Right here on this blog there is an ad for a t-shirt that says “It’s not flyball ’til there’s blood”. We flyballers laugh cause we’ve all had the scrapes, and unintended bites. It comes with playing an extreme sport.
Most of the time it’s nothing more serious than scratches and scrapes, but sometimes it’s a lot more serious. After a few tournaments where some serious injuries happened, I took a hard look at my team’s first aid kit. I started a discussion on the Flyball Forum on what to have in a kit.
If your team doesn’t have a first aid kit you take to tournaments here is a great opportunity to figure out what to include.
Connie
Name: Shadow
Breed: Mix
Owner/Handler: Karen Larkin
Club: Pawsitive Attitudes Flyball Team
At the Ballistics River Run tournament in Vassar, Michigan on Aug 31, 2008 Shadow became the first dog to earn 150,000 NAFA points.
Thank you Pawsitive Attitudes! Flyball is a team sport, without the help and support of the team, Shadow and I could have never accomplished earning 150,000 points. Flyball is a wonderful way to have fun with our dogs. One hundred and fifty thousand points in Flyball is an unbelievable accomplishment. Shadow is an amazing dog - a Flyball dog - solid and sturdy - a dog with longevity - year after year of solid racing. Years ago when Hobbes was the first dog to reach 100,000 points, someone predicted that shadow would reach 150,000 points, I could not believe it; the Hobbes Award was still so far away. 150,000 points is an amazing milestone for a senior, veteran Flyball dog. My first dog, Kala, raced for over ten years, retiring with just under 13,000 points.
Play Flyball, have fun, and the points just add up.
- In 1988, my husband and I adopted a dog, Kala, through the Michigan Human society. We took her to obedience classes and that is when we learned about Flyball. As Kala got older, we wanted to add another dog to the family.
- We started looking for a new dog at all the shelter and rescue groups in the area. When we went to Canada for a Flyball tournament, we were told about a husband who had border collies and his wife who had border terriers. They had some puppies left that they needed to find homes for.
- When we played with the pups that were left, (eighteen weeks old) Shadow always ended up with the tennis ball and brought it to us. He also seemed to have the most outgoing personality. Because he seemed to be a natural for Flyball, we chose to take Shadow home. Originally, we wanted, a female, so in a way Shadow picked us.
- Shadow has been involved in Flyball since he was one year old. Shadow has all available Flyball titles thru the Hobbes Award. He was the third dog to earn the Hobbes Award.
Titles Earned
FD, FDX, FDCH, FDCH-S, FDCH-G, FM, FMX, FMCH, ONYX, Flyball Grand Champion, FG40K, FG50K, FG60K, FG70K, FG80K, FG90K, HOBBES, FG110K, FG120K, FG130K, FG140K, FG150K
Special Honors
- Andy Pee-Wee All Stars -Tailspinners Bolton, ON June 1999
- Totally Awesome Height Dog - SmokinPaws Belleville, MI May 2001
- Flyball Icon Award- “For a Flyball dog that everyone knows by name regardless of the region they hail from. A dog that sets a new standard to which all other Flyball dogs will be measured. A competitor who truly raises the bar in our sport to a status level that others dream to someday reach.” Donated by Hobbes & Gary Mueller Ballistics River Run Sept 4th & 5th 2004
NAFA Top Pointed Dogs
- 09/30/00 - 113 of 9133dogs
- 09/30/01 - 16 of 10747dogs
- 09/30/02 - 3 of 12213dogs
- 09/30/03 - 3 of 13575dogs
- 09/30/04 - 2 of 15009dogs
- 09/30/05 - 1 of 16405dogs
- 09/30/06 - 1 of 17682 dogs
- 09/30/07 - 1 of 18933 dogs
NAFA Breed Mix
- 09/30/00 - 10 of 1238 mix breed dogs
- 09/30/01 - 3 of 1478 mix breed dogs
- 09/30/02 - 2 of 1725 mix breed dogs
- 09/30/03 - 2 of 1984 mix breed dogs
- 09/30/04 - 1 of 2241 mix breed dogs
- 09/30/05 - 1 of 2545 mix breed dogs
- 09/30/06 - 1 of 2809 mix breed dogs
- 09/30/07 - 1 of 3078 mix breed dogs
NAFA Top Point Earning Dogs
- 1998 - 85 of 6486 dogs - points earned 5352
- 1999 -15 of 7685 dogs - points earned 10934
- 2000 - 4 of 9133 dogs - points earned 12333
- 2001 - 1 of 10747 dogs - points earned 25751 - World Record
- 2002 - 1 of 12213 dogs - points earned 23400
- 2003 - 1 of 13575 dogs - points earned 17143
- 2004 - 8 of 15009 dogs - points earned 17177
- 2005 - 10 of 16405 dogs - points earned 15187
- 2006 - 119 of 17682 dogs - points earned 9699
Karen Larkin
Karen has other dogs of special note, Isaac and Kala, and you can view and read about them on the Pawsitive Attiudes Flyball Team Website.
Larry