Leader of the Pack

The Adventure Pack

The trails were running like brooks with melted snow today.  Wesley, Rucksack, Sage, and Mamacita all ended up drenched in mud from the chest down.  Everyone did very well walking, though; they were friendly but not overly anxious to greet the other dogs we passed.

The Play Pack

Milo lazed around in the sun and got lots of love and attention from numerous people at the park today.  Mamacita and Oscar both ran a...

The Adventure Pack

Sputnik and Benny had a great time romping in the snow today.  Wesley was in a calmer mood and was content to just follow me on the trail.

The Play Pack

Wesley made doggy-snow-angels at the park today.  Mamacita, Benny, and Oscar all did a lot of running around together.  Mamacita also found a couple other pups to play with, including her Bassett Hound friends.

The Adventure Pack

Benny and Osito are becoming good friends from hiking together.  In the car after today's hike, Osito was grooming Benny by licking his ears and his head.  Benny enjoyed the attention and leaned his head into Osito - it was very sweet.  The trails didn't seem that muddy but Rucksack, Wesley, and Osito's legs and undersides proved otherwise.  Benny escaped with little need for cleaning since his fur is so short.

The Play ...

The Adventure Pack

We had another great day of practice walking on-leash on the trails today, and another encounter with a friendly dog who calmly walked over and right into the middle of the pack.  Coco, Rucksack, Benny, and Wesley all greeted the new acquaintance very nicely.  The main issue I'm working on when keeping the pack on leash during our hikes is staying calm and respectful when greeting others - dogs especially.  The real test is if they'll let another...

The Adventure Pack

Rucksack has been getting a lot better at walking on the leash without pulling and his good example has been rubbing off on Sputnik as well.  I was very impressed with both of them today, and Benny Oliver were both very good as usual, too.  Everyone stayed relatively calm when a small terrier who was off leash came up to greet us, and after a good sniff the terrier was ready to join the pack and started following us down the trail in the opposite dire...

The Adventure Pack

Much of the snow has already melted from the trails and the ground is already starting to dry, although Wesley's long coat managed to absorb a healthy dose of mud anyway.  Coco made it through with very little mud, while Rucksack and Sage both had a bit but it brushed away easily with a towel.

The Play Pack

Isaac was all about fetching tennis balls at the park today and a Pit Bull Terrier named Emma followed him around back a...

The Adventure Pack

There was a fresh layer of snow on the trails today but it was thin enough that plenty of smells came through to catch the interest of the pack.  Coco and Sputnik were the most interested in uncovering scents from beneath the snow.  Benny was more interested in eating it.  Oliver just tried to avoid the deeper patches so he didn't get buried.

The Play Pack

Coco spent a lot more time socializing with the other dogs a...

The Adventure Pack

The Mesa Trail was very icy today, but Osito, Benny, Rucksack, and Coco were all very well behaved on leash so we didn't have too much difficulty navigating the terrain.  Benny kept himself busy chewing on chunks of ice while his packmates sniffed around.

The Play Pack

The park was nearly empty since the air was thick with snow when we were there, but there was one Staffordshire Terrier with whom Mia and Oscar both had a lot ...

The Adventure Pack

We took the Bear Creek Path today and avoided the icy/slushy trails.  The pack was very good at walking on leash.  As usual, Rucksack and Coco needed the most reminders to stick with the group and not pull ahead of me but their infractions were minor and they never tried to rush ahead with any intensity.  Wesley and Benny took up the rear, as they typically do.  There was a lot of yellow snow to sniff alongside the path, and then the pack ad...

The Adventure Pack

The snow on the trails is all packed down, which makes it fairly slippery - almost like ice.  Oliver barked at one of the dogs we passed, though he quieted down quickly.  Sputnik and Rucksack both got very excited when they saw approaching dogs so we stepped off to the side of the trail a few times to calm everyone down so they wouldn't try to charge up to the other dogs and pull me over.  Benny was more interested in eating snow than in greeting...