Monday, March 2, 2015

Burning Up My Energy... (Video, DIY Flirt Pole)


I have a lot of crazy energy.  It is not unusual for me to tear around the living room at turbo-speed or to grab a rope toy and dance a whirling dervish. 

Hey!  When you live with people who play Spider Solitaire for fun, a terrier's gotta do what a terrier's gotta do!

And since I can get a whole lot rough (ruff?) when I play with people, Grandma did an online search of ways to help me burn some energy. What is a google?!?

She found this thing called a flirt stick.  Grandpa says it looks like a horse lunge to him.  These people use words that mean NOTHING to me! 

Anyway,  the grandparents went to Lowe's and the Dollar Tree to pick of a few things.



1/2-inch PVC pipe, about 4 feet
Duct Tape
Nylon Rope (thin enough to fit through the pipe) about 12 feet
Dog Toy



Slide the rope through the pipe and tie a knot, leaving an 8-inch tail.  This will become part of the handle.



Tie a knot at the other end of the PVC.  This will keep the rope from sliding back through.




Find the start of the Duct Tape.  This is harder than it looks!




Fold the short tail up and back on itself and begin taping it down.  You can stop here, but if you want it pretty (and I do want it pretty), continue to wrap the tape all the way to the end of the pipe.



Tie the toy tightly to the end of the rope.  You may need to adjust this depending on the length of your dog's leash.

And this is how you use it...



I love, love, love playing with the flirt pole!  Liam calls it my butterfly.  Whatever it's called, it is fun!  We have a friend who trains dogs for a living and she thinks this is a fantastic thing for me to do.  Not only does it help me burn off energy, it engages my brain. 

And when you are a very smart dog you MUST engage your brain.  Smart, bored dogs can become very destructive.

I still have a lot of energy but this can tire me out enough that I can concentrate better when we practice our calm commands.  The calm commands may be more boring but they are the ones that get me treats.  I'll do just about anything for a treat.  Except get in my crate. 

I'm way too smart for that trick!

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