A Stick for Two or Three



The bliss of having a wooden stick you can chew on your own. If you're a Corgi, you know what I am talking about!

Two of my Corgis are crazy about the game of throwing a stick. Saroo, the red one, first taught Tanuki, the tri puppy, the idea of retrieving a stick (or a toy) that Mom will throw again and again: you get exercised and have fun! Tanuki quickly found out that it was a pleasant game. However Tanuki always wants more, and I must admit... whatever Tanuki wants, Tanuki gets.


Between the two Saroo is the faster runner, but he doesn't always pay attention to where the stick will land when I throw it. He just starts off convinced that speed gives him advantage in this game. Sometimes it works, but not always.


Tanuki uses a different strategy: slow and steady wins the race. He watches me aiming, then takes off. (Back in 2005, I published*) an article by Tim Pennings, associate professor of mathematics at Hope College in Holland, Mi, USA whose Corgi Elvis always found the optimal route to get to the ball he was to fetch in Lake Michigan. Doing so, Elvis was applying without knowing a complex mathematic model incorporating different factors that influenced the path from point A to point B. Tanuki uses the same equation every time. It's amazing to watch how smart our breed can be in optimizing its natural ability.)

If Tanuki grabs the stick first, Saroo will let go. But if Saroo gets to the stick first, that's another story. Tanuki has decided that what is shared tastes better. He will hang on to the stick at the other end, and both pups will retrieve it together. Occasionally, when Tanuki can't reach the stick fast enough, he might hang on to Saroo's tail instead but that's another story. Needless to say, Saroo is a very good-natured dog who tolerates much more from another dog than most male Corgis would. When they retrieve the stick together, it turns into a "pas de deux".


Sometimes, a third Corgi joins the game and claims the stick. But the retrieving choreography won't work because they all keep pulling hard in different directions.



From time to time I post videos of my two boys on Facebook, in the hope of bringing my friends a smile on their face. Quite a few people seem to enjoy these sweet and comical moments.
Shared fun feels better too, doesn't it?

Just a final caution. Stick games require attention. Dogs sometimes play roughly and could injure themselves. I therefore no longer use a wooden stick but a thick rubber cord that is safer and fluorescent (easier for them to locate in the high grass). Sticks they keep finding on their own are used for another popular Corgi game which is tearing the prey into small pieces.

Béatrice Quinio (Emeishanquin). Saroo is Fr CH Emeishanquin Secret's N The Fox . Tanuki is Emeishanquin Unforgettable at Hoedwig.

*) I'm the editor of the French Corgis Club newsletter since 1999.

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03.02.2025