What safety precautions should be taken when playing fetch with a dog to avoid injury?
Dog Smart professional interpretation
By Dog Smart Training & Behaviour · · · 1 min read
In short
Ball chasing can cause injuries such as slips, sprains, tumbles and collisions because it engages a dog's muscles like an athlete's; avoid playing on ice, slippery mud, or steep inclines, ensure the toy is appropriate, and consider modifying tennis balls or using a sock/rope to slow impact.
The fuller picture
No.3 safety, I will be the first one to scream from the rooftops, ball chasing causes injuries. I've been there trust me. Slips, sprains, tumbles, collisions. You are engaging your dogs muscles in the same way an athlete does, under those circumstances it's real easy to cause damage. So take a few precautions, don't play in ice and slippery mud or surfaces, steep inclines as well, also make sure the ball or toy is appropriate for a dog to have. Put the ball in a sock to slow it down when it lands, or thread a rope though it, at the very least split it and try to avoid tennis balls, they wear teeth and bounce too much.