What is it about dogs and sticks? Perhaps more correctly, what is it about dogs, sticks, and water. Darling Wife and myself were in Windsor Great Park yesterday afternoon. If I saw one person throw a stick into the lake for a dog, then I must have seen fifty or more.

We were near Virginia Water where there is a great big lake which has easy access from the path that runs around it. It was almost a perfect winters day. Blue skies, not too cold, but with a bitter wind that reminded us that we are still in January. Despite the wind, it was just the sort of day for wrapping up and going for a walk. An awful lot of people seemed to have the same idea as us, and it seemed that the vast majority of them had dogs.

Big dogs, small dogs, yapping dogs and barking dogs. There were dogs of pedigree and dogs of uncertain ancestry. Dogs with shaggy, dirty coats and dogs that looked like they had come straight from the poodle parlour.

Whatever the dog, there were two common themes. They were happy, and their masters were throwing sticks for them (invariably into the lake).

So, back to the question. Why do dogs love chasing after sticks? Now if it was a rabbit, or a cat then fair enough. But a stick?

This is apparently how it works. You hurl a stick (or ball) as far as you possibly can and your dog hurtles off barking grabs the stick and brings it back to you. Having chased down the stick, and brought it back the owner promptly throws it again, and bugger me if the dog doesn't go chasing after it with the same boundless enthusiasm. And here's the real rub. If you don't throw the stick, the bloody dog will start barking at you until you do so!

Such is the allure of this game, that if some poor mutt is being neglected by his master and does not have anything of his own to fetch, then he'll chase after some other dog's stick and then all hell will break loose.

I like dogs, I think they're great. But boy, are they stupid!