Paws were flying across the turf at Albion Park showground as 96 dogs competed at the South Coast Dog Training Club’s biannual Flyball competition on Saturday 27 September.

With 17 teams and over 100 people gathering for the event, Flyball is one of the most exciting events on the dog sports calendar, combining speed and obedience training into a fun competition.

Flyball, is a fast-paced canine sport where dogs race over jumps to a flyball box that they need to trigger to release a ball, then run back to their owner, all while being timed. Two teams of four dogs compete head-to-head in a relay race and the team with the fastest time and least amount of errors wins, with the fastest Division One teams completing runs in under four seconds.

Flyball in action

Operating for over 50 years, the South Coast Dog Training Club (SCDTC) specialises in dog obedience training but also hosts events like Flyball, a dynamic and popular competition that showcases the results of dedicated training.

The president of SCDTC, Fay Hull says that the club has been transforming dogs and helping owners for years, providing support and training every week.

“We'll get at least one dog that's very reactive. And by that, I mean it's growling or barking at people or dogs. And we turn them around. It's amazing,” she said.

Flyball

“The owners have to turn them around, but what we do is we show the owners how to do it.”

Saturday’s competition featured a diverse range of breeds from border collies to kelpies, poodles, and mixed-breed dogs, many of which are rescue dogs. The event brings together a wide variety of ages, as they all share a common interest in doing something they love with their dogs.

The SCDTC has a lot of members from Kiama, Gerringong, and Jamberoo whilst being based in Albion Park but Fay says many people don’t know the club exists.

“I talk to people and they say, ‘oh, there's a dog club at Wollongong’ and I'll say, ‘what about the one at Albion Park?’”

Events like Flyball attract people from all over the Illawarra and NSW, but the club has around 150 members and anywhere between 25 to 55 members attending each week to the different sports the club holds.

“We've really started to focus on helping people have dogs that are good family members and good community members that are obedient and tractable and friendly and sociable”.

The SCDTC is a not for profit club, anyone is able to join, they have a membership fee each year, and it’s $5 per week to train.

For more information about the South Coast Dog Training Club visit their website www.scdtc.org.au.