I have a friend out in California who has a corgi, and they have these incredible corgi beach day events several times a year, where up to 700 corgis gather at one time - in one place! Can you imagine?! I've always been envious of such a fun event and wished we had something similar here. Yesterday we did. The Corgi-MN meetup group gathered for an afternoon of fun at the Bloomington Off-leash Dog Park. Yes, I admit I might be a little crazy; driving 500 miles round trip to take my dogs to a park with 40-60 other corgis, but it was so much fun! We left in the morning, drove into some rain and I was concerned it might dampen our event - but other than a few sprinkles, the rain held off and our event was a smashing success.
The park is huge! Thirty acres of fenced in space to run, play .... trails to walk on with your dog ... even a lake to swim in! The down side is that with an area that large, it is hard to keep your dog in sight, let alone pick up after them. There is a big water fountain that my dogs were fascinated with (we have to bring our own water in Fargo) and even a spray hose for rinsing your dog off when they roll in the mud, as Scarlett did! In fact, Scarlett took the unofficial prize for getting the dirtiest! That girl just loves to roll in the mud!
It was fun to meet so many other corgis and their owners. A special treat was having a few cardigans there, amongst all the pems. Before I left home in the morning, I put flag bandanas on my two and that sure helped me keep track of them. It's amazing how many corgis look alike - especially from a distance, and when running in a pack! Corgis are natural herders, and this video clip shows them banding together to herd a couple of unfortunate non-corgis that were there! It was a hoot.
I thought that Zak would surely be the loudest dog there, but he wasn't even close. He was actually a little overwhelmed by all the dogs there and at one point in the afternoon I lost sight of him. As I was walking around, calling his name, someone told me that she'd just spotted him sitting by himself under a shade tree. I walked over there and sure enough - he was taking a little 'rest' by himself - something I have never seen him do before. It was so sweet and I was proud of him for being able to care for himself in that way. After a few minutes, he was back with the group, running and chasing and occasionally breaking to have someone scratch his ears. He had so much fun.
Scarlett wow'd everyone with her speed. I'm sure she was the fastest corgi there. She has her basic running speed, but she loves to occasionally kick into 'overdrive' and she is amazing to watch when she goes full throttle. She can keep up with any large breed dog, will skid around corners and occasionally somersault out of control.
After so much exercise, I thought Scarlett and Zak would sleep all the way home. But Zak has some car anxiety and, for whatever reason, cannot relax while riding. He sits quietly but has an anxious look on his face and just cannot go to sleep. Princess and Dee Dee loved to ride in the car and would be sound asleep as soon as we hit the highway. Scarlett also enjoys the car, and slept a good bit of the way home. But Zak never shut his eyes. I knew he was exhausted and when we got home, he was sound asleep in two minutes. We have several other trips coming up in the next few weeks so I am going to get him a thundershirt and see if that will help him relax.
The park is huge! Thirty acres of fenced in space to run, play .... trails to walk on with your dog ... even a lake to swim in! The down side is that with an area that large, it is hard to keep your dog in sight, let alone pick up after them. There is a big water fountain that my dogs were fascinated with (we have to bring our own water in Fargo) and even a spray hose for rinsing your dog off when they roll in the mud, as Scarlett did! In fact, Scarlett took the unofficial prize for getting the dirtiest! That girl just loves to roll in the mud!
I thought that Zak would surely be the loudest dog there, but he wasn't even close. He was actually a little overwhelmed by all the dogs there and at one point in the afternoon I lost sight of him. As I was walking around, calling his name, someone told me that she'd just spotted him sitting by himself under a shade tree. I walked over there and sure enough - he was taking a little 'rest' by himself - something I have never seen him do before. It was so sweet and I was proud of him for being able to care for himself in that way. After a few minutes, he was back with the group, running and chasing and occasionally breaking to have someone scratch his ears. He had so much fun.Scarlett wow'd everyone with her speed. I'm sure she was the fastest corgi there. She has her basic running speed, but she loves to occasionally kick into 'overdrive' and she is amazing to watch when she goes full throttle. She can keep up with any large breed dog, will skid around corners and occasionally somersault out of control.
After so much exercise, I thought Scarlett and Zak would sleep all the way home. But Zak has some car anxiety and, for whatever reason, cannot relax while riding. He sits quietly but has an anxious look on his face and just cannot go to sleep. Princess and Dee Dee loved to ride in the car and would be sound asleep as soon as we hit the highway. Scarlett also enjoys the car, and slept a good bit of the way home. But Zak never shut his eyes. I knew he was exhausted and when we got home, he was sound asleep in two minutes. We have several other trips coming up in the next few weeks so I am going to get him a thundershirt and see if that will help him relax.
