frisbee!!! - Page 1

            Ok, found out yesterday that boss LOVES a fisbee....first time i threw it he JUMPED in the air trying to catch it, he missed but atleats he tried--most dogs ive had would never jump, theyd always wait for it to land then try to get it.....

I know that right now i've gotta be careful to not let him jump to much, bad for hips right? so how do i train him now, a safe way, to jump for the frisbee? where he can actually get better at catching it in the air? if i hold the frisbee out he jumps in the air and takes it from my hand, is this OK  to do? will this teach him to catch it in the air by jumping?

oh yeah, he is about 6mnths old now..

Well, I don't know much about teaching dogs how to play frisbee. But I do know that their bones are still developing until about one year of age. So if you do start training him to play frisbee I'd take it very slow and don't over work him. I'd just practise with low throws that he doesn't need to jump for at first.

i'd throw it low and slow. at least your dog will play with one. my gsd lets it hit him in the head then he chews it up. i guess thats fun for him. our mali will play tho, but she's our athlete - likes the frisbee or ball hi and fast.

thanks guys, sounds like good advice to me....lol...but i goatta get a new frisbee already, he broke the only one i had in half yesterday..(him or the kids)....he still chased and carried around the two halfs.......plus i gotta re-learn how to throw better! he could prob catch if threw it right...

Honestly, I don't play with Blitz and a frisbee anymore. He jumps too high and lands too hard.; he's like the Tasmanian Devil no matter what I throw. I've heard that more than a few of the competition frisbee dogs have  suffered serious injuries. I'd rather Blitz plays chase with a tennis ball. If you do as Angusmom says, low and slow, it should be OK I guess depending on your dog. Blitz still acts like a nutcase trying to run it down.

thanks blitz.....thats why im on the fence about it, he loves it but i don't want him to get hurt either. guess i will just take it low, slow and easy...lol...if thats possiable with a GSD....

when he gets older, and if hips are ok, will it be fairly safe to let them jump? if so what age will that be--when you don't have to be sooooo cautious about their hips?

Blitzen,Dont use a tennis ball.There were tests done in Germany that prove they have some chemical in the glue part that will harm your dogs teeth enamel etc.

There is a soft frisbee made called a Wubba that is easy on their teeth. I used to play with my other GSD pup and he loved it, obessed even perhaps. Do try to keep the level low, as —if your dog has the heart mine did, he would go for the mighty leap. That kind of shock is bad for young growing bones and plates.

I have not played with my new young boy, he'll be a year any day now, and we will wait a bit longer to introduce him to one of my favorite games!

No kidding, I didn't know that about tennis balls. Is there any information on that on the net? Thanks!

Yup Tennis balls are horrible and too easy to swallow or get lodged in the throat. I use the Gappay balls on a rope. They come in different sizes so pups can graduate into bigger sizes and different breeds can all be safe. Plus they are so much cleaner and easier to wipe the slobber/foam off of.