Unrestrained Dog Joy

I loved so many photos that I took at the local Game Fair last Saturday that it was difficult to select which ones to put into this blog post. This wasn’t because so many shots were good – many are fuzzy, cluttered or have fence wires running through them – but through all of that, I think the emotion and excitement of the dogs and the cool relationship they have with their human came through in a big smile way.

Neither Steve and I are hunters so all the booths selling hunting gear were wasted on us. What I went for was to see the dogs and to have a chance to photograph them in action.

This boy was amazing! It wasn’t that he found the decoy in the obstacle course right away. What was fun to watch was the teamwork between the dog and his human. When the dog went in the wrong direction, the man blew a whistle and the dog froze, waiting for a signal. When the signal came, he continued in the direction he was pointed. I loved his intensity! He simply seemed to have character.

And he scores!

Dogs watching on the sidelines, like Java, badly wanted to be a part of the action.

This dog waited with every muscle tensed, eyes focused, waiting for the command…

Retrieve!

And retrieve

And retrieve

“Please let me go play too?”

“I think I smell sheep…”

“I do smell sheep! You won’t even let me chase squirrels!”

Besides a sheep herding demonstration, there were agility dogs. This guy was a beginner just starting out.

He looked like he was having fun.

Note to self: This looks like a real workout for the owner too.
May have to rethink pursuing agility with Latte…

Do ya think there was a bit of “treat” anticipation?

There were more experienced dogs too.


“What’s so great about that? I could do that blind folded!”

Did I mention what a good dog training event this was for the dog spectators? Latte was actually better behaved than Java because Java (a lot of retriever in her) wanted to go into the water SOOOOO BAD!
Java might have some herding instinct in her too as the sheep drove her a bit nuts, while agility left her cold, and she proceeded to put her head on some guy’s lap next to us and drool on his pants. Good thing he was a dog person…

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9 Comments

  1. Latte is such a beauty. She looks almost exactly like my girl, Nell who passed away last winter. She was half Corgi (and had no tail, to prove it!) and half Whippet Lurcher (Whippet x Border Collie). Seeing Latte’s beautiful face and those ears…brings tears to my eyes but in a good way.

  2. What a fun event to go to!!! I’d love that, and taking the dogs would make it even better. All the dogs are just beautiful!! That black lab – aah!! just gorgeous!!! I’ll bet that would be a lot of fun, and like you said, good exercise for the person…I’ve never seen anything like the water/retrieving events around here, but they do have agility events. Maybe I’ll find the time to check it out someday. Beautiful pictures, all of them. I wish your dogs could have participated – their expressions show just how badly they wanted to get out there!! 🙂

  3. Lori – Time is the issue with taking up agility but it sure would be good for a dog like Latte.

    Jo – I do think Latte is part Corgi & Jack Russell. I love her ears! I’m sorry for your loss.

  4. Susan – Thank!

    C-ingspots – I do hope to take the dogs camping soon and give Java a chance to swim. Latte would be a great agility dog if I could just be a better trainer.

  5. What excellent pictures! I would love to go to an event like that!
    When I got my Aussie’s 5 & 6 yrs ago, I wanted to do agility with them. I never did. Wish I would have though! Bailey would have been really good at it, Sadie not so much!

  6. What fun! At first glance – I didn’t realize they were duck decoys. And – I love the agility competitions. Terrific images!!!

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