Chuckit! High Bounce Ball

I finally got around to getting a non-tennis ball for Juneau to fetch.  I got two Chuckit balls for $7.99 at the Grange, not an excellent price but better than everywhere else I've seen.

They come in dark blue light blue, orange or a combo of colors.  I picked out dark blue. I wanted a dark and light blue and could have easily switched one of the light blues out of the light blue/orange pack but I don't like doing that so I just left it as is.

This thing is very simple, it's a ball.  Take it out of the package and throw it.  Or use it with a Chuckit like I did.  It does this to your dog.

Juneau thinks this new Chuckit ball is the best. ball. ever.

It's much heavier than a normal tennis ball and takes a bit more power to throw but goes much farther and bounces like a sonofagun.  I saw Juneau jump the highest I've ever seen today, nearly six feet in the air.  Unfortunately she didn't catch the ball and it bounced off her teeth another twenty feet or so.  I'm just glad it landed inside the dog park fence, not outside where the evil blackberry bushes are.

This ball does not float so don't use it around water.  It's hollow and has a hole through it, probably to make it bounce like mad.  So be careful around water if you are near it.  The orange or light blue ball you may be able to retrieve but the dark blue, good luck finding that in a river.

Price-wise it's okay.  It makes up for that with it's durability.  So far it's held up quite well to Juneau's chewing.  I'll update this if she ever destroys it.

EDIT:  I've had the Chuckit! High Bounce Balls for more than seven months and I have yet to see any wear on them.  Juneau knoshes down on them pretty hard but so far they have held up wonderfully.

Chuckit!: Review

I got Conker a Chuckit for his birthday, but it was mainly for use with Juneau.  I never did get one with Conker since he isn't that big of a fetcher and will also loose sight or interest if the ball goes too far.  Or another dog will get it first.
But when I began taking Juneau to the dog park, I knew I had to get one.  Constant throwing of tennis balls for her made my arm hurt even though I was throwing the ball correctly.  So off I went and got myself a bright orange Chuckit thing.

It cost me $11.99 at Mini Pet Mart.  It might have been cheaper at The Grange but I didn't want to drive all the way out there to see.  Petco was about 15.99 so that wasn't even an option.

I got thew older model Chuckit since I didn't even know if the dogs would like it.  And at first Juneau didn't. She was afraid of it, like she always is with new things.  but after I showed her that a ball goes into it and gets thrown really far... now she loves it!

The Chuckit takes a few throws to get used to.  If you just huff it the ball will fly straight up or way off to one side.  You have to throw it gently for the first few tries to get an idea of where the ball is released.  After that though, go at it, you fetcher will love it!  I'm normally able to throw about half the length of the dog park (it's kinda small) but with the Chuckit I can almost get the ball completely to the other side.  I don't know the exact distance but it's pretty darned far.

One of the only problems with the Chuckit other than getting used to the release point is that you need to be aware of who or what is around you.  I whacked a tall dog on the back with it once (but he didn't care) so make sure there aren't any dogs or kids in the general vicinity if you're going for distance.
Another thing is that your arm will begin to hurt after a long while.  Not how throwing a ball normally does though.  The top of your lower arm, where the hair grows, whatever that muscle is, will get tired.  I guess since it's used for stabilizing the Chuckit and keeping it upright when you swing.  Go get a stick and swing it around and feel for the muscle keeping it upright and you'll know what I'm talking about.

All in all the Chukit is a very good toy for dogs who love to fetch.  It's not too expensive and if you get the standard or "medium" variety you can use any kind of regular tennis ball with it so you don't have to buy the Chukit balls if you loose one.  Like I did with mine on the fifteenth throw.
It's also very durable, as long as you don't let your dog chew on it.

Chuckit!  Juneau approved.