Quality AKC registered Boston Terriers

THE SPRING POLE

THE FLIRT POLE

The Spring Pole is a great way to get your dog a complete workout without you getting one as well! Making a Spring Pole is VERY cheep and easy to make! Everything that you will need to build a Spring Pole can be found at any hardware store for around $10.00.

LIST OF THINGS THAT YOU WILL NEED

*A nylon dog collar with a metal buckle

*A length of nylon rope about 6 or 7 feet long. Make sure that the rope is comfortable, yet sturdy.  

*A garage door spring. You will need to figure out the one that is best for your Boston by adding 5 pounds to your dogs top weight, for example: one of my males weighs anywhere from 25 to 28 pounds so, I would pick a spring for 30 to 35 pounds.  

*Some sort of a bite surface, a rope tug toy works great!

                    HOW TO BUILD YOUR OWN SPRING POLE

*Take a length of nylon rope and cut it to about 6 or 7 feet long depending on how high you are going to hang the Spring Pole.

*At one end of the rope, securely tie the end of the garage door spring through the S-hook, making sure the knots are nice and tight and won't come loose.

*At the other end of the rope securely tie the bite surface making sure the knots are nice and tight and won't come loose.

*Finally, take the end with the garage door spring and attach the S-hook to the D-ring on the dog collar.

*Climb up to where you are going to hang the Spring Pole from (tree limbs work great!) Wrap the collar around the tree limb (or whatever) and buckle it tightly with the D-ring and rope hanging down towards the ground. Make sure that the branch (or whatever) is atleast 7-8 feet high and that the bite surface hangs from about 1 or 2 feet above the ground, to start out.

In the beginning you will need to show your dog the bite surface, if your dog has a strong pray drive he/she will want it right away. Let the dog work the Spring Pole with it's back legs still on the ground. As the dog gets stronger and more used to jumping and hanging from the Spring Pole you will be able to shorten the rope so that the bite surface is higher and higher until finally the dog really has to jump to grab it. The dog will grip and hang while jerking on the bite surface, working all of it's muscles, from the muscles in it's jaws and head to the muscles in it's neck and back. The garage door spring acts like a shock absorbor, keeping the dog from hurting itself while it's jerking on the rope. This is an excellant way to condition ALL of your dogs muscles without you having to do too much work yourself! 

*Please do not let your dog work on a Spring pole on days hotter than 55-60 degrees, especially Boston Terriers, your dog could easily become overheated.

*You will also want to wait until your puppy is full grown so that it's bones and tendons have had a chance to finish growing and to harden. All of that jumping around could cause an injury to a young puppies back and legs.

*NEVER let children work your dog on a Spring Pole without proper adult supervision!!!

If you would like to order a Spring Pole from Panda Bear Bostons that is already built and ready to go, email me by clicking on the link below. Please include in your email your name, a number that you can be reached at, your email address, the size and weight of your dog and what it you are ordering (a Spring Pole). The price of a Spring Pole is $25.00 plus shipping and handling.      

**The pictures of the Spring Poles above are just examples and were not built by Panda Bear Bostons.**                     

The flirt pole is another great way to get those doggy legs moving without you having to do too much yourself. Building a Flirt Pole is also VERY cheep and easy to build! Everything needed to build a Flirt Pole can be found at any hardware store for around                $10.00.

LIST OF THINGS THAT YOU WILL NEED

*A length of rope around 8 1/2 feet long, can be the same type that was used to build a Spring Pole.

*A piece of PVC pipe about 4 feet long (or whatever is the easiest length for you to use) about the circumference of a nickle. Most times you can get the people who work at the hardware stores to cut the PVC pipe down to the proper length.

*Some type of bite surface, a rope tug toy also works great on a Flirt Pole.

                   HOW TO BUILD YOUR OWN FLIRT POLE

*Take the PVC pipe and one end of the rope, slide the rope through the PVC pipe until the rope comes out the other end. Tie a tight, secure knot that won't come loose or slip through the PVC pipe.

*At the other end of the PVC pipe, there should be around 4/12 feet of rope. Take the one end of the rope closest to the PVC pipe and tie a knot as close to the end of the PVC pipe as you can, making sure the knot will not slip through the PVC pipe. 

*Finally, tie the bite surface to the end of the rope furthest away from the PVC pipe, making sure the bite surface is nice and secure and can't be pulled off.

Go outside to your backyard or a place where you and your dog has lots of room to run and jump. Stand at the center of your selected place and swing the bite surface out and over your head while moving the PVC pole in a circlular motion (the PVC pipe should be in an upright position). The circular movement should get the bite surface flying around with you standing in the middle.The dog see's the bite surface flying around and around and will run and jump trying to catch it. If the rope is too long than undo the bite surface and cut the rope to a more manageable length. This is great exercise for the dog because he/she does a lot of running and jumping and if you switch the direction of the way you are swinging the bite surface than that keeps your dog on it's "toes". If the dog catches the bite surface than let it play with it for a minute then either take it from it's mouth or pull the PVC pipe horizontaly instead of like if it was a fishing pole, this could possibly break the PVC pipe.      

*As with the Spring Pole you do not want to work your dog with a Flirt Pole on days hotter than 55-60 degrees, espically Boston Terriers, your dog could easily overheat.

*You will also want to wait to work your puppy on a Flirt Pole after it has finished growing to let those bones and tendons finish growing and harden. As with the Spring Pole your dog will be doing a lot of running and jumping which is VERY hard on a puppies body.

NEVER let children work your dog on a Flirt Pole without proper adult supervision!!!

If you would like to order a Flirt Pole that is built ready to go from Panda Bear Bostons email me by clicking on the link below. Please include in your email your name, a contact number that you can be reached at, the size and weight of your dog, how tall you are and what it is that you want (Spring or Flirt Pole). The price of a Flirt Pole is $25.00 plus shipping and handling.

**The picture of the Flirt Pole above is just an example and was not built by Panda Bear Bostons.**