I have a Lab mix who loves to play fetch!  It was automatically programmed into his DNA and every day he plays fetch. I have used other types of ball launchers and I prefer this one to the others because of the length and sturdiness of the launcher.  I can launch a ball farther with this one and that's a good thing since my dog loves to run. I like the feel of it in my hand and the ease in which it releases the ball. So why the four star rating instead of five? In comparison to other launchers, this one does not grip the ball as tight so it's easy to drop the ball before you launch it if you aren't careful. It can also fall out while walking with it. I had a launcher that incorporated storage of a spare ball in the handle so that you could easily travel with a spare ball. I really wish this one had that feature. Often times, we play fetch at night and the ball sometimes gets lost out back until the light of day.  With a spare ball easily in tow, we could play for much longer.  Now we have to get out a flashlight or stop playing completely until daylight.