FitDog Friday: Find the Treat to Chase Away Rainy Day Blues

The beginning of autumn is bringing lots of rain to Chewytown, which means rainy day blues for this pup. 

Sigh...

Chewy's fur soaks up mud very easily, so we try to keep walks to a minimum when it's raining. To keep him from tracking muddy pawprints all over the house, I have him sit and stay on his absorbent mat. (This one is an Ikea bathmat - it was only $10 and comes in a variety of colors. It's a much better deal than most doormats marketed specifically for doggies, and probably works just as well!)

Rocking the scraggly, wet belly fur look

The lack of long walks can make Chewy very hyper, and one of the ways we burn off all that energy is by playing Find the Treat in the house. Chewy thoroughly enjoys playing Find the Treat because there might be a nibble of food around every corner! 

To start, I have Chewy wait somewhere while I hide treats out of his view. This is a great opportunity to practice the stay command, as you can have your dog stay in another room so you don't need to worry about him/her sneaking a peek at where you're placing the yums. Just make sure they don't stealthily come out and steal the treats before you're done!

Waiting patiently

I only hide a couple treats at a time and space them out around the house so that Chewy gets more exercise for less food. Chewy is very food motivated, so he pretty much runs from one spot to the next. Sometimes I like to just wander around with the treats so that the smell wafts around everywhere, leading Chewy on a wild sniff hunt. To keep the search fun, I place some treats in plain sight, some under furniture or dog toys, and some hidden behind table legs, doors or his water bowl. When I'm done hiding treats, I return to Chewy and release him from his stay. He usually knows what's going on, but telling him to "Go find it!" always does the trick. The first few times, you might have to lead your dog to the treats so they understand the game. When we first started playing, I would let Chewy sniff the treats before I hid them so he'd know what he was to search for.

And he's off!

Chewy runs off sniffing the air, the floor, around every corner...

Downward dog under the doggy bed

A quick nose shove to get under the toy

Sometimes Chewy gets distracted by other food smells, but he quickly gets back on track.

Tomatoes not for me?

When Chewy has found them all, I tell him "No more" so he knows. Sometimes he doesn't believe me, though, and has to do another thorough search of the house before settling down. He is definitely a wishful thinker.

For a low calorie option, sometimes I use baby carrots or green beans, and I even cut them up into little pieces. They are less fragrant than meaty treats, but Chewy typically has no trouble finding them all. We always play multiple rounds at a time because just one is never satisfying for Chewy the food-lover, and it also gets him running around more. 

Again?

Playing Find the Treat always chases away those rainy day blues in our house!

We are joining the FitDog Friday hop hosted by My GBGV Life,
SlimDoggy and To Dog with Love.

FitDog Friday/K9 Kamp: Swimming in the Backyard Ocean

We rented a small cabin in Southwest Harbor, Maine for our week-long vacation. It was across the island from the hustle and bustle of Bar Harbor, but close enough to Acadia National Park. Here is Chewy on the porch, for scale.

With 4 people and a 70+ lb dog, it was a little tight, but cozy. Chewy made himself at home, always lounging in a spot that would be most inconvenient for us, like in front of the bathroom doorway, or in front of the mini-fridge.

Right off the porch was a nice stretch of grass bordered by wildflowers, leading to a rock beach. Chewy, like any typical golden, LOVES water. Beach, pool, or puddle, Chewy will be there. Every morning after he did his business, he would run down to the beach for at least a good paw soak. 

The new bumper that we bought in Portland got a lot of use in our vacation home's backyard. Chewy fetched it out of the water 100% of the time, compared to about a 30% return rate when we play fetch at home. Maybe he wanted to keep it safe from the evil waves?

Bringing it back!

Safe!

Shake shake shake! Mine mine mine!

Chewy is a bit afraid of large waves, so we were only on the beach around low tide. Also, he does not venture far from shore on his own. Someone has to be in the water with him, or else he will only hover a couple feet from the shoreline. This is great for safety reasons, because it means he is much less likely to get washed out to sea. This time, my dad went in the water with his wetsuit on, because the water was a bit chilly.

My best Baywatch impression

Chewy enjoyed playing with the bumper on land, as well. He bounded around gleefully, fetching it, rolling on it, and trying to initiate games of tug. Sometimes, our cabin-renting neighbors' dog would come outside, and they'd go on high-speed chases around the property. They had a blast!

Whee!

After his morning swim and run, Chewy always needed a quick nap before we could head out for our daily adventures.

Everydoggy knows you need to rest after a workout!

We are joining the FitDog Friday hop hosted by SlimDoggy,
Peggy's Pet Place and To Dog with Love.

FitDog Friday: Hiking Fun

One way that Chewy stays a fit dog is by going hiking. It's like walkies, but better, because there are so many different smells! We like to go to nature preserves and national parks to explore (and sniff) their hiking trails. They are usually nice and clean with well-maintained paths, so I don't have to worry about Chewy being tempted by some smelly garbage along the way, or cutting his paw pads on broken glass or bottle caps.

Reading some trail pee-mail

Hot on a scent!

One way to get even more exercise on a hike is to look for obstacles. Chewy likes to climb boulders, logs and stairs. Sometimes, we need to show him the best path for getting on/off, or else he just stands there looking helpless.

I'm king of the world!

We also practice jumping over logs in campfire areas that people usually use for sitting. He usually needs a running start before a jump, otherwise he just stops short.

Obstacles make the hike more fun and interesting, adding excitement and variation to a regular stroll.

Changing pace can also make the hike more enjoyable for your dog. Chewy loves to feel the wind in his fur, but sometimes likes to slow down and smell the flowers. Be sure to watch out for things you might trip over while running- some places will mark them with bright paint.


Always remember to bring water (and a doggy bowl) on your hike to keep hydrated, especially in warm weather.

Be aware of the signs of overheating in your dog, which may include:
- heavy panting
- excessive drooling
- staggering
- bright red tongue
- increased pulse + heartbeat
- elevated body temperature

Staying hydrated and taking breaks in the shade will help prevent overheating. Do not force your dog to keep walking if he/she wants to rest. Chewy will seek out a shady spot to lie down if he wants to take a break, and sometimes will dig a shallow hole to make the ground even cooler. A quick way that Chewy cools off is by lounging in water at the beach or pool, but you can also pour some cool (not cold) water over your dog.

Don't forget to clean up after your dog. It will help keep the trails clean, and won't attract poop-scavenging animals to the area.

Following the rules

Lastly, do a tick check after a hike to make sure none of those buggers have latched onto your furry friend for a free meal. Ticks can spread lyme disease, which may become very dangerous for your dog. Consult your veterinarian for proper prevention, treatment and evaluation of tick bites.

Happy (and safe) hiking!


In other news, we recently won a male vs. female doggy guessing game over at SlimDoggy and received a SlimDoggy bandana! Here is Chewy modeling it:

I look so fresh and so clean!

A close-up...I probably should have pressed out the creases from shipping first, huh?

Epic drool! (Because of meatball bribe)

Thanks, SlimDoggy, for the super cute bandana! It is going back in the cabinet until summer is over, because Chewy + summer = swimming and rolling in the grass/dirt all day, and it would turn black! Or smell like wet dog forever.

We are joining the FitDog Friday hop hosted by SlimDoggy,
Peggy's Pet Place and To Dog with Love.

Fitdog Friday: Chewy Gets His White Belt in Martial ARFS

Chewy recently started classes at The Martial ARFS, a dog obedience/fitness/agility school near us. By recently, I mean almost two months ago, but we have only been to 4 classes. I guess that kind of makes us delinquent students...

Ready for class!

Come on, what are you waiting for? Let's go in!

Chewy loves going to doggy school. Then again, he loves to go everywhere. Sometimes he even tries to go to other people's houses when we're on walks. He just bounds up their stairs and heads toward their front door!

After 4 classes, Chewy is more accustomed to the FitPAWS equipment. He is still a little hesitant at times, and might streeeetch his body to avoid putting all 4 paws on the balance discs in the quest for treats. However, it is a big improvement compared to his previous favorite tactic of running around the side to get to the food.

Four paws!

Being a Golden, Chewy is QUITE food motivated, so he can be lured into doing most things. Moving the treat slowly over the equipment gets Chewy on the discs and working his core muscles to maintain balance.

Will work for treats.

Chewy was much more confident about doing doggy squats this time. The upside down Bosu ball under his front paws works his core and makes him shake a little, so he would always be very reluctant to do anything other than stand. The prospect of Goldfish was just too tempting, though, so he agreed to pump out some squats. The squats are essentially a sit, but with front paws on the ball.

Doggy "squat"

Master of the wobble board!

Chewy's favorite piece of equipment is the A-Frame. We were working on jumps, and he was like "Nope!" and ran back onto the A-Frame. I think he likes the "I'm king of the world!" feeling, as he always pauses to look around when he reaches the top.

A-frame with obstacles

Chewy received his white belt at the end of class. I'm pretty sure humans get white belts in martial arts classes before they even learn anything, since they need something to keep their robes together! But I guess because doggies don't wear robes to martial arfs class, they have to show some skill first. Chewy had to do five squats to earn his.

Bandanas are for chewing, right?

Zen doggy

We are joining the FitDog Friday hop hosted by SlimDoggy,
Peggy's Pet Place and To Dog with Love.