I know all the dog books, vets, dog specialists, weekend experts all say you should not encourage your dog to play with sticks - and I didn't. She needed no encouragement - sticks are dog toys - full stop. Since Winnie came into my life, I've always had a collection of assorted dog toys about my person ( I'm funny that way) but Winnie tells me there are times when only a stick will do,
These sticks must be selected by Winnie, Any human selected sticks will be taken off the gift giver, run off with by the tiny one......and thrown away. You must understand as well that there are various grades of sticks in a small terriers mind and we've already touched upon the first one -
a) Human selected sticks - these are all rubbish, not worth the effort of running around with and are best discarded at a distance far enough away from the 'helpful' human to discourage them picking them up again. The stick should be removed swiftly from the person so as to minimise any hurt feelings or emotional attachment to the stick by the person. Once sticks have been thrown away two or three times by a determined terrier the person usually gets the message.
b) Small dog sticks - these are often selected by humans, so this type of stick can be an a and b combined type of stick. Naturally this only adds to its unsuitableness, if there is such a word. Small dog sticks are the kind of sticks that humans think a small dog should run around with and taunt other dogs with. This really only goes to show the general ignorance of humans when it comes to the status value of a stick. For this, among many reasons, a caring terrier tries very hard to train their human out of this way of thinking in a bid to stop them making a complete ass of themselves in canine company. After all, this kind of stupidity does not reflect well on any accompanying dog.
Small dog sticks are not desirable for a terrier that is vertically challenged for many of the reasons already covered - they are usually selected by humans, they make a small dog look cute (almost as bad as dressing one up!), they are very common and easy to find, they are easy to lose, it is hard to bash any dog, or human, with a small stick (this is a very important point as we shall see later).
Really, small dog sticks are only taken up if there really is no other kind of stick around (we wont mention the human selected ones - they don't count).
c) Dog sticks. These are sticks that are the equivalent of small dog sticks, but for larger dogs. They are often favoured by gundogs, or those dogs of an amiable and easy going disposition who don't care about their street cred or reputation. Their value to a small terrier is that they are larger and therefore make more of a statement. Cleverly manipulated, it is possible to carry out at least an ankle swipe or shin graze with one - always a good thing to remind any people on a walk that walks are all about the dog - not gossiping, or admiring the view. There is also the implied kudos of the possibility that a small terrier may have taken this stick off a larger dog and, for this reason, a vertically challenged dog is often seen to adopt a kind of swagger when running around with a dog stick in their mouth. Winnie says this is 'walking the walk'....
d) Big dog sticks. No, this is not sticks taken from a big dog (although it can be - study the swagger to work out if it is), this is a big stick carried by a small dog. The best big dog sticks have one or more small branches attached to them - sometimes still with foliage - which is even better. On average, a big dog stick only qualifies if it is over three foot in length, otherwise its just a stick. A small dog with a big stick has got bragging rights. They cannot be ignored - if the stick is a good one, it can look like the stick is moving by supernatural forces, as opposed to terriernatural forces (which we all know are scarier). A big dog stick says something about the strength of a dog, it shows determination - that a small dog has not been defeated by the enormity of the challenge of finding and running with a big dog stick. Then there is the problem of stick envy by other less capable canine foragers. A big stick lets a terrier take on all comers - and win.
There is one more benefit with a big dog stick - especially one with strategically placed branches- you can hit or trip a human very effectively with a proper big dog stick. This ability is not to be sniffed at. A stick with sufficient length can be cleverly threaded through a persons legs (this takes terrier practice), so that at least a stumble is inevitable and, if carried out correctly, it is even possible to make one fall. This is of course very useful if the people are ignoring small terriers and talking to other people. A terrier into people training can soon get them to always treat a terrier with a stick with the respect and attention such a trophy deserves.
For the poor terriers who happen to be unlucky enough to have a slightly dim owner, then there is another technique. If they have selected a proper big dog stick with plenty of branches it is perfectly possible to hit them on the bottom with it. This usually gets their immediate attention.
Finally there is the last category - a very rare one......
e) The perfect stick. Winnie is still searching for one of these and she tells me that some dogs go all their lives and never find it, but Winnie reckons this is because they lacked focus and were not clear in their own mind as to just what 'the perfect stick' was. Winnie knows what her perfect stick will be -
Winnie's perfect stick will be 5-6 feet long and ideally will be a yound willow sapling, minus its roots. It will have a well developed branch system at the top, but still be light and bendy enough for her to manouver. The whippy branches will be perfect for tripping multiple people and sweeping away any canine rivals for this perfect stick. She is currently working on a technique of running full tilt at a group of people and taking them out at the ankles. I have my suspicions that she may have got this idea from watching the chariot race scene in Ben Hur!
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