Leader of the Pack

Adventure Pack

It was opposite day for the pack today as Milo and Benny walked in the lead on other side of me while Rucksack and Coco took up the rear. Normally Milo and Benny tend to walk in the back of the pack while Rucksack and Coco are always trying to get ahead and have a tendency to pull.  Roger Roger was sandwiched between Coco and Milo, which was more typical.

Play Pack

Thompson was eager to head to the back of the park where som...

Adventure Pack

Roger Roger grabbed another branch with lots of twigs early on today, though it was much smaller than yesterday's find.  A little while later, Rucksack found a thicker, simpler stick to tote for the first time in a while.  Milo has been hesitant to drink from the Camelbak spout since he started coming out with the Adventure Pack and he's passed on it a lot lately; but today he decided to partake after a little bit of convincing, which involved squirting t...

Adventure Pack

Roger Roger found a small branch with a lot of twigs early on during today's walk.  Sputnik quickly took interest and then Benny and Rucksack both followed suit, and the three of them chewed it apart before we headed on.  Oliver stayed clear of the stick-ravaging.

Play Pack

Coco made the most impressive vertical leap I've seen while she was fetching a ball I threw for her today.  She always makes acrobatic leaps to...

Adventure Pack

Coco has a habit of harassing Rucksack right when we unload from the car to set out for the morning.  Rucksack has been her older packmate ever since she started coming out as a very young pup and it seems like she can't stand not to have Rucksack's attention when we start off the day.  I'm not sure Rucksack is as attached to the ritual, considering he just turns away and gives Coco the cold shoulder.  Osito had fun jumping off the side of the path i...

Adventure Pack

Sputnik was the one grabbing up sticks on today's outing but they didn't keep his attention for very long.  Roger Roger stole a couple away from him but then he just grabbed up the next twig along the way and Roger Roger dropped his to go after Sputnik's next find.  Benny, Rucksack, and Oliver left the sticks to their younger packmates and trotted along focusing on the way ahead.  Benny walked more toward the front of the group than usual today with ...

Adventure Pack

Roger Roger has taken up stick-carrying duties after his older brother Rucksack, who has grown somewhat less interested in the endeavor and didn't bother with it today.  Benny wanted in on the stick that Roger Roger found to carry today.  Milo was walking between them so whenever Benny leaned across Milo to try to get a nibble, Milo would respond by gently gnawing on Benny's face.  Coco went nuts wiggling in the dead grass and Roger Roger hopped arou...

Adventure Pack

The wind was wicked this morning, and the droning seemed to put everyone in their own world.  Milo frequently veered off to check out interesting scents and mark them for future reference.  Rucksack and Roger Roger kept switching positions at my side, requiring numerous breaks to de-tangle their leashes.  Coco kept pausing to shake off the snow that blew onto us, which caused Benny to rear back so as to avoid getting whipped by his packmate's killer ...

Adventure Pack

We didn't pass by many other dogs today but when we did Sputnik and Oliver were much better at keeping their cool.  Oliver barked at the first couple dogs we passed but after giving him a bit less slack on the leash he let later passers-by be.  Sputnik and Roger Roger passed some small sticks back and forth between them (or rather, stole some small sticks back and forth from each other) as we walked.  Rucksack and Roger Roger both perked up quite a b...

Adventure Pack

Roger Roger grabbed up a stick and carried it for a little while before snapping it in half, at which point he carried one half of it for a while before leaving it behind.  Coco was a bit grumpy and grumbled at passing dogs as we went by.  Milo and Rucksack were both happy to stick to my side as we went along Bear Creek.  Osito also spent most of the walk at my side but every now and then he leapt to the side of the path to bury his face in the snow ...

Adventure Pack

We came across several different dogs today who were all very high-energy and giving their humans a hard time on the leash.  Oliver and Sputnik both barked at the dogs in an apparent effort to tell them to settle down, but of course that just added to the anxiety so I started having the pack sit at the side of the trail and wait to let passing dogs go by - with an especially close eye on the two troublemakers.  That worked very well and they both calmed d...