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comment by user-inactivated
user-inactivated  ·  4512 days ago  ·  link  ·    ·  parent  ·  post: It's been 9 years since I killed our dog
Thanks! The Great Sand Dunes National Park is an incredible place especially if you have dogs. It is one of the few national parks in the US that let you take your dog (leashed) on trails (and on the dunes).

smooches Hemi and Harri on their wet noses & scratches ears

Good boys. Harrison looks very solemn and serious. And Hemingway's coat is gorgeous.

AND that looks like a real-grown-up-house. Like responsible adult stuff! Well played, tng.





thenewgreen  ·  4512 days ago  ·  link  ·  
Ha. Thanks, they're great boys and that was a great house. It was a rental and the photo is at least 4 years old. Hem's coat has more gray, but neither of them have lost a step. Harrison is only solemn and serious if there are squirrels to be had.

That's great about the Great Sand Dunes National Park, it's difficult to find dog-friendly places. I find it particularly difficult to find dog friendly places to have them off-leash.

I was taking them to a dog park but twice now they've been attacked by shitty dogs. Not just minor dog-fights but all out I'm going to crush your larynx type of fights. My dogs are not fighters and they get their asses kicked each time. I'm not taking them back there.

There is a River we like to take them to but we have to be there by 7:30 am and leave by 9. After 9, the families roll in and they're remarkably anti-dog. -bummer.

Any suggestions for dog-off-leash activities?

user-inactivated  ·  4512 days ago  ·  link  ·  
    attacked by shitty dogs

Oh yeah. That is why I quit the dog park, too.

I split my time in Colorado and Washington. I'm not sure where you are (Michigan?) ... but national forests generally allow off leash on their trails. But that means wildlife like mama bears and skunks. So you have to have good voice command over your bubbies.

Do you do clicker training? Even older dogs get into it. And you can play mind games like "find it" where you make them lay down in another room out of vision. Then in the room you are in ... hide a treat. Then call them to "find it". It requires some time and work with the clicker ... but it gets the dog using its nose which is a good thing for the dawgs. Especially when dealing with older dogs that don't have the get-up-and-go that they did ... but you still want to activate their minds.

thenewgreen  ·  4512 days ago  ·  link  ·  
We did do clicker training, but haven't used one since they were pups. I like the idea of the National Parks. I'm in North Carolina now and it's still a relatively "new" move. It would be a good excuse to go discover the forests around us. We have been talking about a trip to the coast and I imagine they'd love to swim in the ocean. It'd be a first for them.

Our boys are pretty good about coming when I beckon.

Have a good night psuli, I'm off to cuddle with the pooches and fall asleep. Take care, thanks for the conversation and good luck with that laundry!