Fetch sticks? Cherie here would rather catch waves, as it competed in the heat of the Medium Dog event during the ninth annual Surf City Surf Dog competition at Huntington Beach, California, on Saturday.

Dogs - big and small, and some in tandem - braved the large swells that greeted them that day.

Seventy dogs participated in the event, which gives man and man's best friend 10 minutes in the water to catch as many waves as possible, reported CBS Los Angeles. Participants are judged on their time on the board and the difficulty of the ride.

Junior lifeguards were on hand to fetch the animals from the water - just in case.

In addition to the surfing pooches that came from all around Southern California, there were international competitors - two canines from Brazil and a bulldog from Canada - reported The Orange County Register.

The Surf City Surf Dog competition serves as a charity fund-raiser for several canine non-profit groups. Other canine-related events in the area that weekend included a dog fashion show and the NY Dog Film Festival.