Maybe. If your dog loves water and has a strong toy drive, you are on your way to having a dock jumper.

Like humans, every dog is an individual and our trainers treat them as such. Some dogs take to jumping very quickly. Others require more time to become confident enough on the dock to make a jump. Your dog brings their love of water and fetch, and you supply the patience and praise.

No. The dock is a new, exciting, and sometimes stressful place for dogs. The dock moves, the ramps move, and a dog who has never been around water quickly shuts down. Not all dogs are naturals at swimming, so you need to introduce him to water on your own time. Start with shallow, gently sloping water such as a pond edge or the shore at the Sparks Marina dog park. Once your dog is reliabily and enthusiastically retrieving from the shore, come back out and we'll be happy to see if he's a jumper as well as a swimmer.

The best toy is the one your dog is absolutely crazy for. While most dogs retrieve bumpers, balls, or similar type toys, you can throw any toy that is floatable, retrievable, and is not alive nor has it ever been alive. Attaching animal parts to toys is also prohibited.

Absolutely not! You may not push, pull, or force your dog in the water. Despite what most handlers believe, pushing you dog in is a quick way to lose your dog's trust, instill a deep fear of water and heights, and you will promptly be asked to leave the dock and never return.

We do not tolerate any forceful or rough treatment of dogs on our dock.

No, all dogs regardless of mixed or pure breed are welcome at our dock and all competition venues. Some of the best jumpers are shelter dogs of unknown heritage!

No. Some dock jumping organizations do not allow dogs under the age of 6 months to compete, and we also recommend not jumping dogs that are this young. But ultimately we leave the decision up to you, the handler.

Dock jumping is a physically demanding sport so while young or old dogs may be having the time of their life, don't overjump them. Overjumping really applies to all ages.

E-collars are not allowed on the dock. All competition venues also prohibit them. Dogs should never dock jump while wearing prong collars, choke chains, head halters, or any other training collars or equipment.

When first starting out, your dog should have on a plain buckle collar that is relatively tight, so that it can be used to assist your dog to the ramp or to hoist your dog out of the water, if absolutely necessary. If you have a harness, it's not a bad idea for your dog to wear this the first couple of times as they make hoisting dogs back on the dock much easier.

As you become more confident in your dog's understanding of the ramp and you have 100% confidence in your recall (in case, your dog decides the ducks are more fun today than dock jumping), your dog can jump naked, that is collarless. Naked jumping is common in competitions and required for certain dock events such as super vertical.