Flyball

The judge for the 2021 competition will be Ms J Knight.

Each team shall consist of six handlers and dogs, four of which will run at any one time. Each team can also have a team captain, a box loader and an additional person to act as runner / ball collector. No handler or dog can compete in more than one team.  

All dogs entering must be a minimum of 18 months old on the first day of Crufts 2020 and be registered on the KC Activity or Breed register. 

At least one dog in each team must be a designated breed. The designated breed dog must be registered with the Kennel Club on the Breed Register or on the Activity Register as a Kennel Club registered breed (excluding Border Collies / Working Sheep Dogs).

There must be at least one designated breed dog running in each race.

The invitation event will be a team competition (knockout), also known as a single eliminator. 8 teams will run on the Thursday and a further 8 teams will run on the Friday. The best of three runs will decide the winners which will go into the next round.

• The jumps will have an inside width of 30”. 
• The jumps will be a total height of 9 inches  
• The 1” topslat will be flexible / breakable and will contain padding.

• Each team is responsible for providing its own Flyball box, which should be safe and fit for purpose. 
• The Flyball box must meet the following specifications:
  1. All Boxes are to have a pressure pedal to mechanically release the trigger/launcher system. 
  2. Boxes may be decorated and/or painted any colour. Club logos and/or lettering are permitted. 
  3. When triggered, the Flyball box must eject the ball. The ball must be able to travel at least 24" from the box hole toward the Start/Finish line. 
  4. The box cannot exceed 30” in width, nor exceed 20” in height. 
  5. Mats or grabbing devices to hold the box in place cannot raise the box more than ½" higher than the maximum allowed height. 
  6. The body of the box cannot exceed 30” in depth, excluding the base upon which the box loader stands. 
  7. The box shall not exceed these dimensions at any time during racing, excluding carrying handles and stakeholders. 

NOTE: Boxes should be constructed with the comfort and wellbeing of the dog in mind. Sharp edges must be avoided and adequate padding and protection should be used. The officiating judge has the right to refuse the use of any flyball box they deem to be unfit to use and teams cannot use any external modification that could be classed as training aids; they will be asked to remove them before they can carry on racing. 

Each club shall provide its own supply of balls. Approved balls may be of any size, colour or design and must bounce and roll. Balls may not contain a noise maker eg. squeakers or bells. Balls must not be covered in a skin ie Rabbit skin etc. The ball must be able to travel the requisite distance as defined in the box rules section. All non-tennis balls must be approved by the Crufts flyball steward before being used.

Only handlers and dogs who are members of the original team and named on the entry form, will be allowed to compete at Crufts and only by exceptional circumstances will any change be allowed. Any change requests must be submitted by email for approval. All entry forms must be submitted by 1 December 2019.

No sponsorship is permitted to be featured on the flyball boxes and any sponsorship of clothing is subject to KC approval and in any case will be limited to one small breast pocket logo.