MEMBERS of a local ’flyball’ dog sport club have met with competitive success at their first ever tournament.

The fledgling sport involves a team of four dogs in relay, running over a line of four hurdles and picking up a ball by pushing a trigger to release it from a box. Each animal then runs back over the hurdles with the ball before the next one sets off.

The sport has a keen following among both canine and human members of the Two Bridges Flyball Club, named for its twin bases of Ivybridge and Saltash - overlooking the Tamar Bridge. The club trains at Erme Valley Riding for the Disabled Association near Bittaford throughout the year, as well as outdoor venues in Plymouth and Saltash over the summer. 

One of the club’s teams, the ’Two Bridge Tryouts’ recently travelled to Oxford for their very first competition. They competed against four other teams, winning all their races and recording a best time of 21.77 seconds.

The club trainer Lenni Elkins said the time was brilliant, given the wet and muddy conditions, and good enough to win the ’starters’ division on the day.

She said: ’This is a great achievement for the team and the club. There are only four or five flyball clubs in Devon and Cornwall combined and we have made our presence known in the flyball community.

’We will be attending more competitions next year, hopefully with more than the one team.’

The Two Bridges team in Oxford was actually made up of six dogs - four in the race with two standing by. They were collies Max, Charlie and Gez, lurcher Tac, jack russell collie mix Chuckles, and Ernie the labradoodle.

The youngest to compete was Max at 15 months, with four-year-old Ernie oldest.

Lenni added: ’It was Max, Charlie, Gez and Tac’s first competition and they all did brilliantly.

’We have a variety of different dogs that train with us, so it’s not limited to certain breeds. Examples are poodles, jack russells, spaniels, German shepherds, labradors and collies. If a dog likes to play fetch they will be fab at the sport, and it doesn’t take long for them to pick it up.’ 

For more information on the club visit www.two-bridges-flyball.com .