What is Canine Freestyle?
Canine Freestyle is a fairly new sport. In 1989 at a seminar in Vancouver the first demo of canine frestyle was performed. In 1991 the first canine freestyle competition was offered in Vancour, BC, Canada.
From there the sport started to really grow especially in the UK and more recently in the US. Unfortunately, despite it's beginnings here in Canada the sport has remained virtually unkown. Hopefully the bug of dancing with your dog, will bite Canadians a little harder in the near future :-)
Canine Freestyle is the perfect way to enhance other sports you may be doing with your dog especially agility, obedience, rally and drill team work.
Agility requires a dog to be very aware of their human partner's subtle body language and cues, and also have the confidence to sometimes work at a distance from their partner - freestyle requires this as well.
Obdedience requires a dog to work closely and precisely with their human partner and to be able to follow verbal and non-verbal cues. Dogs are required to change and adapt their pace to their human partner, while maintaining heel position - freestyle and heelwork to music requires this as well.
Rally is all about teamwork and positive communication. It requires that a dog maintain a happy demeanor and a close working position with their human partner and also have the confidence and flexibility to perform a variety of skills. Dogs also need to work around or with signs and props such as cones. Canine Freestyle requires this as well.
Drill Team requires a dog to work closely with their human partner, mostly in heel position, but also independently when maintaining a stay. Dogs must also work closely and calmly in close proximity to other dogs - Canine Freestyle requires this as well, especially for a group routine.
Not only is canine freestyle a compliment to other dog sports it is also hugely fun to do. It is the most relaxed sport I do with my dogs because of the fun and relaxed atmosphere. It is hard to get uptight when you are listening to your favourite tunes and laughing.
Canine Freestyle is probably the most welcoming dog sport there is. From the old and creakier to the young and flexible - everyone is welcome to take part. The most fantastic thing about this sport is that the music and choreography can be chosen and molded around you and your dog's ability and agility. Also - if you don't know how to dance or don't feel you have rhythm - no worries - you don't need it!!
Want to get started with dancing - Check out the Freestyling Fanicks
Canine Freestyle Organizations
CFF - Canine Freestlye Federation
WCFO - World Canine Freestyle Organization
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