For the Love of Dog

You arrive home after hours away and your sweet pup is waiting to give you a tail-wagging, face-slurping greeting the moment you set foot inside the door. Such a sweet ritual. But how sweet is it really? I hate to ruin a good thing, but when it comes right down to it,...

Dogs are an endless source of entertainment to us dog-loving humans. I especially love surprises. Oh, there are the occasional bad surprises. I believe I already told the story of the squirrel mangling that took place on our bed. ‘Yuck’ doesn’t even begin to cover it....

Dogs and their toys. Some are partial to soft lovies and others prefer a ball or Frisbee. Some dogs love a good game of tug with a giant twisted rope. Others like to chew and chew and chew. When dogs are proud of their toys, they like to show them off. It’s a...

Gnarly and Trae are a team—a man and his best friend, but they are way more than that. Trae is a combat veteran and a retired police officer, who happens to be diagnosed with PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder). Gnarly is his official service dog, trained and...

Most of us like to seize the dawning of a new year as a time for change—usually toward improvement of some sort. The proverbial New Year’s Resolution often prescribes loss of weight or better fitness (physically or economically), how to better use our time, greater...

Hooray for the holidays! It’s the hap-happiest season of all, as the song goes. First, there’s Thanksgiving—a dog’s favorite holiday. What with all the table scraps doled out, unattended plates ripe for the taking, and platters to prewash before they’re loaded in the...

If you’re ever in need of a good cry—you know what I’m talking about—and are looking to watch something that pairs superbly with a pint of Ben & Jerry’s and a box of Kleenex, I have some sound advice: Aim for a dog-centric movie. The smart movie producer will...

On the subject of Halloween: What’s not to love? A chill in the air, hordes of happy kids eager to show off their costumes, and fun decorations everywhere. It’s all so fun. The decorations can be humorous or downright brilliant. We’ve all seen the house across from...

Shedding: The natural process of casting off old hair to make room for new growth or to thin out a thick winter coat to better deal with warmer days. Natural or not, I’m sure I’m not alone when I say that nothing tests the love of dog like shedding season. I’ve seen...

I enjoy waking to the sounds of birds chirping in the garden. There’s something about it that signals all is well with the world. Each morning, songbirds frequent the seed feeders and bird baths, hummingbirds buzz in a high pitch, and bees go about the business of...

Have you ever heard the words ‘good job’ after you’ve done something particularly well? Two one-syllable words—not hard to pronounce nor to understand their meaning, yet they pack a powerful punch. Good job. That simple phrase is capable of inciting esteem, good will...

The Colfax Marathon is an annual event that encompasses many races and every imaginable level of fitness. The event I participated in a couple weeks ago was the 5K—my first—where most participants walked, including yours truly. This 5K event follows a 3.1-mile loop...