Farewell Bonner

The lizards are out and brave. They're out sunning themselves on rocks, eating big meals and then scurrying, sometimes rather slowly, back to safety when the dogs round the bend. And all those caterpillars that were all over the trails have metamorphosed into butterflies. There are literally butterflies everywhere, speckled little ones all the way up to big yellow swallowtails.

Today was Bonner's last walk. His folks are in a hard spot. At day care he doesn't get any exercise; with me, he has to stay in his crate when he's not on his walk to prevent him from tearing apart the house. I think he'll grow out of that destroying everything phase, but in the meantime, he's back to doggy daycare. We are all going to miss Bonner. His trail manners improved really quickly. He totally sticks with me as his pack leader and plays well with all the dogs in my groups. Bonner's always welcome back!

The trail was more or less empty today, so I let Bandit hike without his muzzle for the hot parts of the trail. Murphy found some fresh horse poop, and everyone got a little nature's own "greenies" today. I discourage the dogs from eating horse poop because the horses may have infections.

We still have a few open spots on our walks each weekday that we'd love to fill up with friendly, well mannered small dogs. Little Paws Big Adventures serves neighborhoods bordering Freeway 13 / Highway 13 in Oakland and South Berkeley. Visit our website to learn more: www.LPBA.net

Pace and Parker walk together!

Pace joined us at Pt. Isabel today. Pace is about 5 years old; we have no idea what breed he is, some suggest part monkey. Pace's a great example of what Parker would look like if he were a healthy weight.

Yes it's true, Parker is overweight. Despite the endless games of fetch and limited amounts of treats, Parker still has quite a lot of excess fat, especially around his neck. His dad and I are working on an exercise and diet regimen to get him down to a healthy weight.

Overweight dogs have a lot more health problems. In the summer months, they get tired far more easily, and even when it's not so hot, they tend to tire more quickly than their healthy compadres. Getting out everyday for a long hike, with lots of water breaks in the shade, can help get dogs feeling happier and more energetic.

Buckeyes in bloom

The buckeye trees are just starting to open up their blooms and the scent of leptospermum japonicum is in the air. Bonner, Parker and I walked at the Bridgeview Trail today. There are large redwoods that tower over the trail and shade it from the summer sun. In the middle of our hike, we scamper down the hillside to play, drink, and run around in Sausal Creek. On the way back to the car, I started to teach Bonner "touch" which is a great command to get him engaged in interacting with me and to teach him tricks.

Avoiding Foxtails!

Well, spring has avoided the bay area this year, and summer is upon us. With summer come foxtails galore. It's my job to think of creative places to go hiking, where we're actually allowed and there are few or no foxtails. As you can see we managed to find some still-green grass which Bonner leapt and bounded through, with Murphy in hot pursuit. I'm positive Bandit would have loved to join in the fun, but unfortunately he is no longer allowed off leash. It's a bummer having to restrict his movement, but I've learned from many past walks that he's an enthusiastic if unreliable little fellow.

This group has room for three more friendly small dogs. Please visit the main website to learn more about our group walks: www.LPBA.net

Pj's last walk :(

Today marked PJ's last walk until September. Bye Bye PJ! We're going to miss you over the summer, but we're looking forward to having you rejoin us in the fall.

Parker spend this unseasonably hot day playing fetch and wading in the bay. It was so hot that salt from the bay crystalized on his fur.

PJ trotted from one shady spot to the next and promptly splayed out flat on his belly.

Blue is on vacation.

As you can see, we have lots of room in our tues/thurs walking groups. We'd love to fill up our afternoon walking group to 6 little doggies. Please visit our website to learn more about who we are and how you can join us: www.LPBA.net

Blue drinks!

Well yesterday afternoon was so warm that I hosed down the long haired dogs before our walk. And boy am I glad I did, because by the end of it you would have never known they were soaked just an hour before. Blue and Bonner looked like they had just gotten out of a blow dryer.

Blue drank water for the first time ever from a bowl on a walk yesterday. In the past she has drunk from a creek, but never from a water bottle, my hand, or a bowl.

PJ did better with staying with the group and was off leash for the first leg of the walk yesterday. After our second water break though, I leashed him back up for the way home, because he wasn't coming just two feet away from me.

Bonner is doing terrific off leash! He's staying with the group. Attempting to get Parker to play with him, although I think he'd do better to egg on Blue.

Parker of course is playing fetch and not letting anyone else near "his" pine cone. All the same, Bonner gets a kick out of chasing him while he chases his pine cone.

We still have a few open spots on our walks each weekday that we'd love to fill up with friendly, well mannered small dogs. Little Paws Big Adventures serves neighborhoods bordering Freeway 13 / Highway 13 in Oakland and South Berkeley. Visit our website to learn more: www.LPBA.net

Our first hot day

Well, today Bonner got to try being really and truly off-leash... And he did great! He now comes when called. It's great to watch him run at full tilt. And thanks to nearly three weeks of taking his collar every time he gets a treat, he now has no aversion to having his collar taken, which makes him far easier to leash up.

Blue is her usual tried and true self. Chillin' with PJ and sniffing the grass.

Parker played fetch with Bonner and a pine cone.

And PJ as always is completely unmotivated by treats. He'll come for a belly rub or a chance to sit on my lap during shade and water breaks. But otherwise, especially if he's "getting to know" a new dog on the trail, my calls fall on deaf ears. So, back to leashed walks my little furry friend.

Damselflies to the Rescue

Well unfortunately I didn't get a decent pic of PJ yesterday. he was off leash for the first half of our walk and doing great about staying with the group. But then he got the scent of a couple of toy poodles and nearly followed them home, so back on lead he went for the rest of the walk. It is difficult to get a nice pic of a white furred dog. They blend in with the background a lot of the time.

There were millions of damselflies mating along the banks of the creek along the trail we were at yesterday afternoon. The dogs would run into the creek to cool off and the damselflies would lift into the air in clouds of sparkling blue and grey. It was really magical.

Parker played fetch as always. Blue got into the game of fetch around the middle of the walk but other wise enjoyed wading in the creek at hanging out with PJ, who wasn't interested in the water at all.