Dock Diving

[Lizmo]

Dock Diving looks like alot of fun. And Blaze loves to jump in the water after a toy.

 

I'm just casually looking into it right now. There is a competition coming up soon about 45 minutes away so I think I might go check it out. Does anyone have any information about it, any one compete? Do you have to do alot of training before competing? How do you get started? And any other general information you have about it would be awesome.

[Jumpin Boots]

Hi

We went to a local practice about a month ago, it was a blast. If you look under the agility/sport section I shared our experience there. There were a few people that responded that compete. I would find a local club in your area and see if you can attend one of their practices, our local club, and by local I mean over an hour away lets you attend 3 pratices for free before you have to join and have experienced members there helping the entire time. Boots was jumping off the dock within the first 30 mins of being there and improved his distance every time.

Julie

[Sassy Girl]

Finally a topic up my alley - I know nothing about HERDING....I actively compete with my dogs in dock diving and also train others to dock dive in my area. Acutally had to private sessions this evening and one was with a 7 month old BC pup.

 

Dock Diving is a sport that is newbie friendly. Minimal training is needed. If your dog is a confident swimmer and has a lot of toy drive, you should do well. To get started, all you need to do is attend an event in your area, especially if your dog is already jumping off docks, rocks, boats etc.

 

When you go to an event, you can sign up for practice or for competition. Signing up for practice gives you time to acclimate your dog to the dock and water prior to committing to competition. Many dogs compete the same day that they first come to an event. There are usually "wranglers" who work at the pool to help if people need help. You can just let them know that you are new and this is your dog's first time. They should be very helpful. Dock divers love helping get others started.

 

Here are a few of my own quick tips in getting your dog started...First, I would suggest taking your dog up to the exit ramp. I usually will do two rounds here. The first is to make sure the dog will enter the water and that he knows how to exit the water. I do a warm up throw here as well, tossing the toy out about 15 feet towards the middle of pool. If the dog hesitates to jump from the ramp into the water and I have to coax him through it, I will stay here until they are not hesitating anymore. If they jump after the toy right away my next turn in line will be up on the dock. When you go up to the dock, keep your dog within the first 10 feet of dock and only throw your toy out at about the 7 foot mark. If they are not hesitating when launching off the end then increase to 10 feet and then 15 feet. If dog hesitates go back to where they were not hesitating. Once they are launching w/out hesitation, then it's time to add more dock to the equation.

 

A few things to take into consideration at your first event, 1.)the competition dock sits 2 feet above the water's surface. so the main concern for an avid swimmer would be the 2 foot drop from the dock to the water. Some dogs have no issues while others take a little time to warm up to it. If your dog jumps off of cliffs or docks already, this shouldn't be much of an issue. However, if they freeze up, please never push them in, just give them as much coaxing as you can and if need be continue to work on the ramp a few more rounds. 2.) Pool events seem to be harder on newbies due to the clear water and blue bottom. There are many dogs out there that have never seen a blue bottom pool, for a dog it can be a bit intimidating. Best way to deal with this would be to splash the water in front of the where the dog is jumping so they understand it's just water.

 

There are several dock diving organizations who sanction events, just like in agility. Splash Dogs, Ultimate Air Dogs and DockDogs are the main players. Super Retriever Series and the Incredible Dog Challenge are at a higher level of competition, Pro levels particularly. Check out their websites for more info...

 

I have a ton of tips in getting better performance out of your dock diving dog, too much to get into on here. If you are interested or want to chat just shoot me an PM.

 

I had to add these... here are some pics of my boy Gunner... Splash Dogs 2008 Top Border Collie - Gunner...(my rescue BC)

[Lizmo]

Thanks for the information!

 

I went to my first Ultimate Air Dogs event yesterday and I'm hooked! Lol. I think Blaze would love it, so we're going to use a friend's dock later this week and see what happens. He knows how to swim, he's just never jumped off something into the water before.

 

I do have a couple questions. I'd be training on my own. Is there anything to teach him besides jumping off the dock?

 

Oh I have pictures from the Splash Dogs.

 

This was PWD. It wasn't his dog, he was helping it out because it was, to say the least, having a hard time swimming and getting out.

 

 

This Aussie was his dog.

 

 

 

This little dog. Was. Wow. Full of spunk to say the least! She was awesome and really nice. But a hand full. Okay, so first her owners start by letting her walk up the ramp to check out the water and all that jazz. Then her owners take her up to the dock, and she just kind of slides/jumps in. Then she swims to the ramp. Well next time. . .the dog is on the dock, jumps off, swims to the ramp, jumps OUT of the pool off the ramp (probably 4.5ft) slides to a stop, RUNS around the pool and somehow manages to get back IN the pool from the other side. ROFL! It was hilarious!!

 

 

 

 

This lab was AWESOME! He jumps by FAR the furthest! He was so happy, he'd run up, over and down the ramp. Run up to the deck where his owner was, and jump around him wagging his tail. Ready to go!

 

 

This is the same Lab, but different type of Splash Dogs. I think it was called "Catch It" where the dog has to jump up and grab the toy before hitting the water.

 

 

Running up the ramp to go back to the deck with his owner. Same Lab

 

 

He caught it! Quite a few times, actually!

 

 

These were just practice runs or alot of Frisbee and Flyball people letting their dogs cool off.