Crufts on the cards for canine club
IT’S a quiet Saturday morning at Breconbeds Equestrian, near Annan, but then the silence is shattered as Firebird Flyball Club prepare for the biggest international show in March.
To the sound of “Teg! Ball! Ball! Ball!”, a sheep dog takes off like a shot, jumping over hurdles to retrieve a tennis ball from a spring-loaded box catching it.
Teg returns over the jumps to owner and handler Gemma McNair – who has a treat in hand and is full of praise for a job well done.
Gemma and her partner Sam Waite started Firebird Flyball Club a year-and-a-half ago. Now the club’s membership stretches from Moffat to Annan to Wigtown and even over the border, with a wide variety of breeds enjoying the sport.
Gemma said: “We’ve got between 20-26 dogs in the club, but not everybody competes. It can just be for fun, there’s no pressure to do competitions.
“We’ve quite a wide range of breeds: Teg and Brac are both wild sheepdogs but we’ve also got spaniels, Romanian rescues, cockapoos, whippets and lurchers.
“Some of the dogs are rescues as well, I work closely with the canine centre at Glencaple and another shelter over the border so we’ll never turn a dog away. Even if they’re slightly reactive, we’ll work with them.”
Meanwhile, Teg’s brother and fellow competitor Brac is itching to get going at the sidelines as he pulls at his lead.
The younger of the two dogs, Brac has only been competing in flyball for just under a year but is keeping up with his brother - the pair regularly complete a run in four seconds or under.
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Both dogs are currently training to compete at Crufts in March with Gemma and Sam, but also in the young handlers’ competition with teenagers Abbie Irving, 15, and Elise Garner, 13.
The girls have been involved with the club for two years and are excited to compete on such a large stage, but it was their love of dogs that initially drew them to the sport.
Abbie said: “I just really liked dogs and I came to an open day and I saw them do a demo and that was it for me.
“Brac and Teg are really good dogs, they’re great.We’re here every Saturday morning with the dogs and it’s a lot of fun for us and them.”
Looking ahead to Crufts, Elise added: “We’ve never done a competition as big as Crufts, so we’re a bit nervous and excited but Teg and Brac are great dogs and there’s a bit of time until we go in March so we’ll see how it goes.”
During the prestigious competition, Teg and Brac will be running as part of Cumbrian outfit Reiver Rebels Flyball Club.
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In the meantime, their training regime is likened to a professional athlete.
Samantha explained: “They’re about to go into a fitness programme for the next three weeks to get their fitness up for Crufts so that by the time we get there they’ll both be running consistently under four seconds.
“Everything about it has to be absolutely precise because they are running so fast, if we didn’t get it right they can get hurt. So we take them to the pet-rehab in Dumfries for regular checks and they do a hydro-therapy session.
“And Gemma and I are both going to do cani-cross with them which is where they tow us along as they run so they’ve got a bit of resistance, and we take them swimming in the lochs as well a couple of times a week.
“But Teg and Brac adore their job and they just want to work. As soon as we come here they’re raring to go and when we’re at a competition they’re locked in and know what they’re doing, plus they’re very good at it. “
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Morrigan[/caption]
As the prep for Crufts 2026 continues, Sam and Gemma have already set their sights on the future, with the aim of having a full team from Firebird ready for Crufts 2027.
Samantha added: “To compete at Crufts is really exciting in the first place, but that’s our ultimate aim.
“We’ve got another collie, Stella, who ran exactly the same time as Teg. She had a litter of pups and has just come back, and we have three of the litter - Morrigan, Rua and Nala - coming through and they’ve come from really good flyball dogs. They are all absolutely stunning and are good dogs so we’ve got a very good development coming through.
“We always say that the dogs and the handlers have to enjoy it first, otherwise there’s no point in competing.”
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