Best Frisbee for Dogs (Review & Buying Guide) in 2018

Dogs love playing a game of fetch. And if they can jump in the air and catch an object with their mouths, then you’ll know that they’ll definitely feel good about themselves. That is why aside from fetching tennis balls, dogs also love catching Frisbees. As a matter of fact there are serious dog Frisbee competitions in major kennel clubs. And if you’re searching for the best Frisbee for your pet hound, we’ve got you covered.

Best Frisbee for Dogs Buying Guide

It really is not easy picking the best Frisbee for dogs as you can have a variety of options to choose from. The good news is that you can use our buying guide to help you narrow down your choices. We made this guide as comprehensive as possible so you’ll have a much better chance of landing the best Frisbee for your hound.

Hard vs Soft Frisbee Disks

One of things you will need to determine is whether you’ll be getting a hard Frisbee or one that is soft. The choice is actually dependent on what you think should be your priority. Is it exceptional flight characteristics at the expense of perhaps hurting your dog or someone else? Or is it general safety over the beauty of the flight? These are basically what separate hard and soft Frisbee discs.

• Hard discs

These are more rigid and provide exceptional flight distances. They can glide through air a lot longer than softer discs and are, thus preferred by serious disc flyers. The downside of course is that the rigid construction packs a wallop especially when you factor momentum. Not only do you put your dog at risk for injuries, you might also be hitting other people as well.

• Soft discs

Soft Frisbee discs do not glide or fly as efficiently as their rigid counterparts, but the good news is that these are friendly to your dog especially their mouths. And in the event that they hit somebody else, it wouldn’t really hurt as much.

What Makes a Fantastic Frisbee for Canines?

In choosing the right Frisbee for your dog there are a few things you really have to consider. These are as follows.

• Easy to throw

The easiest Frisbees to throw are definitely the rigid ones. Unfortunately, these can really hurt especially when flying at great speeds. That is why the best Frisbee for canines should have a good balance between safety and ease of throwing or throwability.

• Has good flight characteristics

We mentioned above that rigid Frisbees fly exceptionally well. But if you’re only looking for a toy that you can play with your dog you may not really have a need for stiff and competition-grade equipment. However, you should still look for a Frisbee that glides or flies amazingly as well. The whole point in playing Frisbee with your dog is for it to jump and catch the disc in its mouth. If it cannot do that for the simple fact that the disc is simply too heavy or that it is not aerodynamic enough that it drops immediately after being tossed, then you’re better off with a paper plate or perhaps even a plastic dinner plate.

• Can be easily gripped by dogs

You’d want a Frisbee that will be very easy for your dog to retrieve. Specifically, you don’t want something that will easily slip out from its mouth. This is an advantage of flexible or soft Frisbee discs over the rigid ones, although there are modern designs that have special grooves allowing your pet to latch its teeth onto.

• Durable

Nothing in this world is really indestructible especially to a hound that is generally known as a powerful, heavyweight chewer. That being said you should always go for canine Frisbees that can last longer than most. You can also train your dog not to vent its frustration on the Frisbee so you’ll have a much longer-lasting toy for your dog.

Staying Safe While Playing Frisbee with Your Dog

Playing Frisbee with your pet is fun. However, if you’re not careful the fun in the activity can easily turn out into a nightmare. Here’s how you can stay safe while playing Frisbee with your dog.

• • Always throw the Frisbee at a safe height and angle. There have been issues of pet owners throwing Frisbees unusually high or at a very steep angle that their dogs also jumped unusually high and twisted their back resulting in injuries. There have been issues of overzealous pet parents who may want to show-off the acrobatic abilities of their dogs. Sadly, our dogs are not incredible jumpers as cats. Their weight prevents them from effectively jumping and landing softly on the ground.
  • Before you play Frisbee with your dog make sure that you have trained it properly to follow your commands. Like a game of ball fetch, the idea is for your pet to bring the Frisbee back to you and not run off with it. This is one of the most important things you should do first even before you start playing Frisbee with your dog.
  • Make sure you are playing in an area where your Frisbee will not be hitting other dogs, other people, or even properties of your neighbors. Even if you are using soft Frisbees, the forward momentum of these discs can still hurt. There have been a lot of incidents whereby pet parents invariably tossed their Frisbees through a neighbor’s window or worse, hit a passing car. It is best to play Frisbee in an area with wide open space, free from any obstacles, and definitely free from other people and properties.
  • Never leave your dog with the Frisbee. Regardless of how tough the manufacturer says the Frisbee is, no material can ever withstand the tenacity of a ferocious chewer. As you may have seen in our list of the best dog Frisbees, there is one very common theme among dissatisfied pet parents: issues with durability. Keep in mind that there really is no such thing as indestructible. Perhaps the only thing that is truly indestructible will be metal. Unfortunately, you really don’t want to play with a flying metal disc.
  • Make sure to have plenty of drinking water with you. Your dog will be running and jumping and even swimming endlessly. It needs to stay hydrated, otherwise you risk developing health problems in your dog.

Playing Frisbee with Your Pup: Tips and Tricks

If you want your dog to really have fun playing with its Frisbee it is best to start it as a puppy. Like all activities involving puppies, you may have to be a bit more creative in playing with it. Here are some tips.

• Consider using the Frisbee as your pup’s dinner plate. You might want to give your puppy its food using the disc instead of its regular food bowl. This acclimatizes your pet to the Frisbee and the notion that it is for the mouth.
• Always play indoors at first. You can play a light game of tug to help train your pet on how to firmly ‘hold’ onto the disc with its mouth.
• Run with the Frisbee in your hand. Make sure your puppy runs along. Let it catch the Frisbee in its mouth. If you think your pup has already grown fondness for the Frisbee, try a different approach. Slide the Frisbee across the floor and train your puppy to run after it, grabbing it with its mouth.
• Replace the Frisbee-turned-dinner plate with a new one and see how your puppy reacts to it. If it behaves as trained, then you can start rolling the disc and check if your pup will retrieve it. If not, then you may have to train it right from the very start.
• Once your puppy is able to run after the rolling disc, you can now start throwing it at relatively shorter distances first. Gradually increase the distance and incorporate the idea of returning the disc to you.
• Make sure play in a safe environment. Always start in your backyard. In case you don’t have a yard you can go to the park or some other secluded area where the chance of hitting other objects as well as other people is nil.
• Keep your playtimes relatively short especially if your puppy is already running and jumping after the Frisbee. Remember that its bones and muscles are still developing. While exercise can help provide the necessary stimulation for bone and muscle growth, you also don’t want to tax your young hound’s body.
• Keep its treat with you all the time. This is always handy when it comes to enticing your young pup to perform a trick that you love watching.

Fetching Frisbees is a competitive activity in many kennel clubs. While you may not be keen on entering your dog into competition, you will nevertheless enjoy the fun times throwing these discs and watching your dg run after them, catch it in mid-air, and then return them to you. With these best Frisbees for dogs, you’re this much closer to spending more quality time with your pet.

Sources

1. Frisbee Discs for Dogs – What’s the Best Disc on the Market?, WholeDogJournal
2. Is It Safe for Dogs to Play Frisbee?, Dogster
3. Why Frisbee Fetching May Be Risky for Dogs, PeterDobias