disc golf AND frisbee dog???

[brian j]

anyone having any luck training their dog to catch frisbees but to leave disc golf discs alone? i have a cattle dog/border collie mix that i've taken disc golfing with me since he was 3 months old. he knows not to chase the discs and to not pick up discs he finds on the ground. i have also trained him fetch and he has great eye/mouth coordination, so i think he'd make a great frisbee dog but i'm afraid of it'll ruin him for disc golf.

anyone been through this and have any advice and/or training secrets? he is a smart dog.

 

[jmw1121d1]

Played Frisbee with my dog his whole life (10 now) and he has never grasped the concept of golf discs being different than his frisbees.

Really wish he would though, as I have to leash him the whole time at the disc golf course. He bends golf discs into Tacos in one bite if he gets one. He destroyed my flip XL in one fetch.

He is a lab though and fetches anything thrown even small trees or bushes. It is funny but I am not kidding.

May be a breed thing? Instinct? He has been obsessed with fetching anything that flys, rolls, runs, since he was just a couple months old. That is not so common in Herding dogs though so you may be able to make it work for you.

 

[DavidSauls]

I played with someone whose dog would find discs in the underbrush, under leaves, wherever, without fetching them. If you're training a dog for disc golf, this is the skill you really want.

 

[joshmo65]

Martin Dewgarita has his dog trained. That was the most awesome dog ever at the course.

 

[KDFrosty]

Yes. My dog has had the same white Ultimate frisbee since she was a pup. She'll chase it for days. She knows to leave my blue putters (Judges and Anodes) alone.
At first she would try to grab my putters off the ground and I would just give a stern "NO!" and then give her the Ultimate lid. After a couple sessions of that she leaves my putters alone. The only problem is now that when I have putting practice I am also throwing the dog's frisbee to her every once in a while too. Not a big deal.

 

[brian j]

I played with someone whose dog would find discs in the underbrush, under leaves, wherever, without fetching them. If you're training a dog for disc golf, this is the skill you really want.

he knows "touch" and i was teaching him to touch my discs with his nose when we came up to them but i stopped because he was getting a little too rambunctious and disturbing the lie. might be time to start again now that he is 8 months old and better trained.

 

[bnbanbury]

I've seen dogs trained to fetch only after a command like "go get it". The dog i'm thinking of reformed this service on a disc floating in a lake as well, but only after he was told

 

[DavidSauls]

Martin Dewgarita has his dog trained. That was the most awesome dog ever at the course.

That's the one I was thinking of. Forrest?

 

[apparition]

I expect that would take a lot of training, but it's totally possible.

Start as basic and easy as possible and advance slowly to give enough time and repetition for each small step to become easy for the dog. Use some kind of treat as a reward (food, usually). Use "no" as negative reinforcement without stressing the dog out and continue to positively reinforce checking out the frisbee. A good product to reinforce that the golf disc doesn't go in the dog's mouth is Bitter Apple spray. Maybe even put something tasty on the frisbee. At some point work on verbal commands. I wouldn't expect a dog to be able to be trained to know the difference between a thrown golf disc and a thrown frisbee without some kind of command. Then you can use those commands to help the dog know when you throw a disc vs when you throw a frisbee. Also, using sit-stay or down-stay while you throw golf discs really helps. Use a playful command for when you want him to fetch/catch frisbees so he knows the difference between situations.

Small, gradual steps will be important throughout the process.

You really gonna embark on this type of training? Let us know how it goes

 

[dashiellx]

It is doable. There is a boarder collie I see at my home course all the time. During his person's round, he just walks along, sniffs bushes and tress, etc... At the practice area, his person throws a disc that he runs out and snatches out of the air.

 

[joshmo65]

That's the one I was thinking of. Forrest?

Yup. I completely forgot the dog's name. He would often run out to point to the disc out and wouldn't grab it until told he could.

 

[tomte]

Might not be possible with all dogs - but it will cost you a lot of training and self disciplin...

 

[stun]

Maybe I just got lucky, but my dog knows the difference between her orange SuperHero and my orange Aviars... But she got some discipline every time she touched my putters, and encouragement every time she got the frisbee. Best of luck!

 

[BangChaians]

I have a Border Collie that has been a frisbee dog from day one. When I satrted taking her to the course it was challenging for a while, but now she is great. The dog will learn to only go after her frisbee or to only get them when commanded. It can be frustrating during the learning process, but they learn faster than you think!

 

[NOStheBOSS]

I dont own a dog, but wouldnt you need it to recognize one single disc as a catch disc, and then train it to leave all others alone? For example, have a pink catch disc to play with and then not carry any pink discs in your bag? Of course this wouldn't work if you played at a course where other people are throwing pink discs...

 

[BangChaians]

Initially yes, train the dog to only get the one frisbee. But after a while the dog will learn to obey your command and know when to get it or leave it alone.. These dogs are smarter than you think, it just takes patience and diligence.

 

[jasonrigler]

Disc Dog frisbee dog crazy dog

A border collie is probably the best prospect. Their temperament is best suited for leaving certain types of discs alone. In general they have less drive than working aussies or cattle dogs.

The real challenge is not the disc, it is the throwing motion. This movement has become a cue for the dogs that we are about to throw something for them to chase.

A high drive dog will have a hard time not chasing. A border collie has a much better off switch.

It can be trained for sure. It will take time and in small steps as was stated earlier. And some dogs will be better suited than others. In general, I think training the two together will weaken the other. We are high level disc doggers and avid disc golfers and retired ultimate players.

Teaching your dog to fetch disc golf discs could lead to chewing on disc golf discs.

Also, I think a dog on a disc course is a lot of risk. Errant discs, unruly dogs...etc.

 

[JeremyKShort]

I played with someone whose dog would find discs in the underbrush, under leaves, wherever, without fetching them. If you're training a dog for disc golf, this is the skill you really want.

I tried that with mie. He had a very low success rate at actually tracking a disc. He'd end up wandering around nowhere near the disc.

 

[KCDISCDOG]

A border collie is probably the best prospect. Their temperament is best suited for leaving certain types of discs alone. In general they have less drive than working aussies or cattle dogs.

The real challenge is not the disc, it is the throwing motion. This movement has become a cue for the dogs that we are about to throw something for them to chase.

A high drive dog will have a hard time not chasing. A border collie has a much better off switch.

It can be trained for sure. It will take time and in small steps as was stated earlier. And some dogs will be better suited than others. In general, I think training the two together will weaken the other. We are high level disc doggers and avid disc golfers and retired ultimate players.

Teaching your dog to fetch disc golf discs could lead to chewing on disc golf discs.

Also, I think a dog on a disc course is a lot of risk. Errant discs, unruly dogs...etc.

Yep, Border Collies are smarter, and the best disc dogs of all breeds:hfive: My dogs stay off the disc golf course

 

[swed]

Maybe two dogs? Your asking a lot out of a dog. I started mine disc golfing the day I got her. 9 years later she has played hundreds of rounds and doesn't take interest in discs. She is a border collie mix.