Wow#2

Skip, Tao, Sadie and baby Oscar to the right...

Group pose below; Middy (upper left-our newest member that is trying to get them all to chase her!), Rudster in black, Skip, Ever taunting him, Big Bos, Finn casually hanging as he does, and little Jasper who is constantly on the move!

Holy cow was it ever nice out! I do apologize for not bringing the dogs back at their usual time- it was just too nice and the pack today was incredible. It is so amazing to watch them all interact and figure out who is who within the pack too. Everything is done in silence and I find that really cool.

Sad news is my battery died for my camera and I dropped my phone in the water:(. How I manage to do this is beyond me at times...Here are the pics I did get...

The pack members were so in line with eachother...they teach the younger ones how it works. I love the power of the pack!

Then there is Skip...I swear he poses for us. He knows when we take the camera out. He ran through some mud and I thought he looked cute.

Then there are the others doing their thing...Finn- so calm he is, Tao the trooper, Ever and Jasper in a game of copycat, and sweet Sadie...

I like to experiment out there and I decided to change directions on them to make them think and make choices. Trying silent hand signals sometimes allow me to see what they mean to what dog. Some like to stay in the perimeter like Middy and Rudy...they like to be on the outskirts and look inward at the pack. Fine with me- they are always watching so I don't have to worry. All of their eyes are constantly on me. "What's next?" they say... If I stop walking, they stop, if I start running they start. And not just one, all of them. A few times we stopped to just sit as if we were a pack of wolves. They really respond to the body language and every single one comes in for a cuddle one by one. No fighting, it's understood. It's pretty cool.

Oh, and I almost forgot about Smudgy! What an adorable dog! Bosley likes to play with her and watching his big paws try to play with her is too cute!

Anyhoo...I am hiking tomorrow (Saturday) so if anyone needs me to do a pick up let me know by text on the hike phone. 604.388.9006. I'm not good at texting on that thing so my apologies, I will try. Not sure if this is going to be a regular thing or not- just right now I know it's been tough for people with the Olympics on.

The substitute teacher is signing off....over and out!

Wow!

Allow me to introduce myself....my name is Leslie...I suppose I would officially be named the "substitute teacher" for the crew or "substitute pack leader"! I already know a bunch of these little or big munchkins and it is always a pleasure to meet more. Today was a great day- sun was shining and every one of my furry friends today would look up at me for direction. I was impressed at the respect that these guys will give eachother. We had a newbie today named Oscar and the crew embraced him without hesitation. The two little firecrackers; Spanks and Harmony seemed to take him under their wings which was so great to see. They instantly became friends.

Kayla was amazing today- only barked when I was talking to another. Caught her in action below! Bosley....what a handsome man...and of course, the two little firecrackers! They are so comical! Ju ju in the sun waiting for her treat. It was a precious day. See you tomorrow!

It's Gonna Be a Bright Sunshiney Day...!

Beautiful day...if we can't have 30cms of fresh pow lets at least have sunshine! A lovely hike with chilled out dogs, and Julia's Aunty and I as human companions...our crew today were Sadie, Tao and Jake, Mugs, Rudy, Skip and of course the lovely Julia. They were all pretty chilled out, Tao especially seemed tired today and there were only a couple of spontaneous gallops...instigated of course by Skip, and Rudy if I remember correctly! We kept it simple today...up an fsr, round into the edge of the forest trails, another loop here, and playtime there...then home. Lots more to sniff now the snow seems to be dissipating at lower elevations...sticks and foliage make for interesting investigations! Top marks to all dogs too, as we encountered a rare vehicle...a chap looking for places to hike. They were awesome! Skip and Rudy went for a bark, but came back to sit with the group without too much effort..and nobody barked at him or scrabbled his truck paintowork when he rolled the window to chat to us...good doggies! So here are the shots from today...

 

trotting out into the sunshine...and having a good sniff; seemed to set the scene today!

Climbing up in the lovely sunshine...ahhhhh feels gooooood!
 

Milling about over the bridge

 

Ju and Rudy-Rudester enjoy a luxurious roll!

 

Sadie soaks up the sun

 

Good company, Good Dogs, Good photo ops!

 

Time to head down...Mugs having some chill time on leash training, while we mosey on down hill to the truck

 

Tao says...see you all soooon, and er...please can I have a treat?

Another lovely day, if a little languid - no digging holes or mad barks today. We strolled along, having the odd roll and many a forensic sniff at the most interesting of snow mounds, or twigs, or emerging undergrowth, or....you get the picture. Was a nice change. I love that every day is different, and that one minute we can be all relaxed, the next having a gallop, the next sitting quietly...my dear doggy friends! Bye for now, aroOOOooOoooo!

Dog Par-tay

Ha! A sea of furry bodies were unleashed on the trails today, awesome...3 humans, 12 dogs, a couple of trucks, big smiles. Canine Energy in the mountains was rocking out today!

 

Starting out

Leslie and Louise getting amongst it!

Our crew today included, from South to North in terms of homes...Bosley, Ever, Spanks and Harmony, Julia, Finn, Sadie, Jake and Tao, Kayla and Mugs, and finally Middy, the newest woofer who belongs to Louise, who will shortly be Whistler's newest dog groming company....watch this space, we will keep you all posted!!!

We started out with our steady climb, to let all dogs have a good sniff and for Julia to do her shuttle run style playing before heading into the forest. Fresh snow, rising temps, wet animals all round, sun shining..ahhhhhh lovely.

Go get 'em, Ju!

Dogs in the forest...we had a god poke about as I was looking for a shortcut to a different trail, didn't find it but it was great to get off the beaten track :)

Big smile from Tao, and Ju and her new best friend Mugs share a stick! They trotted about for ages together!

 Louise gets some doggy love, an Aroooo from Fin,...and a jolly good barking from Kayla!

Then it was time for home...a great hike, good company and cool dogs..see you all tomorrow, arooOOOooo!

Ever waits...

The Secret To A Great Hike...

...well, it's easy really; dogs, great travel. Today was one of those awesome hikes where the snowpack has stiffened up and we can go everywhere! It feels so great to have group playtimes dancing about without post-holing or for those of us with merely two legs slipping all over the place :) We also had two new friends join us today...

 

Helloo Mugs! Mugs is a super good boy, loves to play and I love the way he furrows his brow like a Ridgeback...so cute! He is so affectionate too - I remember meeting him for the first time and he was super shy, but today it was all licks and at times sitting on my lap! A good boy, loves to play and gallop about with the whole pack - another great crew member!

 

Teaka-Teaka! What a pretty girl, and so much fun! I met Teaks for the first time this morning, and she was a shy girl, until she sat in the truck..then she gave me a big lick (went well with my morning coffee...ew!) and warmed up immediately! She was collected first so we could get to know each other, then Teddy and Ella were collected next - and what better dogs to greet a new comer - Ella and Teddy are the perfect hosts making her feel super comfortable as we  fetched the rest of the pack. Teaks is another Skip in that she instigates group 'chase-me' play - she is a suuuuuuper cool dog, so well behaved and super good with all the others. She even led the way at times, doing the look back when we reached a fork in the trail to ask me which way next. Awsome :)

So although there were no bluebird skies, we did have that lovely haze of sun through the clouds, and as I mentioned solid travel so we varied our hike from fsr's to forest trails, to clearcut romping...and loved it! I also had a solid pack of chilled out dogs, that every now and then would leap into action and play...then trot along together sniffing quietly - then play again!!  Hiking with dogs rules...no chit-chat, no human stresses...just an instant of what smells are there, who wants to play next, and lets dig a hole type 'in the moment' existence...it's awesome - I love watching them and learning their little ways...so lets see some pictures!

 

Off we go - Teddy and Ella, Skip, Spanks and Harmony, Mugs and Teaka leading the way

  

Galloping about!

 

mmmMMmmm smells interesting...

 

The sun broke through here...it was beautiful! 

Some model shots from Harmony and Skip - click to enlarge, they are good ones! It was a novelty to have Harmony still for a couple of seconds! Pretty girl she is, I love her little nosey - it looks like if you were to push it with your finger it would squeak!

Teaka pauses to admire the view on our climb

  

Ella gives a lookback...I love it when they do that, and when they trot back just to say hi and then go off again - little darlings! What a great start to the week - see you all tomorrow, arooooooooooo!

Let The Games Begin...

Welcome to the first day of the Games! For us, business as usual, the dogs seemingly oblivious of the buzz around town, they just want to hike...me too! We had an awesome crew, full house today, and for two of them, it was a day to get some training... Ever and Bosley are super good dogs they just get so excited it can turn into a little more energy than I find acceptable...I was a hyperactive child (just ask my family!) so I understand where they are coming from and appreciate the effort it takes to chill out when everything is just so wonderful you need to rage about to get it out your system. The pair of them had a great training session to curb the enthusiasm...

Monkey 1 and Monkey 2...aka Ever and Bosley!

To ensure the others get a balanced play I called Ever and Bos in, made them sit, then lay down, then quietly let them go with an 'ok'. Repeat. They were both so good, and what a test to call in a dog in the midst of play.

For me, as ever it was a great learning experience, and because these guys are so good, I was overjoyed with their response...good dogs!!! I also have great advice from all my doggy associates, and Leslie, Canine Energy founder, also suggested a neat trick - a group 'down'. We stayed out an extra ten minutes as in the middle of the hike I called them in for quiet time as usual except this time ten dogs and me sat quietly...no rolling in the snow, or digging with each other, no treats, no talking/woofing...a total time out. It took some time, don't get me wrong - I was trying not to laugh at times at their antics...but we did it!!! No shots, I didn't want to break the magic of the moment, (and my one futile attempt just got a few heads and a close-up of my ear - ha ha) but they all rocked!

During the group 'down' the following antics were observed...

Bosley was great for 30 seconds then got all ADD and dug holes in the snow, then was asked again and did so well, albeit a bit of a fidget-pants!

Ever was down the whole time, but was fidgeting and grumbling at me...but she did it too, yes Ever was still!

Spanks and Harmony sat well, but just couldn't grasp the lay down idea for long, however they seemed to be listening to me with heads on one side, and they sat quietly...good girls!

Jake, Tao, and Sadie were awesome!!! Jake was in his natural pose down ready to round up, Sadie and Tao were enraptured, thinking this was a long way to give cookies and watched every move I made - well done to the Collie contingent!

Ella trotted about us watching, sitting, looking a bit bemused, but she soon joined Teddy, who sat with his trademark paw up terrier style...good doggies!

And dear Julia...well she just stared at me wondering what all the nonsense was about - what's the point if she doesn't get her cheese treats?! I love the aloof side to Huskies, their cat-like disdain at doggy activities cracks me up! Julia sat well, and waited patently to carry on...I was finding it hard not to laugh at her expressions..Ju you rule!

So our own personal celebration was held today, for the dogs who rock and a huge thank you to the owners for working hard on your best buddies and allowing me to learn and have so much fun with them :)

Enough wittering on...(I do find it hard to stop talking...) here are some shots from the day:
 

We started with a long climb...a great way to run and  play and dance about before winding through the forests!

 

Julia and Harmony dance!

Heading up into the forests...click to enlarge - can't see the dogs through the trees!

 

No snow on the woodwork - makes me want to grab my bike! 

 

The Collies and Bos-man sit and have a drool...treat time!

Say Cheeeeeese! The small dogs and Ju are just out of shot - and were literally under my feet! I tried to capture them all...not much luck...!

Look at that little nosey...Harmony, Like Spanks is small, cute and very independent - little pocket rockets!!!

There was a moment when they were all dotted about on the moss and it looked amazing...but by the time it took to turn on the camera..they had all but one dissipated! Think that's Spanks...not sure - she and Harmony are more distinguishable close up!

Then it was time for home, and truck time...the three new collies are loading super well. This morning on pick up, Tao took his sweet time, but made it eventually, and they all trotted up there one by one after the hike. Awesome...we had a good few minutes to chill and have a pet, biscuit and chat with each dog before heading home. An awesome time, with tired out dogs and a wet and happy me..and Let's Go Canada !(And England, and Holland!)

The crew...check out Teddy and Ever!!!

Final Note:

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Our prayers are with Luge rider Nodar Kumaritashvili's family after his tragic accident - sorry to end on a sombre note, but I just had to pay my respects after the news has just broken. Rest In Peace Nodar.

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