Doggie Boot Camp

Today I decided that I need to get into gear and get on top of this 4H year. Yesterday, I was at our state fair for 4H. My dogs didn't qualify, but I volunteered and I went to spend time with my friends who qualified in my county. It dawned on my yesterday that I am starting my last year as a student in 4H. NERVE RACKING! So starting today, I am really going to get my bum into gear and make my final year of 4H the best that it can be.
With that said, this afternoon, I took both of my dogs out on the back patio. I was treat training the dogs, something I used to never do because of how overweight Sparkie is. He used to be much worse that what he is now. I worked with both dogs for about a half hour. Blew was overly excited because he was actually working for treats. He was so excited that he didn't do exactly what he was told because the treats were the coolest thing since sliced bread. He was so overwhelmed he couldn't stay still for more than five seconds. It was like having a two month old puppy all over again!
Sparkie thought that the treats were too good to be true, so he didn't believe that they were actually in my pocket. He barely got excited by the treats, which is highly unlike him. But anyone who thought that corgis were very easy going and push overs thought WRONG. Sparkie has a very strong stubborn streak. The reason why is that he think that he is the brightest bulb ever, so what I am telling him to do, isn't that great of an idea so his idea is the better one to choose. In some ways, it's just his giant ego showing. I was trying to get him to do the stand for examination, which is always his downfall in the show ring. Each time I got him to stand, just before I gave the command to stay, he was immediately sit down. This is where Sparkie proved how stubborn he is.
Anybody who thought that training a dog is easy, think again. It take patience. All they want to do is please, but they get ahead of themselves. Always remember that the best thing to give them is lots of love and praise!
So tonight, I started teaching Sparkie dance moves also. I can get him to put his front paws on my knees, and if I take his paws in my hands, I'll walk backwards and of course he comes with me. He isn't comfortable with it yet, but like all things, practice makes perfect. My goal is to have him do a full dance routine by the time the fair is here next year. I have seen many videos of dancing corgis and would love to have him be a dancing corgi. Also, it will help get him back in the proper shape. Yes, round is a shape, but not healthy for a little guy like him.
Part of his doggie boot camp is to have him be active. Training him is great, but one of his ultimate favorite games to play is fetch. I have to tell him "drop it, leave it, get it," though or else I am tugging a slimy rubber ball out of his mouth. So tonight from 8 pm until 10 pm while I was watching The X Factor I was throwing the ball for him. He is a lot of fun to play with. By the end of the night, he was panting fairly hard.
After the end of the night, I weighed him.
 Prepare yourself for the verdict. Sparkie weighs a whopping 30 pounds. That is about four pounds overweight. I know it is going to be hard (especially because I start classes on Monday) but I am going to work very hard to get him into proper shape. I want to make my last 4H year all that I can.
So now I will leave you with a cheerful video of a corgi dance routine!

Creature Of Habit

Everybody has their own special routine, correct? It may not be as extensive as Rachel Berry's nightly moisturizing routine from Glee, but it's a routine no less. Well let's just say that I can't start my routine until Sparkie is done with his morning routine. Perhaps it is better to say that he has me trained...?
Every morning, the first thing I have to do is help Sparkie get outside. We have a dog door, but it's rather heavy because it's plexiglass so we help him get out. He always run in the morning. It is safe to say that he is a morning person... er... morning dog. So while Sparkie is getting his morning fresh air, I go fill his bowl. By the time both food bowls are filled, both dogs come running inside and devour their food. I don't think they actually taste it, they just inhale the food.
If you think the morning routine is bad, the night time routine is pretty bad too. The dogs know that they are to be fed at exactly 6:00 pm. My mom usually gets home from work around 6:00 also. It is safe to say that it sometimes can be a crazy time in the house. When the dogs are hungry, they are wired for sound. Even a pin dropping, they will start running through the house barking. they will do whatever it take to get my attention. Yesterday was one of my favorites though, at exactly 5:59, Blew came trotting up to me, hopped up on the couch and kissed my face. When the clock read 6:00 Sparkie walked in the room I was in and stared at me. It was safe to say that my dogs were hungry. My dogs are spoiled (as if that wasn't already known.) They are fed kibble  in the morning, and a raw meat patty mixed with kibble at night. So as I mixing their food, Blew sits in the kitchen while a line of drool comes out of his mouth. Sparkie of course cannot contain his excitement. He jumps on the side of the counter while he is barking. When I go to set the bowls down, he is so excited and so happy (and probably thinks I am going just way too slow) that he is running circles.
So what do you think, does he have me trained, or is he just a creature of habit?

A Day at the Fair

Once more, I truly am terrible with the everyday update thing. I suppose that when there is a new post on my blog, it is a cause for excitement, seeing as it doesn't happen very often. I do have one excuse for not posting, but it is a weak excuse. I was at the county fair for two weeks and then I was on vacation for two weeks directly after, and I being such a knucklehead decided to leave my laptop at home, not being able to blog at all.

Sparkie and Blew on the bench in the Dag Barn!

In terms of the fair, we had a doggone great time. Please excuse the pun. I don't know if I had ever seen a dog enjoy being called cute that much. One would think that after hearing it so much you would get used to it and not react. But Sparkie might as well be in my school's drama program because he always has the same happy and hyper reaction when a group of fair-goers coo at him say "Oh he's so cute!" Being told he is cute is most likely Sparkie's favorite words to hear. I would say that his showmanship score proved it too. Sparkie and I got a blue in the showmanship ring. He couldn't get enough of showing off how wonderful he looked when he was fully groomed. But being told he was cute went to his head by the time that he got in the obedience ring. In obedience we got a red. But I don't really mind about our scores, 4H is meant to have fun.

My 4H club won Herdsmanship!

In total, I got a blue and a red with Sparkie, a white for obedience with Blew. We also did brace which is with the two dogs doing obedience at the same time, which we got a white in. My club entered in team obedience which we got a red in. I was on our Dog Bowl team which is a knowledge contest, our team was able to get a blue and take first place. I went to the state fair as first alternate. At state we took fifth out of the other counties. At county we also do what is called Herdsmanship. We have to work on greeting the public, keeping our area of the barn clean, watering the dogs, and taking the dogs out when needed. My club hasn't taken the Herdsmanship banner for a day at the fair in a couple of years. Luckily, this year we got to. We were in fact awarded bonus points for playing a game with the public where the kids could answer a question and get a pencil or piece of candy. Winning Herdsmanship was one of my favorite accomplishments.
After this year at the fair, I can safely say that each year continues to just get better and better. This year was possibly the best year yet at the fair and I cannot wait for next year.