Publisher’s message: Ryan goes ratting

As readers of Chelsea Update know, my dog columns tend to be about Buzz.

But did you know that Buzz has a big brother named Ryan, who is 11 years old, wonderful, sweet and delightful?

He is the best pet anyone could ever ask for.

And, truth be told, he’s the true champion of this house – a best-in-basement, grand-champion … mouser.

Because of Ryan’s superior mousing abilities, I thought he might like to try a dog sport called Barn Hunt.

So, last Thursday, I drove to Kalamazoo to give it a try, entering a Rat ‘N Go – a practice session where Ryan would be able to sniff out live rats that were placed in large tube containers and hidden between bales of straw.

As the big day drew closer, I kept telling Ryan that he and I were going to do something special … just for him.

I carefully pondered the proper attire to go “ratting,” picked a shirt that resembled the color of cheddar cheese and away we went with Elizabeth Richardson, who came along for the fun and to take pictures.

Have you ever been so excited about doing something that it was all you could think about until the day arrived?

That’s how I was feeling about this Rat ‘N Go with Ryan.

It’s all I could talk about for weeks and weeks. I was convinced that Ryan would love this dog sport.

We found the venue and the folks at the check-in table could not have been nicer or more helpful to this newbie. The set up was adorable – there were stuffed rats everywhere. All around there were wonderful signs that included words like Rat Wranglers.

It couldn’t have been more fun or laid-back. Quite different than rally obedience. 

And after an initial introduction to a rat in a tube outside the competition area, I could not wait for our turn.

The object of this sport is for the dogs to sniff out the tubes that have the rats. And the dog’s handler indicates to the judge that based on the dog’s reaction, he has found a rat in a tube. (Not one of the decoy tubes that might smell like a rat, but don’t actually have rats in them.)

It started out like gang-busters. Ryan immediately found a tube with a rat in it. I was supposed to tell the judge “Rat” then grab the tube and give it to the “Rat Wrangler” who assists the judge in the hunt area.

I picked up the tube and Ryan was under my feet all excited, tail wagging. When I handed it off to the Rat Wrangler, he then went over to her and stood there, tail wagging.

After some additional instructions, I sent him out to find another one, which he did and again, it was handed off to the Wrangler.

At this point, I could see that Ryan was frustrated.

Closer to angry.

And my light bulb went off.

He was waiting to actually “get the rat,” as is dispatch it, the same way he does with mice when he finds them in the basement.

When that didn’t happen, twice after he’d sniffed them out, it went steadily downhill. Ryan was done playing this game.

He didn’t want to go through a tunnel under the bales of hay, despite the fact he’s crawled through many tunnels in his lifetime.  He made a half-hearted attempt to see if there was another rat hidden in the straw bales but he was just walking around. His happy tail wasn’t wagging any more.

The whole thing didn’t go the way I’d hoped it would.

Nor, apparently, did it go the way Ryan thought it would.

Afterward, I heard from a lot of people who said the dogs catch on and really light up when they compete.

But after 11 years of living with Ryan, I’m pretty sure that’s not what would happen.

When we got home, he didn’t miss a beat. Ryan immediately went mousing in the basement.

Although he hasn’t caught any lately, I hear them, so it’s only a matter of time before he adds another mouse to his rodent tally.