Flyball

Flyball is a dog sport in which teams of dogs race against each other from the start to the finish line, over a line of hurdles, to a box that releases a ball to be caught when the dog presses the spring-loaded pad, then back to their handlers while carrying the ball. Flyball is run in teams of four dogs, two dogs or singles as a relay. The course consists of four hurdles placed apart from each other, with the starting line from the first hurdle, and the flyball box after the last one, making for a length. The hurdle height is determined by the ulna's length or the smallest dog's shoulder height on the team (depending on the association). For example, under current North American Flyball Association (NAFA) rules, this should be below the withers height of the smallest dog, to a height of no less than and no greater than . United Kingdom Flyball League (UKFL) uses a patented ulna measuring device, measuring the distance between the 'elbow' and bone of the stopper pad with a minimum height of and a maximum of . Current EFC (European Flyball Championship) rules limit the height to no less than 17.5 cm and no greater than 35 cm. Each dog must return its ball all the way across the start line before the next dog crosses. Ideal running is nose-to-nose at the start line. The first team to have all four dogs cross the finish line error free wins the heat.…

Flyball is a dog sport in which teams of dogs race against each other from the start to the finish line, over a line of hurdles, to a box that releases a ball to be caught when the dog presses the spring-loaded pad, then back to their handlers while carrying the ball. Flyball is run in teams of four dogs, two dogs or singles as a relay. The course consists of four hurdles placed apart from each other, with the starting line from the first hurdle, and the flyball box after the last one, making for a length. The hurdle height is determined by the ulna's length or the smallest dog's shoulder height on the team (depending on the association). For example, under current North American Flyball Association (NAFA) rules, this should be below the withers height of the smallest dog, to a height of no less than and no greater than . United Kingdom Flyball League (UKFL) uses a patented ulna measuring device, measuring the distance between the 'elbow' and bone of the stopper pad with a minimum height of and a maximum of . Current EFC (European Flyball Championship) rules limit the height to no less than 17.5 cm and no greater than 35 cm. Each dog must return its ball all the way across the start line before the next dog crosses. Ideal running is nose-to-nose at the start line. The first team to have all four dogs cross the finish line error free wins the heat. Penalties are applied to teams if the ball is dropped before crossing the last hurdle or if the next relay dog is released early. ==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 three-day event. U-Fli hosts their Tournament of Champions at Purina Farms. A slightly smaller scale to NAFA's CanAm Classic, it hosts over 100 teams and runs 3 to 4 rings of races over the course of three days. ==References== ==External links== Australian Flyball Association British Flyball Association Flyball Teams and Information Guinness World Records Largest Flyball Tournament

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