I like the way he looks

At grammas house beggin for scraps!!!

Bailey's High School exit exam... j/k!

Bailey and I saw a book at Petsmart the other day, and it was a book to test how smart your pet was. It struck my curiosity and even though i didn't buy the book, i came home and did some internet searches and found this website. It basically gives you some simple tests to see how smart your pet is! Bailey and I had some bonding time, and he was actually excited to do these tests.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/animals/pets/testyourpet/tests/static/dog_1.shtml

The first test we did was the paw preference test, test #1. I decided to use a pet bowl that had a small opening in the handle. i knew is snout was too big to get the treat (freeze dried chicken ... mind you he was a little nuts about getting it), and even though sometimes he was able to reach it with his tongue (haha), he did paw at it. i let him get the treat everytime he pawed at it so i could "measure" which paw he used. He caught on quickly and I got some samples. The first paw was left left left, then it was right right right (he swiped quite furiously!!), then right right right, then another right, then a left, then a couple of more rights. Basically, after sampling like 10 times, i found that a majority of the time, he swiped with his right paw.

The results of this test told us that:
"Your dog appears to be right-handed. Right-handedness in humans is often associated with language ability and a logical mind. There is some evidence that right-handed animals can be better at remembering and using words, so maybe your dog understands more of your conversation than you had thought!"

I tend to agree. Bailey is quite vocal and has a variety of "noises". hah! but hes defintely keen on picking up words. I named a couple of important toys, and whenever he hears these names, his eyes and eyes perk up and hes ready to play. Same with doggie friend names. He is also good with visual cues.

The next test I opted to do was test #4 "Rounding the Bend" . We placed a treat on the other side. Bailey must be having brain spasms because I couldn't get a consistent answer from this one. The first time we did it, he went immediately to get it. The second time he tried to suck it up with his tongue through the crack, then looked at me and smiled, then eventually went to the opposite side to get it. Then, the rest of the times, he immediately went to theother side to get it. Should i say.. that the second time was a brain fart?? Hah!

Apparently this requires a lot of brain power. I knew Bailey would pass with flying colors because he already exhibits this kind of behavior at home. We have a door in the hallway, that, once opened, blocks the hallway, thus now allowing bailey to pass. Once i open the door and its inbetween bailey and I, he immediately knows to circle around to my side, all the way through the dining room and kitchen. I guess it sounds pretty simeple, but he doesnt just sit there and wait for the doorway to open up.

Bailey sitting for the treat

first pass - going directly to the treat

smart booger

second time - just sat there and stared at mom

then tried to be a vacuum through the crack

but eventually got over his brain fart

The third test we did was the test #3 "drop the treat". Basically, you stand in front of your pet , with a table inbetween you with a cushion on it, and drop a treat on the pillow instead of on the floor to test if your dog understands the treat is on the pillow vs. the floor. When I performed this test,on the first try bailey looked at the ground then looked at me then the table. every single time after that, he would only look at the table once dropped and he made a sound in his mouth like he caught the treat. silly him. anyways this apparently demonstates that your pet understands the way horizontal objects relate to one in the world. I guess that would make bailey above average in that area.

I've also thought about what kind of student bailey would be if he was in school. Have you? i.e. the jock, the nerd, the cheerleader,the class clown, the social outcast, etc. Bailey, I know would be a cross between jock and the class clown (weird combo i know). He's studly and acts like he knows it but he's really funny. :)

Who really knows if these tests are accurate, but i found them fun to try!!!!!

Bail set at 21 biscuits

Taking a nap. I love naps!

Is that a rabbit i see?

Rollin in freshly laundered bbear beddin

My posse

I loove to chew frisbees...

Happy st. Patricks day!!

Cllimbing to the top

Happy 3rd anniversary to us!

Baileyversary

Today is a special day, March 15th. It's exactly 3 years from the first day that Bailey came home! I remember that day very well. It was a two and a half hour drive up north to Corning, California, a small little rural town in the middle of nowhere best known for their … Olives?? (I distinctly remember a sign that read .. Welcome to Corning … THE OLIVE CITY!!... something to that effect. Anyways! I remember the breeder opening her front door and then asking who I was coming to pick up. In about a minute, she brought Bailey out, cradled over her shoulder (much like how I carry him now – like a baby over the shoulder). He was at least 3x the size that I remember when I saw him two weeks ago then – at a mere 5 weeks. We went in, signed some paperwork and she gave me some food and advice… and we were on our way home!. While I was leaving her house, I also remember running into a couple who was there to also pick up their new addition, the only other red/white corgi in the litter. They mentioned that they recently lost a corgi they received from this same breeder in a car accident in their driveway. We were very saddened to hear that on the way out…. He was only 3 years old. Exactly how old Bailey is now. It's a bit eerie thinking back on that now. So – back to the story , if it's one thing I regret that day, I really regret not getting contact information for the couple that took the other red/white puppy home! I really wish we all kept in touch! Bailey was a super duper trooper the entire way back, sleeping in my friends arms all the way through. We did stop by the vet on the way back to get his first exam, and it went great. I remember (side note: I'm starting to get a feeling that this was 10 years ago or something with the "I remember" this and "I remember that"..) giving Bailey his first bath in a Rubbermaid tub in the kitchen sink (he smelled grossly like a farm animal!!!) and him looking like a dachshund afterwards. Wow.. now three years later (where'd the time go?!!)… he's just as spunky, smart, and loveable as he was the day he came home!

 

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY, BAILEY!

baileycam

ssssSSsss..... AHH

Haha. look what i get for making the snake hiss. around :40 . enjoy!

New toyy!

Tough Cookie

Bailey is a tough cookie. Well, he's very brave. When he was a young pup - he'd go up to every kind of dog - wanting to be friends with everyone! Pit Bulls, Rotties, Dobermans, Labs, Goldens, etc. He's made good friends with some, and not so good friends with others. Bailey thought every dog at the park was nice. Well, he learned the hard way if they weren't, but also met some good friends too. There was especially this one Doberman we met that was so sweet, Bailey and her would wrestle and the owner of the doberman and I thought it was the cutest thing ever.

Now, well, theres also another type of braveness - Bailey can tolerate a bit of annoyance/bothersome behavior before dishing out some @$!@%@!@42@@!??#% himself. Take an example today. Kiko the Corgi and Bailey are good friends, have never had any tiffs, but for some reason at our monthly meetup today, Kiko wouldn't stop barking in Bailey's face when Bailey was trying to ,.. you know.... herd the crowd up (i.e. chase dogs chasing balls). In the pictures below, you'll see what I mean.

First she tried to get in my business. I tried to ignore it.

Then, she tried to show off and outrun me but I thought, hey cool. a running buddy.

But... then she starting barking in my face and i tried to be nice and make some funny faces.

ok so then i tried some ugly faces because she wouldn't stop!

I decided to run off and mind myself !

but she didn't relent. So...... I snapped. Well I am a nice snapper. Just kindly gave her a dose of what'd she been giving me the past fifteen minutes (grunting an barking) Look at her face. She then proceeded to get the clue and leave me alone. :)

Bailey will stand up for himself. I love that about him. Even at the dog part yesterday: Two dogs went two on one on him (each taking a nip at his butt), and he spun around and told them off. I think the big dogs underestimate him. :) It does get a bit hairy sometimes, and I worry sometimes, but it has almost always turned out well and in his favor. It's what we've come to expect in such a large dog park with dogs of all shapes and sizes. Are your corgis brave? submissive? won't take any crap? 

Other than this, our corgi meetup today (attendance list: Rosy, Waffles, Cow, Kiko, Bailey, Sawyer, Grey, Mitts, Bella, Lucy, Louie and Degree ) and beach frolicking went really well.. The weather behaved, tsunami warning lifted, and we were out and about as usual. So thankful. However, there is currently a drafted piece of legislation in place proposed by the feds that may limit this wonderful beach to  a leash-only or no-dog beach. We are really sad, and will be opposing this plan! *sigh*.

Also, I hope everyone has been enjoying our "picture a day" posts! Have a great weekend!

Bailey's sandy face after rolling in the sand

watching my reflection

doing some diggin!

Bailey at the meetup

New friend, "Degree" :)

Rosy and Kiko

proof it just wasn't me. Rosy was also telling Kiko to chill!

Corgis going after the ball

Also   - here's a video of bailey demonstrating his herding instinct on the beach! Bailey does this everytime there is an excited dog waiting for a ball to be thrown....

One of my favorite places

Good night sleep tight

Wordless wednesday

Left or right, ma??

Preparing to hibernate :)

Tasty toes..... J/k!!

On the lookout

Having fun at the park before the sunset

Hi there everyone! d:)

Doop dee doo

At the dog park