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Rats,
Tunnels, and our Terriers -
by Carole Fry
Owen
Earthdog work is a hobby you
should consider to test the natural instinct of your
Scottie, Westie, Cairn or any small terrier. My Scottie
Rescue Stormy is having a ball being an earthdog. She's not a
fancy Scottie.just a game terrier. We'd love to have your
company.
What's involved? Your terrier
scoots down a man-made (very safe) tunnel, finds one or two caged
rats at the end of the tunnel and "works" the rats for a
designated time by digging, barking, growling, lunging
or biting to indicate he/she wants to engage the
quarry. Sound like what comes naturally for your dog?
After just one short practice to
introduce her to a short tunnel and the rats, my Stormy "qualified"
in "Intro to Quarry" both days at the earthdog tests last
October in Houston, and also almost qualified as a Junior
Earthdog in the longer, more difficult tunnel.
For "Junior," Stormy needed to go
down a 30-foot tunnel that had three 90-degree turns. There were
only 30 seconds to reach the quarry. Then Stormy was
supposed to "work" continuously for 60 seconds. Stormy was a
barking fool, but she reached the quarry several seconds too slowly.
Darn, but I was proud she did so well on her first tries on the
harder tunnels. We are off to try the Intro and Junior
tunnels again in March. We'll be at the AKC earthdog tests
of Tejas Earthdog Club of Southeast Texas at Brookshire (west of
Houston). After she gets her Junior title, there are Senior and
Master Earthdog titles we can pursue.
Important for Central Texas: There is a new
earthdog group in the Georgetown area. I've been to two practices
there with Stormy, and all the dogs had lots of fun. The
group will be having other practices and also an earthdog test in
the near future, probably in Austin.
For more information about how
your terrier can participate in earthdog work, contact Carole
Owen, 1203 N. 9th St., Temple, TX 76501; ph. 254/791-1365; e-mail to
ritescot@aol.com. Or contact the
earthdog teacher for the Georgetown group: JoAnn Wolf at
hobnob@texas.net or Becky at Countryside
Pet Resort in Georgetown at skycladd@msn.com
For information on Texas earthdog trials,
contact Jana Marlin, secretary Tejas Earthdog Club at 10827 Tower
Bridge, Houston, TX 77075 or Jana_Marlin@gbtpa.com
A great earthdog book is JoAnn
Frier Murza's Earthdog Ins and Outs.
Several earthdog websites are:
AKC Indefinite Listing
Privilege
ILP are the magic letters which will allow
your rescue dog, or your unregistered pet, to compete in performance
events of the American Kennel Club. With an ILP #, your dog can
participate in AKC obedience, agility, earthdog, tracking, or any
events a Scottie or Westie (or Cairn, etc.) is qualified
to enter. An ILP registration shows that in the best judgment of the
AKC, your dog is a purebred dog of the stated breed.
I obtained an ILP # on my Rescue Scottie
Stormy so she could compete in AKC earthdog tests. It was very
easy to do. I completed the application form,
and received Stormy's ILP number within two weeks.
Requirements:
. Two recent color photos in
standing position; full front view and side full profile
. Certification that the dog has been
either spayed or neutered
. Fee of $25.00
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