Flyball is an excellent pursuit for the patrol dog. In flyball, you have two teams of four dogs that race down a line of four jumps to a spring-loaded box that will fling out a ball when the dog hits it, at which point the dog brings the ball back over the jumps to their handler. The first team that has all four dogs correctly complete the course wins. The course is 51 feet from start line to box, and the jumps are set between 7 and 14 inches high depending on the height of the smallest dog on the team. The world record for the NAFA sanctioning body is currently 15.158 seconds. Just think about that. Dogs running 51 feet, stopping to grab a ball, then running back 51 feet to their handler, and all four of them do it in series in 15.158 seconds! That takes speed, agility, focus, and reliability. All good traits for a member of the Squirrel Patrol.

Karma started her first flyball class in October of 2009, and has been a member of the Portland Tailblazers flyball team since the summer of 2010. Currently she has a Flyball Dog Champion - Silver title. Running the course in around 4.3 seconds, she's got a good solid turn of speed, though she's certainly not going to set any records.

Quasar is learning the basics of flyball, but puppy bones shouldn't be going over big jumps or smashing into boxes, so he's going to be stuck on fundamentals for some months yet. But once he's ready, NAFA region 7 better look out!

Lure Coursing is another good activity for the Squirrel Patrol officer. This one is pretty obvious. A course is set up with either 300 or 600 yards of cable strung around pulleys and pulled by a powerful motor, with a plastic bag tied to the cable as a lure. Dogs chase the bag around the course. Some dogs don't seem to understand the concept, but any dog that wants to be a member of the Squirrel Patrol will surely feel the desire to chase and kill that bag deep in the very fiber of their being. Karma certainly does, the mere sight of a lure coursing field turns her into a barkscreaming frothing furball of bag chasing fury.

 

Canine Nosework is the last activity we'll discuss tonight.  A cotton swab scented with birch, anise, or clove seed oil is hidden somewhere, and the dog has to find it, and let the human handler know where it is, within the time limit.  The utility of this for the Squirrel Patrol dog is obvious, the well practiced nose will detect and localize a squirrel much faster, and there are circumstances where it might be useful to let your owner know where a squirrel or other rodent is.  Karma has passed an Odor Recognition Test for Birch, and is scheduled to test against Anise next weekend.  Quasar will be taking his first classes later this month, but he's already shown talent in some introductory practice sessions around the house.

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