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What is Musical Freestyle?

It might be called Musical Freestyle, Freestyle, Musical Dog Sport, Canine Freestyle, or just Dancing with Your Dog. Whatever you call it, it's a great way to practice some new skills with your dog, get both of you some exercise, and have some fun.

Musical freestyle is a relatively new sport that combines dog obedience and dance in a way that is totally unique and exciting. It blends dog obedience and dance presenting a visually exciting display of handler and canine teamwork. The handler and dog perform dance-oriented footwork in time to the music, rather than displaying the traditional walking pace of obedience. Heeling is an important component of freestyle but nonstandard movements are also expected to be displayed by the dog along with attention, enthusiasm, and a degree of difficulty over and above that which is normally seen in the obedience ring.

This new dog sport is fun to watch and participate in. All you need to practice is your dog, some music and a little rhythm. Due to the great entertainment value, music freestyle has changed the way we view dog competitions and increased interest from dog owners of all breeds.

Freestyle roots originally started with horses where the horse would turn in sync with music. The beginning of dog freestyle can be traced to Canada and is believed to have started as a simple demonstration. Canine freestyle differs from the original freestyle form for horses in that it involves a series of rapid and complex maneuvers by the dog and owner.

If you're not sure about Canine Freestyle, the following links provide some nice examples of Canine Freestyle teams in action:

Probably the most famous Freestyle Team!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqbVbPvlDoM

This is beyond cute!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xlyN0L4IMck

Really Happy Dog! Love how the fur just fly's!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZarQX5C_s8

And yes, kids can do it too!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2EKz_-Uqe74
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YWwCgV5XiFs