Springpole build

Hi i'm new here .. i have an 11 month old rednose...i'll be posting pics shortly, and i'm wanting to start him on either a flirt pole or a spring pole....possibly wanting to start today when i get off of work....any suggestions on building one...i already have something to tie onto the spring for him to grab....its a cat on a rope.....well pls post any ideas and try not to be to ruff on me considering this is my first pit and i tried looking through forums before posting this

 

From http://www.thrillcreek.homestead.com/springpole.html one alternative to build...​

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1. Find a strong and sturdy tree branch that will be able to support the weight and tension that your dog will be applying to it. If you do not have tree accesable, you can build a structure of your own. Take at least a 2" wide nylon dog collar and loop it through one end of a garage door spring ​

( I use 2 due to the size and strength of my dogs). Once through, fasten the collar around the branch or structure securing it tightly. You may want to ​

use rope as well to secure the springs just as extra support. Fasten the collar. Now you have your collar secured and the springs suspended in the air.​

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2. Attach a second nylon collar to the bottom end of the springs. From this, hang a rope to which your biting surface will be attached. DO NOT use a chain to attach your biting surface to. Your dog may bite the chain and could cause him to break or injure his teeth. Your safest bet is to use rope. For the biting surface, I like to use a variety of materials. Hide, Burlap sacks, long pieces of denim from old jeans, and an old dog sleeve cover works perfectly. You want the ropes to be hanging anywhere between 2ft. - 6ft. high from the ground. By hanging the ropes high, it will allow your dog to swing out further.​

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3. Now that your springpole is complete, bring your dog out and tie him up. Let him watch as you swing and smack the hide, burlap sack, denim, etc. away from his reach. What you are trying to accomplish is getting the dog ​

excited. Once he sees the hide swinging and out of his grasp, he is going to want it even more. Too many people push the hide at the dog. At first this may only cause the dog to back away from it. Play keep-away instead and watch his interest grow. You can really turn a dog off for good by not introducing him to this new venture in a positive way. Hitting him in the head and face with the hide is one good way of doing this. Let you dog go at the springpole at his own pace, don't force him to do anything he doesn't ​

want. As time goes on you will see his performance increase. Anything that you do with your dog whether it be playing, housebreaking, using a springpole or any other activity, you must always make it a positive experience for him. This will make your dog respond better to what it is that you want him to do.​

 

Yeah, the directions Jankab posted for the springpole are good. Make sure that you make the rope long enough to keep the dog's rear legs on the ground to avoid injury. As for a cat on the rope, please tell me it's not a real cat.
You can make a flirt pole by getting a PVC pipe and drilling a hole at the end of the pipe. Put a rope through the hole and attach a hide to the rope. It's a ghetto rig but it works well. My pole is about 8 feet long and has about 7 foot of rope and no hide.

 

Yes, please do not use a real cat. They're just not durable enough. j/k....:rolleyes:

 

it's not a real cat...lol.....but it gets him just as excited....it even squeaks too... he picked it out when i went into a "rich people's" pet store to ask where a feed store is.

 

What last the longest cause stuffed animals are gone in like 10 minutes after i hang em??? ropes last allitle longer but he still tares em up...

 

dont use a cat, it makes to much noise and will distract your dog....lol cat I hate cats lol
but i bet it might be fun to watch lol joking stick to a none live bait. I tie my dogs pull bait to the flirt poll I find it work wonders for multi thing

 

I run the end of the rope through a heavy-duty kong, and use strong multi-layer denim as the actual "hide."

 

thanx rockstar i was just thinking about that !!

"I run the end of the rope through a heavy-duty kong, and use strong multi-layer denim as the actual "hide.""

 

I've used old motorcyle tires, leather, deflated athletic balls (football/basketball), denim, kong type toys, ropes, etc. Anything somewhat durable should work.

 

Check my spring-poles out at the bottom of this page,
http://www.stillwaterkennels.com/picsandstuffpage3.htm

My Fate bitch has the Hang-Time record at 14 mins and 19 secs, set at TBA show this summer.

 

One of those "durable" tires with the rope thru them that the sell at the petstores works well for my girl.

 

like this:

http://www.petsmart.com/global/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=845524441809620&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=2534374302026210&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=2534374302023689&bmUID=1128002551758

 

okay....i went out and made a spring pole last night.....at first he seemed real interested in it... then he kinda just laid down after awhile.....i couldnt get him to grab onto it until after i cut the cat off and had just the rope hanging there....i'm wondering what does everyone recommend for a dog just starting... a rope hanging in the u shape or straight up and down???

 

Mine is in a U. It makes it alot easier for him to grab. Some dogs don't care for spring poles. Just keep messing with it. Have you tried putting a flirt pole together yet?

 

Not yet...i dont know what one looks like yet

 

I use the cats toy for a flirt pole, it actually works extremely well... its just a plastic wand with a fabric 1 1/2" wide strip thats about 2-3' long... can get em' anywhere for about $3. Usually has feathers on the end, but the dogs took care of that!

 

Put a Hog-Hide on it and they will work it til they can't no more.

 

Yeah a real cat would only last maybe 5 seconds in my case!