A Balancing Challenge at Royal K9 Korner

Oh the fun we had!!  It started out with one little dog who always seemed to have toys on or around her face and head. She always made me laugh and I had sent photos to her mom to share my giggles. Mom had also started placing toys on her head and little Sage soon became the dog who loved (well, certainly allowed) things being placed on her head. 

So proud of her new toy, Sage lets her mom place it on her head.
Photo courtesy of Sage's mom Nov. 2022

It made me wonder just how many other visitors would allow such a silly thing and I started trying out different toys during their visits. These days were always filled with even more laughter than a usual visit and I began to keep a record of which dog allowed which toy(s).
Before long I discovered the most accepted toys were the 7 tough tug/chew toys. I sorted them out and decided to only use them when I played the head balance game. The dogs seemed to enjoy the reward treats of veggies, fruit and goodies during the challenge times. I always had a good selection on hand and even used bits of cheese and dried liver some times. No kidding they liked the game. Or at least were more likely to want to participate.

As the summer progressed so did the stress of a BC Wildfire season. Some of our regular visitors were evacuated from their homes and some of their moms and dads are currently working on the front lines or behind the scenes fighting those fires. Instead of concentrating on the negative situation of our community and province, I tried to focus more on a lighter side of each day. This challenge was a wonderful way to pass some time and laugh from my heart.  
There is no denying the stress with in myself and everyone else in our area. I somehow have made it through thus far with a few smiles every day thanks to the unending humour the visiting dogs bring me. My idea was to pass some of the happy feelings to others by Facebook posts of silly dog antics  instead of all the dangers and tragedy of the Wildfire. There is plenty of it out there all necessary for various reasons. I personally give thanks everyday for the never ending effort that has been going into keeping us all safe from the rapidly spreading wildfires.  Paws crossed this ends soon and positively.

The silly times we had as well as the results of our challenge can be found in our Facebook album - On The Head Toy Balance Challenge.
The winners and prizes are as follows.

Sage 1st place winner 4 toys  Prize - Special Pink lace and ribbon bonnet

There was a 4 way tie between 2nd place winners! All will receive a fancy hand picked hat specially for them.

2nd place winners tied with 3 toys balanced Oskar, Bentley, Bailey and Kaia

Kaia, Oskar and Bentley are all living in wildfire evacuation situations
and will receive their prizes at a safer time.  Stay safe please!

I took some time in making a decision for what the prizes should be. When I found these cute hats I thought they were the perfect prize for on the head challengers. I ordered one Large size in the beginning and discovered it still seemed quite small. So I ordered all the rest in extra large. Any one that's ever ordered clothing items may understand that sizing for online purchases can be a bit disappointing. As a result of that, I decided to trade a hat for Bailey's chosen special hat. He has received one of the 3rd place winner hats instead. Such a lucky boy! 

Bailey shows off his special prize hat.
Me thinks it s tad too small :(

2nd place tie winner Bailey, sporting his substitute hat. A much nicer fit I think.

3rd place tied between 4 winners - Kona, Sadie, Ruby and River

Ruby, River and Sadie have all received their prize hats and even modelled them for us!
Thank you girls you are so talented! 
Sir Kona is also among those who are living through the scary wildfire evacuation! We trust you and your family will also stay safe boy. I'll hold your cookie and hat prize along with our sisters and the others. Stay safe and be a good boy!

3rd place Matron Sadie, Countess River & Miss Ruby.
Prize an "I WON" logo hat plus cookies

We also had 7 participant prize winners. Coco, Henry, Loki, Ellie, Nugget, Peaches and Miss Khione!
Congratulations all!
You have helped to pass the days through a very troubling time and I applaud your patience.

If you haven't received your cookie prize yet, I promise to keep them safe until we can met again.

Everyone has or will receive a bag of Royal K9 Korner logo cookies.
Ingredients used list -
Ginger, Molasses, Coconut Oil, Rice flour, Pumpkin puree, Chopped Pears, egg, Olive oil, Oatmeal.
Hand made with all the love and smiles you all deserve! Specially cut with a fabulous designer logo cookie cutter made by a Canadian Company. Family owned and operated 3D printer and Clothing Shop out of Petrolia, Ontario
Please visit Brian in their shop WhiteFam3DCreations www.etsy.com/shop/WhiteFam3DCreations/
Well done Brian. Thank you!
If anyone has not heard of this company, you really should go check out their shop!

I ABSOLUTELY LOVE MINE!

Nugget Visited for The Weekend!

Oh man she is so small! 10 lbs of the cutest little tuffy I’ve ever snuggled with.
Bailey came for a day visit and was so happy to meet her. Nugget's little tail wiggled as soon as she'd given him the once over.

Bailey and Nugget meeting for the very first time.

Bailey’s social skills around little dogs is impeccable. He knew to steer clear of her during his zooms and to lay flat when he first met her. Oh, my goodness what a good boy!
Nugget was initially a bit reluctant but overcame her shyness with in a very short time. She has met many other dogs but tends to steer clear of the over excited boisterous ones. Now she has a big new buddy. Together they played by the pool in the heat of the day. I kept her on a long safety lead most of the day. Her recall is not 100% and she’s too quick to allow so much freedom in our big yard for this little one’s safety. 

Nugget - "Hey, pass me that toy will ya?"
Bailey - "No, I want it."

Nugget on a long safety lead strapped to my hip.

Nugget - "Just don't touch my toy okay?"
Loki - "What makes you think it's yours?"

Miss Sage and her brother Loki arrived soon after. Nugget took one look at them from the safety of the gated doorway. She immediately went into her biggest, scariest, stay away from me behaviour. It set off the barking from Sir Loki and sent Miss Sagie running for cover. Oooh kay so, we'll keep you all separate for a while and play this one by ear. And so, we did.
The day passed uneventful with no other fussing. Maybe Nugget felt the need to express herself at first meeting to set the grounds rules early on. It was enough to tell me not to trust leaving the 3 unattended in the living room if I needed to go to the kitchen. The separation gate went up when I left the room and the next few days were easy peasy.

Sage - "Hey? Can I share your toys?"
Nugget - "No! Go away!"

Due to the hot temps during her visit, ball play was limited and relaxing in the shade was encouraged. That can be a draining task when trying to keep the 3 ball dogs, Loki, Bailey and Nugget, occupied and they really just want to run and chase. Fortunately for me everyone agreed this time. It was too hot and outdoors became just a bit of relaxing shade time.

Loki - "When can we play ball?"
Me - "Later sweetie when the sun goes down."

Ball time was twice a day. First thing in the morning before the sun came up and later in the evening after the sun had gone to bed. The rest of the day was divided between A/C time and shady pool time.

The girl rest on the daybed in the A/C after morning ball play

This was a first sleep over for Nugget and I have to admit I wondered how she would handle not having her mommy to snuggle in bed with. I don't allow dogs to share our bed, unless it's a very special time. Like a big scary thunder storm. There was no thunder this night so an open door crate was offered to Nugget. To my surprise she walked right in, did a few scratches and circles and settled down to sleep. Thank you Nugget. That's a very good girl!

Nugget - "But don't lock me in okay?"
Lady May - "You can trust my mom, you can leave the crate whenever you want."

Of course the bedroom doorway gate was closed and Sage & Loki were safely separated by the other gate. All was quiet all night. Such great overnight visitors! Sometime through out the night Nugget had moved from the crate and asked to join me in my bed. When I placed her back down she simply chose the quilted bed and snuggled back to sleep.

Sage and Loki always sleep close by each other.
When one stirs the other just takes more of the bed.

The following days went by quickly and Nugget became more accepting of the other dogs. I kept the separator fence up but she had several opportunities for  'togetherness' times with Sage and Loki.
Her chosen rest place was the big crate next to the TV. She had gone into the other one that Bailey uses but decided this one would be 'hers'. She seems so little in it. Lots of room for toys to protect and keep way from the prying eyes of Sir Loki.

Nugget - "These are my toys. Paws off."

Nugget's first over night visit and meeting with the others went very well. I'm looking forward to any future visits from her.  She is definitely welcome back any time!

My Needs Work With The Dogs Needs.

In my last Facebook post I mentioned some changes at Royal K9 Korner. One of the changes I’m moving into is revisiting how I accept and book the dogs.
A high percentage of my energy these days, is used up taking care of my own aging sweet girl Lady May. I will go into more details on her present condition in another post. To sum it up I do not have a bottomless pit of energy and know I need to save my reserves for her. 

One of the goals at Royal K9 Korner is to provide opportunities for dogs to have fun. To allow dogs the freedom to play and safely enjoy their time with others away from home. I love seeing dogs run, laugh, tumble and zoom. Or simply just lay around and be together with others. Some days are let’s go crazy days and some are slow quiet days. 

 Peaches, Sadie, Lady May, Sage and Loki
5 dogs but the dynamics feel like only 2 are visiting

I have the option of setting up what type of day it will be by who I book in on those days. I love them all and they all keep me smiling. I want that to continue.
Sometimes there’s a need to keep visitors separated. When I do, it’s due to a safety issue. It could be a minor safety issue like keeping someone separate during rough and tumble play. Perhaps someone doesn’t like to see that type of play and will act out if it happens around them. If that scenario is stressful to them, I will help them remove it by separating them.
It takes energy to watch for this, but I believe it’s an important use of my energy. 

Generally, when it’s a more serious health related issue, it’s been requested by a vet along with the moms/dads. Somebody may have an injury or healing from one. Aggravation by association with buddies is very real. A romp on the grounds could send them back to the Dr’s. with a more serious injury. What ever the reason, they must be kept separate, even though I feel sad doing it, do it I must.

Matron Sadie shows the temporary fence set up for those who are not allowed to jump

At times a separation is needed because someone just doesn’t feel comfortable being close to another. Fortunately, my yard is set up to accommodate all those visits. It’s possible to allow them to safely visit through a fence. I like to think they’ll grow more accustomed to the other if they can still see, smell and touch noses. That’s not always possible and sadly it may become more appropriate to keep buddies two sections away. Those are the days that tell me to make a choice not to have those particular visitors here on the same day in future and certainly not over night. It just doesn’t seem fair to me or them. It’s time to say, let’s “just drop this” I’ve spent enough energy and so have they.

Miss Sage and Ruby,
quite happy to have a fence between them

If dogs are excessively playful to the point of being over the top ‘into’ each other. I call a ‘timeout’ for them. When I have two dogs who can not be called into time out, I will separate them. There is a possibility of one overpowering the other and it quickly becomes a power match. That is no longer safe play, and it will be stopped. It requires too much of my energy to continue to monitor two particular dogs. I take that into consideration when/if they are requesting future playdays together.  I base the booking dependant on my energy reserves those days.

Sir Henry and Squire Bailey play rough and tumble but still able to hear my words  'Cookie Break"

Some of my regulars may have noticed I’ve been full more often than not. It’s likely I only have one or two dogs those days and I’m considering that full due to how much energy it will require of me.
I believe using my energy wisely will allow me to continue to maintain the safe, fun and healthy daycare and lifestyle for our visitors needs.
If I'm full on the day you request, please try again another day!
I love your dog and truly want to have them visit.
Thank you so much for all your understanding. I wish I had a bottomless pit of energy. However, I need to save my reserves for myself, my family and my sweet little girl Lady May.