For one day, the Fayette County Fair goes to the dogs
DUNBAR TWP. – Fayette County 4-H Dog Club members took to the Indoor Arena Sunday, offering a competition that showcased the abilities of their animals as well as their own hard work. “I think they’ve been doing very, very well,” said Patti Kline, organizational leader. “Some of our scores and places have been fractions apart. The bad weather this winter meant they had less time for training, but they have been doing great.”
Beginning with registration at 7:30 a.m. and continuing until almost 4 p.m., the competition included classes for grooming, showmanship, obedience, agility and a fun category in which members and dogs dressed in costumes. In addition, officials added a new class called skillathon that tested their knowledge of dog anatomy and training dogs.
The agility classes seemed to garner the most interest from the crowd that came to watch the show with the audience cheering for the dogs as they mastered a number of obstacles that included jumping, running, climbing and balancing.
Scores for grooming, showmanship and obedience were combined to determine the prestigious High Point awards, given in three age groups.
Nicole Coldren won for ages 8 to 11, Noelle Marietta took the award for ages 12 to 14 and Alexandra Broskey claimed the title for ages 15 and up.
Coldren, 11, who is a home-schooled sixth-grade student, worked with Lady, a Border collie mix, to win her award. She said it felt “good.”
The daughter of Karen and Gary Coldren has been in the dog club three years and said she likes “the experiences and making friends.”
“It was cool,” Marietta, of Connellsville, who is also home-schooled and in the seventh grade, said about the honor she received with her dog, Julius Caesar, an Australian shepherd mix.
The 12-year-old daughter of the Rev. Ewing and Tammy Marietta is in her third year in the club and likes the agility class the best.
“I like that we do a lot of things together – community service and picnics,” she said.
Broskey, 18, of Uniontown won her award with her dachshund Mitzi.
She commented, “It was awesome. That was my goal, especially since this is my last year.”
A recent graduate of Uniontown Area Senior High School, the daughter of Tom and Lucia Broskey is a freshman at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg, where she will major in biology. Although she has one more year of eligibility in 4-H, Broskey is uncertain she will be able to attend dog club meetings while at college. But she said she’d like to try because Mitzie likes dog club.
“You get to have a lot of fun with your dog and you learn a lot,” Broskey said of dog club.
Broskey, who is also in an arts and crafts club, commented on 4-H, “You learn so much. A lot of people don’t know how much work kids do with it.”
Mary Kathryn Kline, 17, of Connellsville has been a dog club member for nine years.
She said, “It’s been a lot of work but it’s rewarding.”
The daughter of Patti and the late John Kline is a senior at Connellsville Area High School and also a member of the 4-H Communicators Club. She enjoys dog club with her chocolate cocker spaniel Hershey.
Kline said of 4-H, “I’ve learned a lot of life skills like leadership, associating with others and dealing with competition – a lot of good things.”
Patti Kline said dog club begins in October and offered a club description sheet that explained the youths learn how to take care and handle their dogs as well as compete. Activities include participation in the Connellsville and Uniontown Halloween parades, a Christmas party, field trips to dog shows and area agility trial as well as picnics. The youths perform community services with Fayette Friends of Animals and have adopted a portion of Route 201 in Franklin Township.
Jim Reagan, activity leader, said the club gives the youths confidence and teaches them to socialize, noting, “It brings them out of their shells.”
For more information, e-mail the club at FAYETTECOUNTY4-HDC@HOTMAIL.COM.