<p>Conyat: yep, my doggie is a champion tail-chaser…which is why I think she probably needs some other things to do! So she plays frisbee and hide-and-seek and catches balls and stuff. However, she is out of commission with these fun things for now! :(</p>
<p>churchmusic, your border collie will actually fetch balls?
I have a sheltie (“herding dog”- yeah, herd this…) and if I throw something out there, she hauls a$$ to it, and then starts circling around it…around and around and around it she goes. She never does pick it up. Just around and around and around…</p>
<p>Dog agility is a competitive sport in which a handler (owner/trainer) directs the dog over a course of 15-20 obstacles, aiming for the fastest error-free time. It requires a lot of training, a fit dog and a fit handler. It is possibly the only sport out there that is dominated by middle-aged women who could stand to lose a few pounds. If you’ve seen competitive dog agility on TV, I will point out that the handler gets only about 6 minutes to memorize the course and decide how to direct the dog, the course is new every time, and the dog has never seen the course before. When you consider than a good handler/dog team can complete a 175-yard course in less than 30 seconds, it gets pretty amazing. One of the top AKC handlers is a woman from Texas named Jean Simmons-Moake–she is in her 60s and handicapped, but still beats everyone else. It’s all in the training.</p>
<p>Churchmusicmom: there are excellent agility trainers in the Atlanta area. I would suggest you go watch this upcoming agility competition:
Canine Capers Agility Club of Greater Atlanta
Wills Park Equestrian Center, Wills Coliseum, Alpharetta, GA (9/14-9/16)
and then see if the sport is for you. You can talk to anyone AFTER they run their dog(s) and they will tell you all about it. Or you can send me a PM for more info.</p>
<p>something a vet taught me was if your pet is hurt- check out other parts of the body first, so if its the right front paw, look over the other feet and THEN go to the hurt foot, going after the hurt one first gets the dog all nervous, and they will relax a bit so you can actually look closely at the hurt area</p>
<p>also, be sure and massage the non affected areas so they won’t get strained because of the dog compensating, and then if you have to change a bandage or check out the affected area again, they will most likely let you</p>
<p>I have had reaction to bee stings where I am very swollen- but I only intermittently learn to put shoes on when I go outside</p>
<p>My dog has allergies and takes benadryl- I suppose a beesting would respond to an antiflammatory wouldn’t it?</p>
<p>
HA, Doubleplay, yes she does! Balls, toys, anything that moves. She brings it back and, with reminders to “leave it” or “drop it”, she bounces backward for another go at it.</p>
<p>She also loves to chase and catch frisbees. If you say the word “frisbee” (known around here as “the F word!!”) her ears perk up and she smiles and gets ALL excited!</p>
<p>myTrixie, border collie, would put the ball on your feet and if you weren’t quick enough for her, she would pick it up and throw it at you or roll it with her nose</p>
<p>and Cosmo, her border collie “brother” would herd her while she worked the ball and if she missed it he would pick it up than pass it off to Trixie to bring in</p>
<p>it was like a couple dancing</p>
<p>at first Trixie was afraid of the frisbee, so my D who was 7 at the time, threw it and ran and grabbed it then threw it again, Trixie caught on real quick</p>
<p>once Trixie couldn’t find a ball or stick so she brought what she thought was a pine cone,noe horse poop…and it is amazing when she grabbed a tree branch and expected me to toss it, yeah, all 6 feet</p>
<p>Funny, CGM!! I would love if we could get a companion for Reese, but for now we are her “sheep”! </p>
<p>Yep, I think we taught Reese to catch the frisbee by throwing it to each other. She eventually ran in between and intercepted it!</p>
<p>Another thing she does is bring us her food dish…rather, toss it at us…when she is hungry. Then we have her bring it to us where her food actually IS so we can but the food in it.</p>
<p>How’s the pooch doing? Any word from the vet?</p>
<p>Thanks for asking, acinva! No word from the vet, but Reese seems better today. Her foot is less swollen and she is walking on it almost all of the time, so I think we are on the “mend!”</p>
<p>Good news to hear!</p>
<p>So glad he’s doing better. I guess this is going to be one of those medical mysteries. LOL.</p>
<p>Didn’t post but watched Reese’s progress. My JR Terrier had a really sore leg/foot a year ago. Turns out, she had arthritis in her “shoulder” and had just way overworked her lower joints compensating for the shoulder. She’s back to her regular “completely annoying” level now! haha. Glad to hear doggie will be fine.</p>