Keepin’ cool
This contest is for an Affordable Agility Doggie Drencher! Our most popular water obstacle, this fun item will give you and your dog hours of enjoyment. To enter this contest, comment below answering this question;
Everybody has a not-so-good day sometimes, and dogs just love to go zooming when we’re distracted! How do you keep your cool?
How to enter this contest:
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Scroll to the bottom of this page and enter your comment/answer. Or, if there is no box, click on the “comments” in the upper right corner.
Good luck! The winner will be chosen on/around July 31st and notified via email.
This contest is now closed – the winner was #8, Chenasmith! Congratulations!
When my younger dog starts to spin and bark, on course during a trial of course, I stop, take a breath, remind myself I am the one who choose to do this, appreciate her wild enthusiasm, maybe ask her to lie down to refocus, then carry on!
My dog Bella, a 3 year old Lab crossed with a Poodle and Bernese Mountain Dog, is a very energetic and high energy dog! She loves to go running off when I’m fixing an obstacle or when I get distracted, she is a very mischievous dog and seems to get into a lot of trouble, and sometimes I find myself laughing at what she has done! In order to get a good practise in I always take her for a quick walk (not far) just to let off some of her steam, if I’m practicing with my friend then we have the routine of the dogs play for a couple minutes and then the fun of agility, and after as a reward they get to do play again)for longer)!
As for keeping cool in the summer we set up a pool and the dogs normally jump in that, if we don’t set up the pool the dogs have fun chasing the hose or jumping threw the sprinkler. Sometimes when they are really hot the night before we take a container and fill it with water and put treats in the water and freeze it, the dogs always enjoy that on a hot summer day!
Usually my Sheltie, Amber, will get the zoomies as she patrols the yard looking for uninvited squirrels. Such fun to watch her and, of course, I always think, “oh to have that kind of energy and flexibility again!!!” A water obstacle in north central Texas in the summer would be the perfect treat after all that hard work!
Since we got weave poles from you Jake’s performance has improved from night to day!! Now he FLIES through them and thoroughly enjoys them as I throw his ball at the end. We have a blast! Our 2 GSD’s love playing in the water too – laying down in the kiddie pool – they are hilarious! Thanks!
I laugh and try to find humor in what the dog is doing. If he or she needs to blow off some steam, then maybe I’m asking too much in my training, so a self evaluation is needed.
I try to remind myself my dog is only doing what I ask him to do. We do it for the fun of the sport and because my dogs love it!
Good thing we do this for fun, because if we were in it for the Q’s we would be greatly disappointed. I think we are a good example to the newcomers that while being successful is nice, having fun with your special partner is nicer.
I keep my cool by joining in with the rest of my dogs whatever the activity may be. If they jump in the baby pool, so do I. If they run through the sprinkler, I also do the same. As the old saying goes, “If you can’t beat them, join them.” We all just zoom together (6 Shih-Tzu’s and a Golden Retriever).
This happened at our last show – after the first several good obstacles, she went zoomie all over the course. I finally got her caught and we calmly exited the course. I just swallowed hard and said to myself – we need more practice at obedience and paying attention to my hands and body when running a course. So, now we just keep practicing until the next show and keep it plenty of fun! I tell myself, she’s just starting to compete and it’s all about having a good time with my four-legged buddy, not about the ribbons.
If my dog does something crazy, I just think it is funny, try to get control, finish the course, and laugh about it!
I have one dog that his entire life is distraction and zoomies. I have tried all kinds of dog sports to see what is his “thing” and from what I can tell zoomies are his “thing” And really all I can do is watch him and think wow to have that much life doing literally nothing. He is so happy just running in circles.
My BC, Cali-Bug, will be 1-yr old next month, like any little girl, she is very excited about her ‘big day’! What a perfect Gift your ‘water-obstacle’ would be, and she would love to share w/her frequent puppy playmates. It gets very hot here in Northern Cali in July, To keep her and me, cool during our hot summer months, I first wet the grass down, place two misters on opposites sides of the lawn before playing frisbee. Sometimes I place them so she has to jump over or near them to catch it. Another fun game she loves, is chasing the water spray from the hose as I move it around in diff directions. When she is getting tired (never! ha-ha!) she retires for a nap on her ‘Coolaroo’ bed…often used by working sheep dogs, it is comfy/durable material (that stays naturally cool somehow) stretched over a lightweight/very aturdy steel frame that keeps her about 6-8″ off the ground, allowing for all-around air circulation. It is easily cleaned off w/hose and dries in seconds (you can put an additional foam topper on the bed and add a gel insert that can be either chilled or heated) I also drop a few ice cubes in her water bowl(s) whenever I get a cold drink for myself – she loves them! Finally, on really hot days, a cool wipe-down with a soft cloth and/or a light mist from a water bottle on her stomach, arms and face always brings a smile!
My Ridgeback is a little hesitant to jump right into the lake over her head so I wait until another dog comes along who goes in head first. She happily goes in to help find the ball! A sheet of water she would love to run through!
You have to remember dogs are like children sometimes, great fun, easily distracted and some days they just know how to push your buttons! I use my moms golden rule “count to 10 and start again.” Besides, some of the most wonderful people I have met has been when my dog ran off to meet him a new friend.
My puppy Blitz would love this as would Rocket and Jag. Fun.
We (Jess, the border collie, and me, his slowpoke guardian/trainer) added a tiny pool as a “Pause Box” so we can cool off before, during and after a session. I bet we’d both really enjoy adding the “doggie drencher” to our cool workout! Too much fun!
This looks awesome! I just recently started using agility equipment in my yard! I board dogs and offer day care in my home. It is fun to watch all the different doggie personalities play and learn. Some pick it up right away while others take more time. I HAVE A BLAST!!! This would add an awesome twist and help keep the dogs cool. Thank you Affordable Agility for the great starter agility set!
Mattie (my Bichon)sometimes goes to the ringcrew and photographers for “kisses”, so everybody gets a good laugh. Have a new Dobie pup coming up that I’m afraid is going to be a zoomer, so I’ll just have to “laugh with him” and hope he grows a brain soon!!