Ball size - Page 1

Hi! I need a ball on a rope to use as a reward for my girl. She is ball crazy. At the moment I'm using a Kong extreme 7cm ball for playing and as a reward. But I think I need something with a rope to use as a reward. Not long ago we attended an obedience demonstration show and they gave us a rubber ball on rope which my boy(working line GSD) broke in two pieces for no time...and he is not even ball crazy, he prefers a tug for a reward. I don't know what was the diameter of the ball but I think it was smaller than 7cm.
Here is my girl with a 7cm ball in her mouth(I didn't find a nice pic with the Kong, but this is the same size): 

From the online shops in my country I couldn't find a 7cm high quality ball on a rope.There are 6cm and 6.5cm Klin Kassel solid rubber balls with ropes. Here is the 65mm

and this is a 60mm . They don't have a 65mm ball with 'spikes' . So what's the difference between a ball with 'spikes' and one without?

I saw this 60mm Julius K9 ball made of silicon with a specific shape 

What do you think about it? Is it a better reward than normal balls.
I'm concerned about the size of all nice quality balls I find on the market. Do your adult dogs have problem with those 60 or 65mm balls? She is about 30kg.

Another option is to order a 70 or even a 75mm ball from an online shop abroad. So what do you think?

You might need to learn how to insert links.

The most important thing about size is that the dog can't swallow it.

A dog should not be allowed to destroy a ball, that's poor handling not the dog's fault.

I prefer an orbee. I don't like string, I use a tug to tug with.

The ball he destroyed was a some poor quality ball. It broke in two pieces after a 3-minute fetch, not because I left my dog chewing it for no reason. As for my girl, she was a rescued dog and was fully grown when I began teaching her to play fetch with a tennis ball. I think tennis balls are 6cm and she didn't looked as if she would swallow it,she looked ok with it in her mouth...idk, but she looks better with a 7cm ball. She loves working for a ball, she isn't the biggest fan of tugs.

There is a concern which I don't know is true or not that the glue in tennis balls degrades teeth.

Why don't you get a lot of different balls and see what your dog likes the best, they do have preferences.

Yes,tennis balls aren't good for their teeth. They get dirty very easily and they are more difficult to clean than a rubber ball. The dirt on it could damage their teeth if they chew the tennis balls. I've been using it when she was learning the idea of playing fetch and I had to see if she liked it. When she grew to love the game I got her a Kong extreme, a strong solid rubber ball and soft rubber ball. She likes everything that could bounce at least a little :D . She seems to go crazy for any kind of ball, not sure which she likes best...
I was trying to build her drive for the tug but she isn't that fond of the idea. She would chase the tug if it's on a line and you're making it 'alive' but nothing like the desire with which she's trying to catch a ball after she has completed some obedience exercises :D . We have a variety of tugs at home because of my boy but she would always prefer anything that's round and a little bouncey :D.

Good idea that you are going with what motivates your dog.

I use a 12" baseball which my dog unhesitatingly chases, easily retrieves, and carries all around but its too big for her to swallow.

Some good advice above...After you've been training for awhile you usually have a good collection of "toys" for your dog and you find out which ones work the best for you and them... I personally use the balls that are about 2.5 inches...They're basically too big for the dogs to swallow and the dogs can pick them up and carry them...I've seen a few clubs that teach and use the smaller balls but I don't care for that because things can happen and your dog can swallow it fairly easy... I have a whole collection of different Balls...Kongs...Tugs...Piece of Garden Hose...and other toys for my dogs to work for...One thing I always suggest is whenever I get new toys for my dogs I always buy at least 2 of one kind...I like to play "2-Ball" with them... The balls with knobs on them I think are made for the dog to be able to grab it easier and gives the dog a different feeling... I don't know what you have available to you but I believe that there should be a number of companies that offer different toys...You have to try and see what works for you... Here's some that I use:

http://www.elitek9.com/Elite-Working-Balls-No-plastic-handle/productinfo/BA02/

 

~Bob~

One thing I forgot to mention and that is if you have any "Dog Trials" around you there's usually quite a few venders that have a good assortment of "toys" for you to see and actually feel before you buy...
If you train at a club and you see some of the members using toys that you like...just ask them where they got them from...
This way you can at least see in-person the toys before you blindly order something over the internet...
It's also a good idea to have different toys to work your dogs with...Also one thing is the "feel" of the ball or toy...You don't want something too hard for an adult dog...but you'd like a softer one for a young dog...

~Bob~

Just attach a rope to the kong