Dog Sports
Sports Aren’t Just For People
There is a wide variety of dog sports that you and your dog can participate in for fun or even to earn titles and ribbons. These sports can be low or high physical activity, mentally stimulating enrichment, provide good outlets for instinctive and breed specific behaviors, and be a fun and a great way to bond with your dog. These activities can involve your dog swimming, sniffing out scents, running as fast as they can, tricks, and more!
Before You Begin
Here is a dog participating in Dock Diving.
While sports can be a lot of fun, you need to make sure your dog is fit to do the sports that require high physical activity to reduce the risk of injuries. This involves looking into Dog Fitness trainers, and you should also consult your vet, or a veterinary rehab specialist, to check if your dog is in good enough health to participate in such sports. Also take into consideration that puppies should not be doing high impact sports. This does not mean they can’t start learning, but with sports like agility you need to keep in mind if your dog’s growth plates have finished closing or not when it comes to things like jumps. High impact sports and those that have higher risk for injury and are more physically challenging for your dog. Low impact sports are less physically challenging and lower risk of injury. You’ll also want to keep your dog in mind when choosing a sport as not all dogs enjoy all sports. There are some breeds that sports were built around for, but that doesn’t mean your dog will enjoy it.
This dog is jumping through a hoop during an agility run.
So Many Dog Sports!
Because there are so many sports, I’m only going to give a brief summary of each to see if anything might interest you to try and research further into!
Nose work- Your dog sniffs out different scents in different environments and challenges. Great for any dog that loves to sniff! This is a low impact sport.
Agility- Your dog runs through an obstacle course of jumps, tunnels, see-saws, weaving through poles, and more that you guide them through. Popular for herding breeds, but all sorts of breeds have been known to participate. This is a high impact sport.
Treibball- Your dog pushes oversized balls into a goal net within a certain time frame. Popular for any dog with a herding drive. This is low impact.
Dock diving- You and your dog stand on a dock connected to a pool. You throw a toy into the pool and see how far your dog can jump. This is high impact.
HydroDash- Another form of dock diving, but the dog is tested on how fast they can swim. This is high impact.
Barn hunt- Dogs search bales of hay for rodents protected in metal tubes. Made for breeds that were made for ridding rodents from barns, but great for any dog that likes to use their nose to find something. This is low impact. Please note that the rats involved in this sport are highly taken care of, and are pets that are socialized to dogs and positively taught to enter and exit the tubes of their own free will. Dogs are not allowed contact with the rats or allowed to ruff up the tubes.
Obedience- Your dog accurately and precisely follows cues to follow a specific routine. This is great for any dog and is low impact.
Rally- You and your dog navigate a course with several signs. Each sign is instructions on what behavior your dog must perform when you get to that sign. This is great for any dog and is low impact.
Tracking- Your dog recognizes and then follows a scent on the ground. This is a competition form of search and rescue work! This is great for any sniffy dog and low impact.
FastCAT/CAT- Your dog runs after a lure as fast as they can, while you encourage them! Great for any dog that loves to run.
Hoopers- You and your dog run a course of hoops, tunnels, and barrels. This is great for any dog. This is a lower impact version of agility as there is no jumping involved.
Disc Dog- There are several different games involving your dog chasing after a frisbee. This is great for any dog, but high impact.
Freestyle- You and your dog dance together! Teach your dog moves to dance with you to music. Great for any dog, and low impact.
Flyball- Your dog runs to a box that is holding a ball while going over jumps, grabs the ball, and then runs back. This is a team sport and one dog goes after another. This is great for any dog, but high impact.
Herding- Your dog herds duck, cattle, or sheep. Only specific breeds may compete for titles through the American Kennel Club (AKC).
Earth Dog- Dogs seek out and locate rodents underground. Made for small terriers and Dachshunds. This is low impact.
Hunting- There are a few hunting and field sports made for specific breeds like pointers, retrievers, Coonhounds, and spaniels.
Trick Dog- Teach your dog a list of tricks provided by the AKC. Great for any dog, and low impact
Cani-cross/Bikejoring/skijoring- Your dog is attached to you and helps pull you while running, biking, or cross-country skiing, respectively. Great for those that love to run! This can be high impact depending on the landscape and how far and fast you go.
Weight pull- Your dog puts on a special harness and pulls a loaded cart. This is great for any dog that likes to pull or is made for it. This is high impact.
Dog Parkour- Combines elements of human parkour and dog agility to create an accessible activity for dogs and humans alike. Dogs get introduced to the world of jumping, climbing, balancing over, crawling under, and going around different obstacles in their everyday world. This is low impact.
Resources
You can read up on a lot of these sports through the AKC’s website and learn how to sign up to compete if you’d like. Not all of these sports are done through the AKC though. Some trainers will have lessons/classes to teach you how to do a dog sport either for fun or competition.
https://www.nacsw.net/ - National Association of Canine Scent Work