Playing Frisbee with Your Puppy
Playing Frisbee is a great way to incorporate exercise into your puppy’s life because they’re fun for both you and your puppy and they’re easy. If you have a high-energy dog, games keep your dog interested. (Even if your dog is more mellow, games are still a good bonding time that gets him exercising.)
To play Frisbee with your puppy, he has to know how to catch (the fly) and retrieve (the return), and you have to know how to throw.
To see whether your puppy has any interest, try the following steps:
Treat the disc as a dinner plate.
It looks like one anyway, right? For a week, feed your dog on the disk, picking it up after each meal to prevent chewing. Wash and hide the disc until the next feeding.
Practicing inside initially, teach your dog playfully with the disc, saying “Get it.”
When he grabs the disc, tug lightly to ensure a secure grip before you get him to release it by offering food or tremendous praise.
Play keep away.
Show your dog the disc and run a short distance before allowing him to grasp it. To see whether your dog is sufficiently in love with the new object, turn it upside down and slide it a short distance away from you on the floor. If your dog grasps it, praise him tremendously.
Try the keep-away game with a new disc that hasn’t been used as a dinner plate.
Your dog may react differently. Keep the praise high every time he grasps the disc.
Now roll the disc; don’t throw it just yet.
Your puppy will learn to follow and chase and snatch it while in motion. After he’s addicted to this game, showing him how to catch it on the fly is all that awaits!
Avoid high tosses! Repetitively jumping can strain your puppy’s muscles. Keep your tosses in line with your puppy’s head until he’s matured — about 11 months. If your puppy is prone to joint pain or is dysplastic, choose a different sport altogether.
Are you sure he loves the disc now? Then you’re ready to teach him to catch and fetch. Just be sure to practice in a confined area or put a long line on him during Frisbee time. Follow these steps:
Holding the Frisbee out in front of you, simulate the motion of a flying disc to get your puppy’s attention.
When your dog shows interest, give a very light toss or simply fly the disc into his mouth and release it as he grabs hold.
Progressively increase the length and distance of your tosses.
When he grabs the disc, encourage him to come back.
If he returns with or without the disc, praise him wildly. If he decides not to come back, tuck quickly on the lead and reel him in. Again, you’re concentrating on the return, with or without the disc.
After your dog is cooperating, try the return off-leash.
If you practice outside, stay within an enclosure to ensure your puppy’s safety.
Next, practice with five or six discs, encouraging your dog to return to you before you toss the next one.
Never play this or any other high-energy game directly after your puppy’s meal. Many breeds are highly susceptible to a condition called bloat, in which the stomach flips. This serious condition can be fatal.
Dogs Glossary
A-B-C assessment
Checking a dog’s airway, breathing, and circulation.
Dogs Glossary
animal shelter
1. An animal control agency run by local government to protect people from animals, take in strays, and manage animal issues and problems within the community. 2. A privately run shelter managed by individuals who want to protect, advocate for, and find homes for animals.
Dogs Glossary
BARF diet
A method of feeding dogs as closely as possible what they would eat in the wild: raw flesh and bones, along with vegetable matter from the stomachs of their prey. The acronym stands for either Bones and Raw Food or Biologically Appropriate Raw Food.
Dogs Glossary
blow out
A twice-yearly shedding of a dog’s undercoat.
Dogs Glossary
blue slip
An application to register a purebred puppy.
Dogs Glossary
breeder
A person who raises, sells, and often shows dogs of a specific breed. Reputable breeders screen parent dogs in an effort to produce healthy dogs that conform to breed standards.
Dogs Glossary
castrate
The removal of a male dog’s testicles to render him infertile.
Dogs Glossary
clicker
A small hand-held device that makes a sharp cracking sound when pressed. Paired with a food reward, an effective dog-training tool.
Dogs Glossary
cohesive bandage
A stretchy wrap that clings to itself used to cover and secure gauze bandages without tape.
Dogs Glossary
come into season
The advent of a female dog’s term of fertility.
Dogs Glossary
dead ring
The stationary ring on a training collar that pulls on the collar, not the dog’s neck.
Dogs Glossary
double coat
Two layers of fur — a top coat of stiff guard hairs and an undercoat that serves as insulation.
Dogs Glossary
dropped ears
The term for hanging or drooping dog ears.
Dogs Glossary
Elizabethan collar
A wide, cone-shaped plastic or cardboard collar that prevents a dog from being able to scratch her head. Used to prevent further injury or hasten healing.
Dogs Glossary
euthanize; put to sleep
To kill an animal to relieve suffering.
Dogs Glossary
fall
Hair that extends over a dog’s eyes.
Dogs Glossary
feathering
Long hair that runs from armpit to paw on the backs of a dog’s legs.
Dogs Glossary
free-feeding
Keeping a constant supply of dog food available so that the dog can decide when and how much to eat. It works best in single-dog households where there’s no competition for food.
Dogs Glossary
heartworms
Parasites that live in dogs’ hearts and cause heart failure. They’re transferred through mosquito bites.
Dogs Glossary
heat
The period when a female dog is fertile.
Dogs Glossary
heel
A command and position in which a dog walks at your left side staying with you as you change direction or pace.
Dogs Glossary
hip dysplasia
A painful malformation of a dog’s hip socket. Some breeds are genetically predisposed to the condition.
Dogs Glossary
hot spot
A localized area of skin infection. It’s usually round, red, and warm to the touch.
Dogs Glossary
live ring
The floating ring of a training collar. Attach a leash to this ring for training purposes.
Dogs Glossary
neuter
A general term to describe either spaying or castrating a dog to render it infertile. Neutering and castrating are often used interchangeably.
Dogs Glossary
pantaloons
The tufts of hair on the backs of a long-haired dogs legs that make him look like he’s wearing bloomers.
Dogs Glossary
pedigree
A diagram of a dog’s ancestors for three or more generations that lists the registered names of the dogs and the titles they earned.
Dogs Glossary
pinch collar
A training collar with interlocking prongs that pinch a dog’s neck when tugged on. Some veterinarians recommend them above all other collars for training purposes.
Dogs Glossary
praise
A verbal reward for a dog , such as an enthusiastic “good dog!”
Dogs Glossary
prong collar
A training collar with interlocking prongs that pinch a dog’s neck when tugged on. Some veterinarians recommend them above all other collars for training purposes.
Dogs Glossary
pulse
Normal dog pulse is between 70 and 120 beats per minute. The pulse of a puppy ranges from 120 to 160 beats per minute.
Dogs Glossary
puppy mill
A place that supplies puppies to pet stores, usually without screening for possible genetic defects or properly socializing the puppies.
Dogs Glossary
registration certificate
The paper certifying a dog’s registration with an accredited organization.
Dogs Glossary
registration slip
An application to register a purebred puppy.
Dogs Glossary
release word
A word that lets a dog know that she is free to move.
Dogs Glossary
rescue group
A network of animal lovers who rescue and find new homes for their favorite breeds or animals.
Dogs Glossary
reward
To give a dog a treat for a correct response while he’s still in the desired position.
Dogs Glossary
ruff
The long, thick fur around a dog’s chest, shoulders, and neck.
Dogs Glossary
separation anxiety
A condition in which your dog becomes anxious and stressed when you leave him.
Dogs Glossary
shed
A twice-yearly process of casting off the undercoat in a double-coated dog.
Dogs Glossary
single coat
A single layer of hairs that comprises a dog’s fur.
Dogs Glossary
spay
To remove of both the uterus and the ovaries of a dog to render her infertile.
Dogs Glossary
stripping
Plucking the dead hairs from a dog’s coat.
Dogs Glossary
titer tests
Tests that check a dog’s immunity levels to determine exactly which vaccinations are needed.
Dogs Glossary
top coat
The top layer of a double-coated dog composed of stiff guard hairs that tend to be naturally water-repellant. The top coat protects the dog’s skin and undercoat.
Dogs Glossary
training collar
A collar that enables you to guide your dog and to check her as necessary — a brief, sharp tug tightens the collar around the dog’s neck.
Dogs Glossary
treat cup
A plastic container filled with small treats or dog food. Shake it and give treats from it as a reward as you train a dog.
Dogs Glossary
undercoat
Fleecy or downy fur shorter than the top layer of a double-coated dog. The undercoat serves as insulation.
