Throw the Ball! Throw the Ball!

Posted by Ellie

Is there anything more fun than playing on the beach when there is a ball with a chuck-it launcher involved and you are an almost 8 month old Border Collie? I would say not. Even though it does involve getting a mouth full of sand and a coat full of mud. Because there is always the water to jump into again to get you clean and cool. As you see, she has to sit before the ball is thrown for her. For some reason she has combined the command to sit with the one to get her to drop the ball. If she is reluctant to let it go, all you have to do is ask her to sit and she drops it and gets ready for the next throw. Then she runs like the wind after it, into the water, or along the shore. She streaks back towards us, but then does a little victory lap around to celebrate her retrieval and the joy of living.

Joni will be 8 months old next week. She loves the beach more than anything, although as we live where the tides are the highest in the world, this needs careful planning and the use of a tide app to predict the water levels. At the highest point you can't access the beach. At the lowest you can have a long walk (30 minutes) through mud to get to the water. About 2 hours before high tide is a sweet spot, where the majority of the beach is sandy and the water is warm as it is washing in over the warm sand. But we have to keep an eye on the water level and not forget that there are places along this long stretch of beach where the inlets will fill faster. There are ladders up to the top of the cliff, but I don't fancy my chances on them. I'm sure Joni would manage just fine as she swims well and loves the water.

I must remember to tell you the story of the lost ball and share the photograph that I took to go with it. (It will be for the next time.) Meanwhile, have a great weekend and enjoy your furry friends.

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21 Responses

  5. Thanks +Mari Luukkonen – it's always something we have to take into account when going beach walking or hoping to swim or photograph. 😀 A good tides app is a help here. They don't do tides much on the other side of the province, either. Maybe a few feet of difference, but nothing to really worry about.
    And thanks very much. She is growing up fast.

    Reply

  8. I don't have it on her as a regular 'collar' +Bette Kauffman – I use it to help her stop pulling on her walking (will wean her off it once she no longer pulls). It does keep her calmer. She doesn't much like it when I put it on her. Worth trying with your lab, but don't expect a great reception when you first put it on her. Make sure it's put on the way they say. The first time I walked Joni with it, it was like walking a bucking bronco!

    Thanks a lot +Sumit Sen 

    Thank you +Marietta Dixon (not sure what GOP means, though).

    Reply

  13. +Darcee McCutcheon you are so welcome, and so right!

    Thank you +Heiko Mahr – I love to read the stories that go with images (and your poetry), so I always hope others do too.

    +Ursula Klepper – sometimes it might be two hours, but the most important thing is not to be too far on a walk and find that the tide has risen and you are cut off from escape! Two hours before high tide or earlier is safe. I am sure that Joni will be loving the ball and the beach at 10 years old like your Maya (?). I'm glad you like this one of Joni, though she looks so dirty.

    Thanks a lot +Shelly Gunderson – for sure!

    +Bette Kauffman thank you. The band around her moose is a Gentle Leader which is a training aid. http://www.gentleleader.co.uk/help-advice/faqs/
    She is so hyper active that this keeps her calmer when walking on the leash. She doesn't apparently notice it when she is playing.

    She has for sure +Rekha Rao – and you see the reply to the question about the band around her nose just above in the reply to Bette. 🙂

    Reply

  18. That's such a gorgeous image of Joni! I love the two hours of sandy beach! Joins face tells such a great story of this joy to play with the ball on the beach! Ours is already 10 years old but she is still crazy about playing with the ball and swimming wherever it is possible! xoxo

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