality box will cost you at least $500. I am the designer of the Miller Elite Flyball box with more information available at www.MillerFlyball.com.
Talin Flyball Training Part 1
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