One of the best ways to exhaust an active dog is to play fetch. However, most of us can’t throw as far as our dogs would like to run, so we’d like to share our favorite products we you. The best part of fetch is seeing your pooch return home with her tongue hanging on the floor. In fact, our beloved Riley runs her fastest and maintains absolute focus during our fetch sessions at the park.

Dog Chasing Her Favorite Toy

A variety of brand-name ball launchers are on the market. ChuckIt Launcher, the most popular, is great if you don’t want to get your hands slobbery with gooey tennis balls. But we’ve discovered that nothing works quite as well as your basic racket.

Which Racket?

Any will probably work. But we suggest a basic tennis or racquetball racket. If you need extra help with swing speed, the racquetball racket may be your best bet since they’re typically smaller and lighter, not to mention easier to carry around the park.

Which Ball?

Any ball that bounces will work, but which ball works best? We’ve tried just about every rubber toy ball on the market. Our best advice is for you to choose several and see which ones your dog like best. For example, Riley won’t touch a tennis ball, but she absolutely adores those squishy blue racquetballs. The problem is, Riley chews the balls so hard, they break, so we found a more durable rubber ball at Petco that she absolutely adores. They only cost a couple of bucks, and Riley cannot destroy them. Bottom line: find a toy that your pup won’t destroy during playtime.

PETCO's Riley-Proof Rubber Balls

Racket + Ball + Park = One Tired Dog

Begin by finding a large, open area. Then get your dog’s attention, and hit the ball with the racket very softly and not too far away. We’ve found that it helps when the ball bounces high in the air…it’s extra enticing for Riley. When your dog picks up the ball and carries it in her mouth, you should immediately walk in the opposite direction. Dogs love to play chase, so your pup will begin to follow you, thus returning the ball!

When you do get the ball back, hit it right away; don’t praise or rub your dog. At this point, they just want the ball back…so give it to her already! As your dog continues to bring the ball back to you, slowly increase the distance of your hits. Your dog will soon begin to anticipate when and where the ball is launching off of the racket, and you can even add a command before you hit to have your dog begin running. We yell “Go!” which sets Riley sprinting into the distance searching for the bouncing projectile. After your dog picks up on the game, you’ll be able add complexity by hitting it without letting your dog see exactly where-and then letting her go searching after it. This is a wonderful mental exercise which also sharpens your dog’s natural sense of smell.

Keep this game up for a few weeks, and your dog will begin leaping in the air as soon as she sees the racket emerge from the closet.

A Few More Tips

1. Don’t be discouraged if your dog shows little (or no) instant interest in any of the balls you purchase. Just keep looking, and eventually you’ll find one that suits your pooch. As mentioned above, Riley never went for tennis balls; in fact, we stumbled across her love for racquetballs when she found one on the ground at the local dog park. And even then, she really didn’t love fetch until we started launching the balls hundreds of feet away with a racket. Now we think the long sprinting and bouncing ball are what drives her continued attraction. She never has the opportunity run so fast or hard at any other time in her daily routine.
2. If your dog will go get the ball…but not bring it back to you, there’s an easy way to complete the retrieval. Just keep another ball in your pocket. After your dog grabs the first ball, then bring out the second one. Your pup almost always wants what you’ve got (food, treats, or ball) so chances are she’ll bring the first ball back and drop it in anticipation of receiving the second one. To this day, we do this with Riley, and it works almost every time. Just remember, hit the ball again immediately! No praise and no delay; remember what your dog dropped the ball for.
3. Make sure you always play in a fenced in area unless your dog is obedient off leash and understands “come when called”. Never play next to a busy street or anywhere that your dog’s safety is in question.

Riley’s Review

“Retrieving the ball is my favorite pastime. Actually, now I know when we’re about to play because I see the shiny blue racquet. It’s beautiful! When we walk to the park, I have these great visions of an orange ball sailing across the field, and sometimes, I pull on the leash so we can play the game already! The funny thing is, I never quite know where they hide those balls, but I can sure smell them. So I wag my tail, and when we finally get to an open part of the park to play, I go off leash–but I don’t run away. This is so exciting! You see, that’s when the ball appears, and the next thing I know, it’s flying in the air…and I’m on the chase! I have to watch carefully and run fast otherwise the ball might get away. But I do a really good job of making sure it never escapes. Sometimes I do lose sight of it, but that’s no problem because I’ve got hound in my blood, so I sniff around (which is one of my other favorite things to do) until I find it. Most of the time, I bring the ball back so I can chase it again. But other times, I like to grab the ball and just jog around with it in my mouth. I really don’t like sharing my balls with others, so you should get your own! I think out of everything, this is my all-time favorite thing. Seriously. Well, except for treats maybe…”