Fair competition goes to the dogs
Colter, a yellow lab, waits patiently for his owner, Kendra Baldwin, to return during a 4-H dog show at the Grant County Fair Tuesday afternoon.
MOSES LAKE - A well-trained dog takes time.
Just ask Kendra Baldwin, 12, who has worked with her golden retriever, Colter, since she was five and he was six months old.
"We spend at least a half an hour every day on training," Baldwin said. "We also play fetch and I take him to the park and let him run around. He's really hyper and playful."
The pair were among several Moses Lake 4-H dog-and-owner teams displaying their showmanship and skills at the Grant County Fair this week.
Each of the kids trains their own animals throughout the year and since March have taken part in a weekly skills class taught by Carolyn Harris, a longtime dog trainer and the fair's dog superintendent for the past 17 years.
"These kids work hard," Harris said. "My job is not just to teach them to train their dogs, but also to learn how their dogs think. One thing people need to learn is that dogs don't think like people, dogs think like dogs. It's not just about obedience, you have to know about dog behavior."
For the fair, kids are organized into classes according to ability or age before taking part in numerous competitions throughout the week including showmanship, agility, obedience, tricks and costumes.
"Today's the day the dogs are supposed to be obedient," Harris said with a laugh.
While some dogs were hesitant to respond willingly to their owners' commands or were distracted by the strange surroundings, many of the kids led their pets around the ring like pros during a basic obedience show Wednesday afternoon.
"A lot of these kids are working to qualify for the state fair," Harris said. "They really can take this as far as they want to go."
Most 4-H event judges were at one point involved in 4-H themselves, allowing them to understand the frustrations and challenges that can arise with pets at public shows, Harris said.
She herself got involved with 4-H at the age of 10 and has been a dog groomer and trainer for more than 30 years.
"I love dogs. I think everyone should have a dog they can be happy with," Harris said. "Some dogs are harder to work with than others, just like people, but I think all dogs are trainable."