23/04/2022
Ball chasing - it is unnatural, hard on bodies, hard on teeth, and highly over arousing for the brain. Interesting
Throwing a ball for your dog. Should we do it?
How many of the dogs in our lives were bred to chase, catch and retrieve moving prey repeatedly? I can think of almost none. Terriers were bred to chase and catch multiple prey animals in a close area over a relatively short period of time. Sighthounds like whippets were bred to chase single prey animals over medium distances for a few minutes before rest.
The breeds which will chase and retrieve a ball repeatedly, such as collies, GSDs, spaniels and retrievers, were not bred to chase and catch moving animals. The gundogs were bred to flush and then retrieve a stationary, not moving item. The human shot the bird, the dog marked where the bird fell, then went out to search and retrieve it. The herding breeds were bred to keep the sheep/cattle in a small area and their chase behaviours are often to go and get a stray and bring it back into the fold.
Why do so many of us enjoy throwing a ball over and over again for our dogs? Firstly, we like to see out dogs running, in full flight. We like to see how far we can throw the ball and have the dog bring it back. We also like to think this is what we need to do to “tire our dogs out”. Yes, they may be tired but we are also subjecting them to forced exercise (many will chase and retrieve to exhaustion, my dog included, I don’t do it), adrenalising them, subjecting them to harsh physically demanding work without a proper warm up or cool down, addicting them to the chase endorphins, and making it hard from them to relax. We are also very likely to be needlessly exposing them to both chronic and acute injury.
I worked with a gundog breed this week. We taught him to retrieve a stationary ball. By the end of the session, he was running out to it with the same exuberance as if he was chasing. Then he rested while we set the ball up again and we only did three or four reps before we did something else. With my dog, I throw the toy up in front of him and he jumps up and catches it. He really enjoys having the opportunity to do this. And we don’t do too many of them.
Your task, should you choose to accept it. Think of games you can play with your dog which don’t involve chasing a moving ball and catching it. Play football with your dog as the goalie and try to “score” against them. Teach them to wait while you put the ball down, flick it with your foot and let them pounce on it. Teach them to search for it after you’ve hidden it. All of these games exercise both your dog’s mind and body. And their minds and bodies will be healthier as a result.
Let me know what non-chasing-the-ball games you play with your dog in the comments.
