Like all herding dogs, Dutch LOVES playing “Pushball.” He’s very good at controlling the ball, bringing it to us, and keeping it within the boundaries to avoid the woods, gardens, etc. If you allow your dog to play Pushball, you must first purchase a good wire-cage muzzle with a soft felt and leather lining to protect the dog’s teeth and muzzle. As soon as Dutch sees the muzzle, he starts squealing and trying to shove his snout in it because he knows we’re going out to play pushball. The pushball is a 14″ diameter ball made by Jolly Ball. He could play until he drops from exhaustion, so we never allow him to play longer than 30 minutes. Afterward, he is totally worn out and happy.
Click “PushBall” link below to watch:
That is pretty cool….he is getting a lot of good exercise. With the muzzle he is not hurting his teeth trying to grab the ball. Good thinking!
These are the hard balls right?
I bought some them with the holes so they can pick them up…wasn’t a good idea the material is very hard many of dogs damaged their teeth on them. Now I just let them have the rubber jolly balls and not the hard plastic ones.
Awwww, thanks Julie! You may be the only one who has seen the joy of Dutch running around controlling the movement of this enormous (rather heavy!) push-n-play Jolly ball. It’s marketed for dogs, but it’s very heavy, and easily files their canines down as they play in a very short time. All the hard herding balls can do this; I’ve seen threads on GermanShepherds.com describing horrible scenarios where owners have spent thousands on dental work. Before we bought the protective muzzle, Dutch sustained damage to his teeth and gums while playing with even the smaller push balls. Dutch’s canines were ground down approximately 1/8 inch. The point is gone; they have a flat plateau-like top. Live and learn.