UC Davis Dog Day

Actually it was the 90th edition of Picnic Day today at UC Davis, but don’t tell Hooper that. My sister Judy, her boyfriend Brian, and Hooper their dog all came up for this event, reputedly the largest student-run event in the country, and from Hooper’s perspective, the largest gathering of canines he’s been with.

After watching the parade, the highlight of it being the passage of the visiting Budweiser Clydesdales — the most massive horses I recall seeing, and followed by three big eighteen-wheeler trucks to hold two Clydesdales each — we wandered west towards the dog events. Halfway there, a sheep ran across a parking lot and crossed the street, with four folks in pursuit — an escapee from the sheepdog trials down the way. Brian and Hooper decided to help, so they crossed the street and joined in the chase. The sheep was corralled after a bit, but not before it knocked down a woman in its way. Hooper followed his introduction to sheep-herding with observational studies of the experts, the border collies doing the trials.

We watched a bit of baseball — the UCD Aggies were playing the Cal State San Bernardino Coyotes — and did some sketching at the game, discovering that baseball is a great sport for practicing sketching since the players hold great poses repeatedly. We then saw some of the frisbee dogs chase and leap, and went to the field where the various dog adoption groups were set up. Pica was quite tempted by a soft and cuddly black lab puppy. Alas, no dogs allowed where we live.

And Hooper left with some new career possibilities. He still needs a bit of practice before he masters the border collie stoop-and-glare technique, but then fame is his.