I think Karen posted that she put her ball chucker in the bin, is there something wrong with using them? I don't have one but was thinking of buyong one :-\ Thank you x
Re: Ball Chucker I've got a tennis ball launcher attachment for the dummy launcher. It's like a small cannon! Lady goes bouncing down the field way ahead of the game to try and catch the ball on the fly. ;D
Re: Ball Chucker Hmmm....well. It must depend on how you use them, of course. But having discussed this (type of thing) with a few vets recently...repeatedly, jumping, twisting, over excited bouncing tennis ball/frisbee type exercise isn't the best. It is a very common cause of injury that the vets (I spoke to) see. That said though, loads of dogs seem to do it, enjoy it, and come to no harm whatsoever. So am giving this some thought particularly given Charlie's up coming recovery, plus his temperament, ball obsession, and general inclination to going nuts. I don't think uncontrolled ball games, including tennis ball chuckers, are things we'll go in for in the future.
Re: Ball Chucker I think it partly depends how you use it. If you are on an open area, such as a large field or a beach, and you use it to do four or five throws … well, I don't see what is wrong with that. Particularly a dog like Helen's Charlie might really benefit, since if he were focused on the ball he could have a good long run and retrieve. Our problem is that Poppy is such a mad retrievaholic, and OH was using it far too much with her. It made her totally hyped up, and he was using it in the woods, so she was charging and leaping madly like a springbok over and through branches and logs - often after having already done a session of retrieving with the dummy. I just think it was too much uncontrolled and over-excited exercise, which can all too easily lead to injury. He and she loved it, and both think I am a frightful sourpuss and spoilsport. But her long-term health is more important to me than their short-term fun..
Re: Ball Chucker I should qualify my statement a bit I think I use ours for several reasons...... I can't throw!! Seriously Riley would get reeeeaaally bored if he only got to retrieve stuff I threw and my directional control is non-existent! I don't often have a dummy or ball throwing assistant I use it to put three or more balls out to practice split retrieves and getting Riley to follow a line I use it to throw a ball as a reward for stopping to the whistle(I use other rewards/exercises for a whistle stop too but that's a whole other challenge ) As a reward for a stop I'm starting to ask Riley to be steady to the thrown ball so he's not actually chasing it anymore and then I use our directional work for a retrieve. Initially though it was a ball to be chased as a reward. I rarely throw over his head, mostly because he wouldn't be steady but also because of the twisting. I don't think he approaches the tennis ball any faster than he approaches a dummy. He's never jumping to take the ball out of the air. Hope that clarifies our use of the dreaded ball chucker ;D it's definitely staying in my kit bag
Re: Ball Chucker I've always used ball chucker for all the dogs except Scott and scout. The only reason I don't use it with them is I train and exercise them in the garden not on the field (too likely to abscond on the field yet :) and there are far too many obstacles/ trees. In 8 years of using one with 4 dogs we've had no injuries and like Barbara if I had to throw they wouldn't get to run very far ;D. I think moderation and being sensible how and where you throw is important but they certainly have lots of fun. ;D
Re: Ball Chucker Thanks everyone for sharing your thoughts, I think Charlie would benefit from a few throws just for fun Might get one. xx
Re: Ball Chucker I use mine on a morning for about 5 throws, just to get his initial energy out the way before training begins. Then, when training is good he gets a few more throws as a reward. I use it mainly because every time I bend down to pick up the ball, I have to hoist my jeans back up ;D I don't use it for our main walk though, because he was constantly focused on it and I felt he was missing out on sniffy things and exploring.
Re: Ball Chucker The DivaDog - - adores her 'flinger' and it means that I can thoroughly exercise her as I won't need to walk far. I do understand the risk of injury but will admit it hadn't occurred to me until reading this.
Re: Ball Chucker Thanks for asking this, Helen, I was wondering too. I was thinking of getting one, but was wondering what the issue was too. I still think I might be inclined to get one, but first I have to get Simba interested in the whole fetch game in general. :
Re: Ball Chucker I don't think there can be anything wrong with the ball chuckers themselves. Charlie sounds a bit like poppy in his reaction to bouncing and flying balls though - hyper, over excited, will jump anything in his path, gets more and more wound up. It all becomes very out of control.
Re: Ball Chucker I use one for the same reason as Barbara , I cant chuck either : I usually use it on a good flat sandy beach, both of the dogs adore it but thankfully neither of them twist or leap, just run , I usually give them about ten/fifteen mins, then it goes away and they warm down in a more genteel manner
Re: Ball Chucker Harley loves running after the ball she doesn't jump at all, just loves to run at full speed I can't throw a ball because of my neck/shoulder injuries so having this is a godsend for me. I only yes it in open spaces and never in woods etc
Re: Ball Chucker I can't throw for toffee so any kind of retrieving needs some assistance in the chucking department - we are usually on the beach for this as not much interest elsewhere. I usually carry it for an hour for 5-10 mins of chucking
Re: Ball Chucker Hmmm interesting. I dont use a ball chucker, i drop kick balls, as in rugby drop kicking, and they go beautifully high and far but was thinking of buying a ball chucker recently as brods has become ball obsessed, cuilli has always loved a ball but now with both of them clamouring for ball kicks im in severe danger of developing my own repetetive strain injury ;D. That aside Ive built brods up from one or two long ball boots to the stage where he now spends about twenty minutes every walk flat out ball sprinting with cuilli. It is on the flat though, if we are up in the hills on uneven surfaces they only get a few, but even so i was looking at them both the other day and wincing a bit, cuilli goes like an absolute rocket and loves to leap in the air to catch too, while brods goes like an absolute rocket and does the handbreak turn thing...both potential injury things...they absolutely adore it and for brodick its been a huge breakthrough as he couldn't give a hoot about the squirrels in the park now its ball ball ball instead which im actively encouraging...but their long term joint health is more important so am going to have to stop doing it every day and limit throws i think....
Re: Ball Chucker [quote author=debsie link=topic=4454.msg54398#msg54398 date=1392449107] cuilli goes like an absolute rocket and loves to leap in the air to catch too, while brods goes like an absolute rocket and does the handbreak turn thing...both potential injury things...they absolutely adore it and for brodick its been a huge breakthrough as he couldn't give a hoot about the squirrels in the park now [/quote] It is really difficult - a lot of these actions a high energy dog would do themselves without any prompting from a ball (Brods could be chasing the squirrel and slamming on the brakes when it gets to a tree for example). I guess in a ball game, the actions are repeated and repeated though. OH and I were planning Charlie's recovery last night (we do it in order to talk about the time Charlie is back on the beach - not because we're planning freaks, although we are a bit). We decided that, at first and even maybe in the long term, Charlie is always going to be off lead for a specific reason. A retrieve, or a recall exercise, and so on. Luckily, if Charlie remembers, he will recall between us across at least 500m, so we will be able to exercise him effectively. But if I'm on my own, it will be a lot harder.
Re: Ball Chucker Planning is good, especially for fun stuff like beaches I honestly think you'll find as time passes and training continues that there will be places where you can trust him to just mooch along. We had a stage where I wondered if Riley would always be onlead for control reasons but we got through it and when it's just us he really does just bimble along. I had to take a call the other day, previously he's have got into mischief, now he waits for me!!! If you'd asked me if he's do that a year ago I may have died laughing ;D
Re: Ball Chucker [quote author=bbrown link=topic=4454.msg54405#msg54405 date=1392452471] I honestly think you'll find as time passes and training continues that there will be places where you can trust him to just mooch along. We had a stage where I wondered if Riley would always be onlead for control reasons but we got through it and when it's just us he really does just bimble along. [/quote] I hope so. I also think a big factor is the places we tend to be - which are very busy, with a lot of props for mischief. I noted though that Charlie was very happy to trot along with Riley, acting like a sane dog...so we might have to visit for R&R!
