Don’t you just wish you could play fetch all day long?
It’s these simple pleasures of summer that I enjoy oh so much. I hope you get to play fetch today too.
Tag Archives: video
For the Love of the Hunt
Did you ever just love something so much that it didn’t matter how ridiculous or how embarrassing it made you look – you loved it just the same? Sometimes it just doesn’t matter what anyone else thinks – you just gotta be you!
Me, I’m overly enthusiastic when it comes to hunting my groundhogs on the farm – something that nobody seems to understand, not even my best friend Trooper.
At the end of the day though, hunting groundhogs is what I love to do – no matter how silly I look doing it! So go ahead, be you today!
Product Review: Outward Hound Life Vest for Dogs
You might remember that a couple of weeks ago mom purchased me a life vest
Seeing as how some of my fans may be in the market for a life vest as well I thought I’d give you all a little rundown of how I’m liking it so far.
Product – Kyjen Outward Hound Life Jacket
Features:
- Convenient top grab handle for easy resuce by hand or boat hook
- Front float assists in keeping dog’s head above water
Pros:
- Definitely helps keep me afloat much better
- Handle makes it easy for mom or dad to rescue me out of the water
- Front float helps keep my head above the water – which is a bonus because I hate getting water in my ears
- It’s comfortable to wear
- Bright color makes it easy to spot me floating in the water
- Budget friendly price
Cons:
- Sizes run smaller then the chart online – so a small is a bit too small for me and I probably should have ordered the medium. So when in doubt choose the next size up
- Doesn’t have a d-ring attachment for a leash
Overall I’m very happy with my new vest, I definitely feel safer and enjoy swimming a lot more, I just wish I had gotten the medium so it fits me a little better.
You can fetch your own doggie life vest
I was not paid or perked to write this review, product was fully purchased (thanks mom) – links do connect to my affiliate amazon shop.
Don’t forget to vote for me in the Petties for the category of Best Blog Design. Your votes get me closer to winning $1,000 for one of my favorite pet charities!
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Ammo the Movie Star is Here!
Ok, so maybe I won’t really be seeing my name on a star in Hollywood (a dog can dream) – but in the World of Magical Painting Ponies, I am a movie star! (and technically I have been on National Television before via Animal Planet – check it out here)
Last week my Uncle Taylor came to visit from his home in North Carolina. Taylor is an uber talented videographer and editor – shooting weddings, commercials, documentaries, training videos, and much much more. And guess what…..he brought his video equipment with him!
The name of the game was filming some brand new videos for Painting Pony.
And although my pony friends did make a shining appearance on these new videos – we all know who the real star is…
…me!
I had some big important roles, and don’t worry, I totally gave it 110%.
I even got to do some serious action shots – with multiple takes!
I also got to perform on the video with my bestest buddy Trooper.
It was aaaaamazing!
And, incase you are wondering – yes I did my own stunts!
I can hardly wait to see the finished product, and as soon as it’s done I’ll be sure to let everyone know! And if you are counting down the days to see yours truly on DVD, you can check out The Trick Ponies of Chincoteague DVD which has my happy little face on it too.
And if you’re looking for some video work make sure you check out Envision Event Media and Depthink Productions!
Beating the Heat – Canoeing down the Brandywine River
Last weekend I took an expedition down the Brandywine River via canoe. You may remember that I went on a similar adventure last summer.
This time it was a much bigger family affair as even my Uncle Taylor came too while he was up visiting from North Carolina.
Since we only have one canoe at the farm we had to make room for our extra passengers by adding some blow-up rafts and even a snow tube.
It ended up being quite the adventure with frequent pit-stops to re-pump said rafts, a couple of spider incidents (with one wolf spider hitching a ride on mom’s leg – I screamed – but she brushed it off like nothing happened), and a nest of ants and their babies threatening to eat us alive when we accidentally tipped the canoe – all of which we had a good laugh about later.
All in all it was the perfect way to spend a hot summer day!
So what do you do to beat the summer heat? I’m thinking for my next canoe trip I’ll have to bring along some pupsicles! Yum!
Practicing Contacts on the A-Frame at Agility Class
Last week I had my regularly scheduled dog agility classes at DTCCC, only this time was special because my dad was home from work so he got to come watch me!
Of course I was super excited to show dad all the things I’ve been learning in class – and I went so fast that he could barely capture it on camera!
One of the things I have been learning at class is my agility contacts. Contacts in dog agility refer to a specific contact zone at the base of an object (like the A-frame, teeter, dog walk) that you must place a paw in during competition in order for it to count. Most of these contact zones are marked by a yellow strip at the base of an obstacle.
Being that I’m a small dog it is much easier for me to not miss a contact (because I’m not big enough to soar over it), but it is still best to learn how to do each object properly by entering and exiting it at the very base.
Below is a short video from class that dad took of me working on my contacts with the a-frame. You’ll see that I have a verbal cue (“mark”) that mom gives me as I approach the base of the a-frame, this cues me to pause at the bottom of the board until I get the ok to move forward. As I progress in my training my “mark” won’t be as obvious as I race around the course.
Looks pretty fun right?
Here’s some pervious posts from my adventures in agility training incase you missed it:
DIY: Build your own Agility Jumps
P.S. Don’t forget to vote for me in the 2012 Petties! I’m nominated for best blog design, and winning will earn $1,000 to one of my favorite pet charities!
Dachshund Takes Flight – Flying High in a Piper Single Engine Plane
Yesterday I shared with you my paddleboarding adventures on the lake during my stay-cation, and today I have an even more thrilling tale to tell!
Last week I took to the air for my very first flight ever!
Now as you may already know, I’m not your average dog, so when I took to the air I didn’t just book a flight on some commercial jet for a week-long getaway. No instead I decided to fly in style by hopping aboard my own single engine plane – aka the Piper Archer II.
I didn’t have to look too far to find a pilot for my first flight either, because my mom’s dad has been a recreational pilot since 1986, and I was to be his very first canine passenger.
Being that this was my first flight, I dressed in the best piloting attire I could find. I couldn’t risk looking like I didn’t know what I was doing.
I was pretty darn excited to take to the air, so much so that I even practiced my airplane yelling just in case it was anything like riding on a roller coaster.
As we took to the air I kept my eyes glued to the window – it was nothing like riding in a car!
I was fascinated by how tiny everything looked from the air, and the cars on the roads below looked just like little rodents scurrying all around.
We flew over many places that I recognized, like my house, the shop where I work, and even the farm – where I waved hello to all my pony friends below.
We even flew over Marsh Creek Lake where I had taken my paddleboarding adventure the day before.
I was having so much fun looking out the window that I almost forgot we were so high in the air.
But then I caught sight of all the dials and buttons and nobs, and remembered that we weren’t in kansas anymore firmly planted on the ground anymore.
The dials and buttons and nobs had me so excited that it made me want to get my pilots license too! Check it out as I help navigate the plane during a take off and landing:
After we landed I couldn’t stop beaming from ear to ear!
Flying in a single engine plane was one of the most exciting things I have ever done.
Who knew this super hero was born to fly!
So cross flying in the sky off my bucket list, because this dog has earned his wings! Maybe next time I’ll have to try helicopters!
Extra Curricular Activities
Since I have a lot of “jobs” (shop greeter, artist, guard dog, farm dog, sidekick, super hero….) sometimes it’s nice to enjoy a few extra curricular activities at the end of the day. One of my favorites right now is agility class.
I still have a lot of training to do before I’m ready to compete, but right now I’m just having a lot of fun! Just see for yourself….
P.S. I like Tunnels about as much as this boy likes Turtles. 🙂
Dachshund Certified Therapy Dog
If you follow along with my adventures on Facebook, then you probably already heard that on Sunday I became a Certified Therapy Dog! Yippee!
For the past 6 weeks I have been taking classes at the Dog Training Center of Chester County to prepare to take my Canine Good Citizen and Therapy Dog International tests. One of my goals this year was to pass both tests and my Mom was super happy when I did so on my very first try!
As you can see in my testing video I was SUPER excited to be performing. What can I say, I’m just an overly happy guy! I may have forgotten a bit of my heeling a few times, but I was just so pumped to be meeting new people.
One of the hardest parts of the Therapy Dog test is to walk past a pile of cookies and not eat them! Do you know how hard that is when your nose is 2″ off the ground!? I was very tempted to eat those cookies when I walked by them in the beginning of my test, but when my Mom said leave it I happily obliged and didn’t eat a single one. (Phew, close call, because mom said I would have failed had I eaten one).
Even though I’ve passed my tests, my training will never be done. Mom and I continue to take agility classes and I know I’ll never stop learning and improving. I’m excited to see what comes next for me – I just hope that for any future tests they let me wear my Super Hero Cape – because we all know I look WAY cooler with my cape on!
If you would like to check out all the requirements to pass a CGC and TDI test, you can check it out here.
P.S. Thanks to all my pals on my Facebook page who congratulated me on passing my tests, you guys totally make me blush!
Friday Fetch: ChillSpot – cooling pet bed
Summer is here and the hot hot days in Pennsylvania are just around the corner for me. Being the farm dog that I am I enjoy spending most of my time outside, but when the mid-day heat really gets blazing I find myself looking for the coolest place to get out of the sun.
That’s why when I came across ChillSpot I knew they had come up with a great product to help dogs like me beat the Summer heat.
Chillspot is a durable, portable, 24″ x 36″ cooling dog bed. It comes with four reusable Chillpods that can be put in your freezer overnight and used during the day to cool your Chillspot bed.
ChillSpot is the only cooling bed that has an insulated base, allowing it to stay cold hours longer than others when out in warm weather.
You can fetch your own ChillSpot cooling pet bed here for $169.