Flyball is a team sport for dogs that was invented in California in the late 1970's.

In the early 1980's the sport became so popular that the North American Flyball Association was formed and they are the worldwide authority for flyball.

Flyball is a relay race with 4 dogs on a team.

The course consists of a start/finish line,
4 hurdles spaced 10 feet apart and a box with a spring loaded pedal.

The first hurdle is 6 feet from the start line and the box is 15 feet from the last hurdle.

The dogs jump the hurdles and step onto the spring loaded pedal which releases a ball.

The dog takes or catches the ball in its mouth and must return over the four hurdles, over the start/finish line.

The next dog then takes its turn.

The first team to have all 4 dogs run without errors wins the heat.

Tournaments are usually organised on the basis of 3 or 5 heats per race and the teams usually have 5 or 6 races in a competition.

The height of the hurdles is dependant on the height of the smallest dog running in the team - 4 inches below the shoulder height. 8 inches is the minimum height and 16 inches is the maximum height.

Missed hurdles and dropped balls require the dog to rerun the course after the rest of the team has finished.

Flyball competitions are run in divisions, based on where the teams are seeded.

The fastest teams are put in Division 1 and the slower teams in Division 2 etc.

This enables every team to have a fair go and a chance at winning.

Flyball fastest
team -The fastest team in the world as at February 2001,
is a team called "Rude Dudes" who have run the course in 16.51 seconds,
the course length is 102 feet.

Flyball is a sport in which any dog can participate - regardless of breed, shape or size.

It encompasses all things that dogs like to do - chasing, jumping, catching, retrieving, competing and striving to please their owners.

It is pure fun for everyone, the dogs, the handlers and the spectators who are encouraged to applaud, laugh and cheer on their favourite team.

You need to have control of your dog,

i.e. he comes when called to participate.

But if your dog is keen on retrieving or ball chasing then you are halfway there.