★★★★★ 5
The best way to tire your dog out in the dark
Size: 25in
My 7 month Golden Retriever puppy has way too much energy. And I go to work in the dark, and come home in the dark. This was the solution.
First of all if you get this, I suggest a UV flashlight to charge it. Most of these phosphors for glow in the dark items have very strong optical absorption in the UV, and the UV will charge both the ball and the launcher in seconds. I shine the light at the launcher with the ball in it, since you can then see where the launcher is when you are trying to load the ball. I use this UV flashlight, which takes qty=3 AA batteries.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01A5KLUG2/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I have never used a launcher before and I learned it within about 10 throws. It is easy to have a basic competence. I live in a suburban area and I send the ball across front lawns, trying to avoid the street, or hitting my neighbors parked cars. I can consistently do this now with the launcher, which is a big improvement over the old tennis racket and ball routine.
I got the 25" medium ball launcher, which also works for tennis balls. The scoop goes easily over the Chuck-it balls. My older dog is not taking to it, since he was trained to sit and give the ball. This works better if you have the dog drop the ball so you can scoop it.
The glow in the dark ball has 2 holes (think wiffle) that have a low pitch whooshing whistle as you toss it. This is great for my puppy who gets easily distracted as the glowing ball and the noise it makes really helps him propery mark it. Overall I think the dog retrieves better in the dark as there are fewer distractions, and I feel better about the dark for retrieving since there is no traffic early in the morning (both foot and auto). The ball has some squish to it and the pup loves to chew on it as he brings it back. I do not let him play with it when we are not retrieving...better for him to destroy his chew bones and ropes. It took him about 5 tries to get the hang of picking up the new ball. The older dog (13yr old golden) does not like it and only goes for tennis balls.
I can tell already this is my puppy's favorite toy ever. I put it up out of reach across coat hooks in the entryway, and that pup will sit there staring at it, then at me, then at it hoping that I will go out and use it. With bounces and rolls and the puppy missing the grab this has gone 100-150' across 3 front lawns. I am looking forward to giving it a go in the park on the weekend.
Main problems with the pup now are he likes to parade around me with the ball when he comes back, then lie down and try to give it a proper chew. If I use my launcher to pick it up, I have to put my foot between him and the ball since he will try to get it back fast. Overall this launcher means faster pickup, faster release, more accurate release, good distance, and a better run per time allocation than the old tennis racket and ball routine.
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Reviewed in the United States on January 29, 2020
