It was part of a growing sport called dock jumping, a laid-back pastime that does not have the high profile and histrionics of better-known events like Westminster. The premise behind dock jumping is simple: dogs jump into the water, and they are judged on how well they do. In this competition, a mutt is as welcome, if not more, than a purebred.
There are different disciplines. In the Big Air event, the dogs’ jumps are measured for distance. Lanky, athletic dogs tend to gravitate toward the Extreme Vertical, in which the competitors jump to snatch a dog toy suspended eight feet over the pool. The Speed Retrieve tests how fast a dog can swim when fetching a thrown object. A dog can enter all three events and compete for the Iron Dog title, a distinction of all-around athleticism.
Although many dogs have a natural instinct to retrieve something, not all are inclined to leap off a dock into cold water. At Summer Splash, which was held in mid-May and hosted by the Chicagoland Dock Dogs chapter, a few of the competitors merely sniffed around looking befuddled. The dogs must jump of their own volition; handlers cannot nudge or bump the dog into the water. But, as an incentive to individual competitors, anything that floats can be tossed out over the water. Flying disks, tennis balls, rubber ducks and retrieval toys called bumpers are common choices.
Dock jumping takes all comers.
“There are no professional dogs,” said Beth Wiltshire, the event’s organizer. “They are all people’s dogs.”
She added: “I mean, they’re just jumping off a dock. It’s kind of hard to take it too seriously.”
The sport does not have excessive amounts of prize money and does not promise stud fees for champion jumpers. First place at Summer Splash paid out $75, after a $30 registration fee. Dogs can earn titles, and the United Kennel Club awards titles through Ultimate Air Dogs and Splash Dogs competitions.
“It has grown steadily, and interest has definitely increased since we began offering dock jumping titles,” said Sydney Suwannarat, the kennel club’s executive director of performance events. “Last year, 310 dock jumping titles were earned.”
There is a dock jumping circuit, and a handful of dog owners travel across the country to win recognition and set records. The Chicagoland event had three big-jumping dogs who had competed against one another before, and they were the ones to watch.
Wrigley, a 7-year-old rescued Weimaraner named after the Chicago Cubs’ ballpark, first jumped off a dock in 2009.
“He was jumping off a dock into a pond with a life jacket because we didn’t know if he could swim,” said his owner, Meghan Williams. “He figured it out.”
A year later, they traveled to Salem, Ore., where Wrigley took second place in Big Air at the DockDogs World Championships. He took second place again at the same championship in 2011.
Meghan and her husband, Pete, travel to dock jumping competitions once or twice a month from their home in Crest Hill, Ill., a Chicago suburb.
“He goes everywhere with us,” Pete Williams said. “We’ve met tons of people and have done some awesome things with him.”
One of the people they have met is Brad Weicht of Wentzville, Mo. Weicht’s jumping dog is Guinness, an adopted Great Dane-Labrador mix. Wrigley jumps long; Guinness jumps high. Both dogs compete in the Iron Dog competition.
“They beat us in Big Air and we pound them in vertical,” Weicht said.
Henry, a 3-year-old up-and-coming Lab-pointer mix, has competed against Wrigley and Guinness. He was adopted by Michael and Julie Kittinger of Prairie Village, Kan., who noticed his strong drive to chase toys. They started Henry in dock jumping a year ago.
His first official jump was 17 feet 4 inches. At the Chicagoland event, Henry passed his personal best with a jump of 25-11, beating Wrigley in the Big Air finals by 3 inches.
Henry’s jumps keep increasing as he matures, the Kittingers said. They intend to travel around the country with him.
“I’m getting ready to burn my vacation time for the year on events,” Michael Kittinger said. “He wants to go again, again and again. He’s not happy when you take him off the dock.”