Paws and applause: 4-H youth compete in obedience contest

MOSES LAKE — The Happy Tails 4-H Club held its annual dog competition show at the Grant County Fair for children and their dogs. Wednesday’s events included obedience and dog judging.

“There is always room for improvement, we will put that nicely,” Jessica Harper, the judge of the obedience competition, said. “It’s a really young group and so more practice and consistency will definitely help them improve but they are Clover Buds, the youngest age group for children, they are here for fun and that’s what is most important.”  

According to Harper, the obedience competition consists of several parts. The dogs must heel, walk at different speeds, and sit immediately when the judge says "halt" without any additional commands. They then repeat the heeling and sitting in a figure-eight pattern. Another test requires the dogs to sit and wait, and only move when called by their handler. In the “stand for exam” phase, the dog must sit and then stand still while the judge examines them, and points are deducted if the dog moves, bites or growls. Finally, the dogs must perform a one-minute sit-stay followed by a one-minute down-stay, only moving back to their handler when given a command.  

James Doyer, 17, from Moses Lake, competed with his Goldendoodle, Ziva. Doyer has competed the last three years with Ziva and said she gets better every year. He said that she is trained enough where he can take her off leash and she still stays next to him.  

“I feel like I have done OK. Ziva did better her first year than she did today which is nerve-wracking because this is her third year,” Doyer said. “She was calm today, though, which was good.” 

Doyer said Ziva could have done better. He said there were some seats where she didn’t listen or sit next to him. He said his four-footed partner usually does better in training but the unfamiliar environment and distractions threw her off.  

“I really like these events. I love taking a break from being out there for the other events. This is so much less stressful,” Doyer said. “These are all people in our club and once you get to know them, it just becomes like a big old family here.”

Audrey Heslop, 15, of Mattawa competed with her Australian shepherd, Georgia. Heslop has competed twice with Georgia, who is 2 1/2 years old.  

“She didn’t do great but she did do better than last year,” Heslop said. “I think that James beat me though because we are competing against each other, because we are the only seniors. I think he got a grand and I got a reserve grand.”

Heslop said that she is proud of Georgia and that the dog has made a lot of progress. She said Georgia was more chaotic and less focused last year than this year. She also mentioned the amount of training Georgia has received and her dog getting older has helped with that.  

“This year I think she was more focused and not as wild or crazy,” Heslop said. “Through our club Happy Paws, the leaders have been holding meetings here in Moses Lake where we practice with all of the dogs and do all the stuff training for showmanship and obedience, so all of the stuff we do there, we do in the practices. So I feel like the preparation for it really helped a lot.”  

Rowan Spees from Moses Lake competed with his black labrador named Lucy at his first competition in 4-H. He also is showing chickens for the first time this year. He said that he is really proud of Lucy and how she did in the obedience section.

“Lucy listened to everything I said,” Spees said. “She followed all of the commands. We did all of the movements together. I just think she is really good at obedience, like everything is just easy for her in obedience so she did really good today.”

Spees said that he is working with Lucy on getting her to be able to stack (perform without the handler) for showmanship and working on making sure she stays still during a long down, which is when the dog lays down for one minute and must wait for a release command before moving. 

    James Doyer pets his Goldendoodle, Ziva, after she finishes the first part of the obedience competition. Doyer has competed three times with Ziva and says she is improving.
  

    Ben Handerlie tries to control his Newfoundland, Maddie. Maddie is only 7 months old and is still being trained, however Handerlie is optimistic about her performance in the future.
  

    River Spees struts her pug, Propane through the pin during the obedience competition. Propane is three years old.
  

    Josiah Spees hugs his pug, Otis as other members of the Happy Tails 4-H group make their rounds around the ring in the obedience competition. Otis is 3 years old.
  

    Rowan Spees pets and congratulates his black Labrador, Lucy after she completes part of the obedience competition. Lucy is the oldest dog that competed at 9 years old.