Leader of the Pack

The Adventure Pack

Since we've been practicing walking as a more tight-knit group on leash, the pack has been doing a lot more sniffing along the trail. I think that's because whenever I need to stop and address someone who's straying or lagging behind, the other pack members look for something to do. Speaking of lagging behind, Benny was much better about keeping up today than he has been in the recent past. Rucksack has been very good about walking by my side an...

The Adventure Pack

The pack was very good on lead today.  THere was barely a tug from Rucksack, Wesley, or Coco for the entire hike.  Coco had a good roll in the tall grass at one point.  We met a little Chihuahua mix and everyone ws very friendly.  After sniffing for a moment, Wesley gave a playful hop and 'woof' that startled the little pup and sent him running down the trail.

The Play Pack

Oscar found a playmate in a Yorkshire...

The Adventure Pack

Oliver got riled up and barked at the first dog we passed, but as the hike went on we passed several other dogs and I caught his attention in time to keep him in check.  We spent a long while on the Baseline Trail at the beginning of our hike, where Benny, Rucksack, and Oliver all sniffed around in the tall grass alongside the trail.

The Play Pack

Maebe and Coco played a lot of fetch side-by-side at the park today, while Osca...

The Play Pack

We practiced walking together as a pack on the trails this morning.  Benny often stops in place and waits behind his packmates; Coco, Rucksack, and Wesley all tend to pull ahead if not regularly reminded to stay at my side or behind me.  Today, I let the leashes looser than usual and directly addressed each pack member if they fell out of our loose formation.  It worked out very well and by the second half of the hike, I barely had to correct anyone a...

The Adventure Pack

Oliver joined his packmates in sniffing today instead of standing back and waiting for them to keep moving.  They found a lot of points of interest along the way.  No bear poop or sticks or anything else obvious - just patches of tall grass that Coco, Rucksack, Benny, and Oliver all seemed to agree were important.

The Play Pack

Coco and Maebe played fetch side-by-side again.  Coco is a little quicker, but Maebe is a...

The Adventure Pack

Rucksack took a break from stick-carrying again today.  Coco, however, found a good chunk of wood to gnaw on while she waited by the trail for her packmates to relieve themselves.  Chewing on the stick soon gave way to rolling around on her back in the grass, seemingly just trying to get the attention of the others.  Toskey came over and sniffed around Coco while she flailed about, and then she poked closer to her with her nose, causing Coco to s...

The Adventure Pack

Coco spent some time off leash during today's hike and she was friendly with all the passers-by but she wasn't coming when I called her.  She stayed a few yards away and just headud further up the trail whenever I got close.  If I stood still and called her, she just stared at me stubbornly.  I crouched down next to a rock and had Benny and Rucksack come over and sniff the ground there to get Coco's interest.  It worked and she came over to ...

The Adventure Pack

I think Rucksack read my last post, because today he decided to pick up a small log and carry it along with us for the entire hike, all the way back to the car.  At one point, when we took a short break, Benny gnawed at it while Rucksack kept a hold on it.  Oliver had a lapse in politeness with the first dog we passed on the trail today and started barking emphatically, so I had him sit and settle down before we continued on our way.

The Adventure Pack

It was very wet during today's hike.  My shoes stuck in the mud on the trails and gathered more and more as we went.  Coco shook herself off every once in a while but it didn't do much.  Rucksack didn't even bother.  We took a break in the shelter along the Bluebell Baird trail and Coco and Rucksack decided to dance around with each other, with lots of hopping, bowing, and pawing at each other.

The Play Pack

Os...

The Adventure Pack

It has occurred to me that Rucksack hasn't been carrying sticks (let alone entire limbs) on the trails lately.  That may largely be due to the fact that I've been keeping him on leash so he doesn't strain himself while his leg has been recovering.  There aren't as many sticks right along the trail as there are off in the brush, although today he passed on a perfectly good branch that was strewn right across the path.  Benny enjoys tossing sticks ...