Blarn's Favourite Pose

I suppose begging is the most obvious trick to teach a dog. "You beg and you'll eat!" For a dog of normal proportions, that is, not long and wobbly, this position is probably no big deal, but for Blarney it's like balancing a (you guessed it) warmed wiener on end.

We arrived at the Manning Park Lodge for a break and play session only to discover the area was dotted with hundreds of gophers sunning themselves at their holes. The smell sent Blarney into a frenzy of sniffing every which way and set us off laughing. We were determined to get a picture of a gopher to match with Blarney. "Gopher" was almost his first learned word. "Gopher!" we'd say, before a treat or to claim a toy. He often "gophers" automatically for a ball or in hopes something will be offered.

This wouldn't be our only encounter with these critters. An area, in Prince Albert, adjacent to the RV park was bigger than a couple of football fields. It was a minefield of holes with little heads popping up willy nilly. Blarney ran free with a maniacal gait, trying one hole after another. In a small field at the Clearwater park, he dropped his ball down a hole. His head was invisible as he began to dig. More dirt went down than up and we had to use our throwing stick to clear the hole while we held him back. Another time, on a run for the ball, he fell into a hole and did a barrel roll coming out. No question he has earned the privileges of an upstanding member of the "Society of Standing Gophers"!