I’ve never utilized an automatic ball launcher because I’m always concerned about their safety. I feel my dogs would rather play with humans than machines. As I’ve become older, I’ve switched to a manual Chuck-it because my throwing arm is no longer as strong as it once was.
The key with a Chuck-it is to avoid using conventional tennis balls, which become rough when wet.
Good luck on your project.
I have several Chuck-It throwers and generally like them, but I do have an issue with some of the handle designs. At some point, the design changed to a more rounded handle, which tends to rotate in my hand and affects my aim. I never use the hard blue and orange Chuck-It balls in the thrower anymore. Once, I accidentally hit my puppy with one when he ran up to me just as I launched the ball. It must have really hurt him because he ran yelping across the yard. Since then, I only use balls that I can compress in my hand.
I don’t see myself ever using an automated ball thrower. For me, playing fetch is a bonding and training exercise. Additionally, I think fetch can become an obsession for some dogs. I don’t want my dog to become an exercise addict who goes nuts on rainy days when he can’t get his twice-daily 45-minute fetch sessions.
My current dogs aren’t really into fetching, although my young dog will fetch a toy just so we can play tug-of-war. For him, the tugging is the main game, not the fetching.
I did have a border collie who was obsessed with fetching. He would fetch anything. It never crossed my mind to use a “ball thrower,” and even if I had one, I wouldn’t have used it. The interaction time with my dog was what mattered to me. He loved fetch so much that he probably would have used a ball thrower, but I preferred our time together.
I did use a Chuck-It with dog-specific rubber balls that were soft enough for his mouth. However, his favorite was the frisbee, and he was amazing at catching it in the air.
My Beckett was the best ‘fetcher’ I’ve ever known. If you could throw it, he would bring it back, no matter the toy or material. He’d fetch on land or in water, whether it was a lake or river. I never had to teach him to fetch; he just did it naturally.
I taught him the cue “last time,” which I would say before the final throw. Instead of bringing the toy back to me, he would carry it off and put it down somewhere. This kept him from obsessively following me around the yard, trying to get me to play! He even figured out that if he sat at the top of our ravine (we live in the mountains) and dropped a ball, it would roll downhill, and he could chase after it and play fetch with himself.
Here’s an old picture of him at about 14 1/2 years old. By then, he could only manage a few short tosses, but he still wanted to keep playing. I miss that sweet toy baby!
Kapoor, my border collie was just like that. If it could be thrown, he’d fetch it. It didn’t matter if it only went 2 feet; he’d bring it back with the same joy as if it had gone 100 yards. Once, in a friend’s yard with nothing available, he picked up a fallen leaf and dropped it at my feet, hoping I could throw it that.
Anyone who thinks fetching is “mindless” for dogs has never seen a border collie fetching a frisbee or a ball in an open field. They’ve never witnessed the intensity, drive, and speed to catch it before it hits the ground or the deep joy in the dog’s eyes. He loved it like humans love running, rowing, or playing sports. While it may seem repetitive, each throw is a bit different. Anyone who has done repetitive sports like swimming laps knows that repetitive doesn’t mean mindless.
He fetched right up until a couple of days before he died, even though he could only go a few feet without falling. His joy remained undimmed. Only when he absolutely couldn’t get up anymore did I let him go. Even then, his spirit was undefeated.
He and Beckett were brothers in spirit, even though they never met.
And yes, like you, it was our special time together. Why would I ever want to replace that with a machine?
