All dog breeds were developed for a purpose, be it pulling sledges or retrieving game from water or burrows, herding sheep, hunting game, or pulling sledges - and so prefer to have a structured life.
Every dog breed will enjoy spending time with its owner training and preparing for competitions where they will be able to demonstrate excellence in this or that activity.
Some of the common fun dog sports are as follows:
Obedience Training, which is the basis for the rest of practice and does not mean learning some spectacular tricks that will amaze judges and viewers at a show, but includes mastering everyday commands and developing good manners in your dog. It helps reach understanding between the dog and its owner, let them learn the language of each other and use it to establish effective communication. Wouldn't life be easier if your pet could sit, lie down or come up to you on your first command, behave well with other pets, your guests and strangers, follow you unleashed during walks and know for sure who the master is. Different schools for various dog breeds, adult dogs and even puppy kindergartens provide classes with professional training and ensure socialization, but it is also necessary to work daily on your own.
Dog Agility is another sport where dogs are directed around a course of various obstacles (including A-Frames, Pipe Tunnels, Dog Walks, Pause Tables and different Types of Jumps) trying to complete it most precisely and within a set period of time. During this type of competition dogs are held off-leash and owners are to control them using only voice and body language. Obstacles are designed with safety precautions to avoid injury, and come in unique combinations from trial to trial. The complexity of courses gradually increases from class to class when cardiovascular and muscular systems as well as skeletal structure of dogs are better prepared. Agility trials are open both to pure and Mixed Dog Breeds. Field Trials, held regularly for such dog breeds as Basset Hounds, Beagles, Dachshunds (Hound Dog Breeds), Retrievers and Spaniels (Sporting Dog Breeds), let demonstrate the very abilities dog breed was developed to perform in the field under a certain set of conditions. Each type of event here differs in accordance with the dog breed's primary function. So, various Dog Breeds are judged for trailing and pursuing game, pointing at it staunchly or retrieving it on both land and water.
Yet another type of competition is a dog show, kind of a beauty contest among dog breeds. If you believe that your pet is an excellent species and conforms to the Standard of Perfection for his dog breed, be ready for hours of grooming, training and show ring handling. Remember that spayed or neutered dogs cannot take part in this kind of competition.
Other fun activities that both you and your pet will enjoy include flying ball or disk (Frisbee), taking part in drafting and herding competitions, etc. |