FitDog Friday - Swimming at Alpha Dog Club

With less daylight and colder temperatures, mom and I decided I should try a new fitness activity for the winter months.  We had wanted to check out Alpha Dog Club since they opened a year or two ago, and mom recently got a deal on Groupon to give it a try.  So a few weeks ago, I had my first swim at Alpha -- an Intro Swim, Assessment, & Ramp training.  First I learned to use the ramps to get in and out of the pool.

This is my "What crazy thing do you want me to do now, momma?" look

So this is how it works

I quickly got the hang of things and was able to swim without a leash.  

This ramp is pretty cool

I was doing so well, I got to take off the PFD (puppy flotation device) and swim NAKED.

Mom says I'm kinda' timid when it comes to pools. (In my defense, pools can be scary because they're deep and have steep sides.)  So she wasn't sure how much I'd like swimming at Alpha.  I used to swim in a pool at daycare every week, but the daycare pool closed a long time ago, so it's been a really long time since I've been in a pool.  

I was a little bit hesitant at first, but once I learned to use the ramps and I saw how easy it was to get in and out, I thought it was really FUN!  The nice lady kept throwing a Kong Wubba for me to retrieve and I was all happy and excited to be swimming and retrieving.  It made momma happy to see how much fun I was having while getting great exercise.

When we went back the following week, I was very happy to be there and eager to get started.

I'm ready for you to throw the ball
(note waggy tail)

I'm waiting

I remembered how to use the ramps.

  

And I once again had a great time.

I LIKE this place

We went back again the following week, and we've decided to make visits to Alpha Dog Club a weekly thing.  Swimming is an excellent way to get a full-body workout, and it's also FUN.  Since we do so much hiking, swimming is great for me because it exercises different muscles and helps loosen me up if I'm stiff or sore from hiking.  

If you live in or near Richmond, you should check out Alpha Dog Club.  The pool is heated and is saline (instead of chlorine) so it doesn't irritate my skin.  Once you graduate to unassisted swimming, you can join the pool buddies program for $10 swims, or you can save money by buying a package of swims.  Alpha Dog Club also offers Dog Massage, Treadmill Training, and Pet First Aid Classes.

A wet paw-print on momma's shirt
(I have NO idea how that happened)

Check out the other posts in the FitDog Friday Blog Hop (see links below) for more great ideas about fun ways to get and keep your pup fit.

FitDog Friday! Garth's Top Ten Reasons to Join PetsMove.Org

It's FitDog Friday!

What better day to share with you all the GREAT reasons I belong to PetsMove?

Garth's TOP TEN Reasons 

to Join PetsMove.Org

1. All the cool doggies are doing it

My buddy Gizmo (of Gizmo's Terrier Torrent)
is tough competition
(and no, we didn't feel like having photos taken)

2. You can get an inspiration band

3. You can make new friends & connect with 
others with similar interests on Forums

4. You can get info about dog exercise & nutrition

5. Accountability helps you stick to a program!

6. PetsMove.Org will help you get/stay fit, and fit doggies live longer & have fewer vet bills . . . 

& fit doggies have more FUN

Fit doggies: Ricky, me, and Makayla
Photo by Brian Padow, Canine Adventure

Photo by Brian Padow, Canine Adventure

7. Girl doggies like fit doggies!

8. You can get support in your fitness routine

9. You could BE ON TV

and, most importantly

10. You can WIN PRIZES (and who doesn't like to win prizes?)

So why not join PetsMove.Org today?  It doesn't cost anything, and the benefits are AWESOME.

FitDog Friday - Garth's TOP TEN Reasons to Exercise with Your Dog

1. It will make your dog happy

2. It will make you happy

3. It helps with stress for both doggies & humans 

Stress?  What stress?

4. It makes you and your dog look and feel better 

5. It's a great way to make new friends

Me and Trevor, Cooper, and Austin
on one of the first Human Adventure hikes mom & I led

Walking with Rocco of To Dog With Love
on the greenway at BlogPaws

6. It's FUN

7. When you & your dog are physically fit, you can do even more fun things


Photo by Brian Padow, Canine Adventure
I'm six years old.  I couldn't leap like this if I didn't walk every day, play fetch most days, and go for 2+ hour river romps two or more times a week.  

8. It tires your dog out so he/she is better behaved (it can even help with behavior problems)

Too tired to eat the carpet

Demonstrating my good behavior

9. $$$$$ - Dogs who exercise and maintain proper weight have lower vet bills and need fewer medications

10. Dogs who exercise and maintain proper weight live LONGER, healthier lives

Don't know where to start? See How to Keep Your Dog Healthy and Fit, Part I and Part II for some tips.

***BIG NEWS***

Our pals at SlimDoggy have a very exciting announcement today that will help you and your doggie stay motivated to exercise every day.  SlimDoggy.com also has all kinds of info on doggie nutrition, weight control, and exercise.  Check it out -- it's a fantastic resource.

It's FitDog Friday!  

FitDog Friday is a blog hop hosted by my friends SlimDoggy, 
Peggy's Pet Place, and To Dog With Love. Check out our hosts and the other bloggers in the hop (see below) for ideas, tips and inspiration for getting and keeping your pups fit and healthy.

FitDog Friday - Great Places to Walk In Richmond, VA: the Floodwall

It's Fit Dog Friday!  

Fit Dog Friday is a blog hop hosted by my friends SlimDoggy, Peggy's Pet Place, and To Dog With Love. Check out our hosts and the other bloggers in the hop (see below) for ideas, tips and inspiration for getting and keeping your pups fit and healthy.

Today's Great Places to Walk post features one of our favorite local trails, the Manchester Floodwall Walk.  This is one of the most scenic hikes in Richmond, featuring awesome views of the James River and city skyline.  The heron rookery is nearby, so you can often see a bunch of great blue herons fishing on the rocks.  From March 15 to October 15, there are ospreys fishing and flying overhead.    

The trail goes under the Manchester Bridge

The floodwall walk is wide and level, and is an easy ~3 mile walk if you do the whole thing.  Although there are no hills, there is a tall flight of stairs about halfway down the wall.  

To get there: The floodwall parking lot is off of Semmes Avenue just before the entrance to the Manchester Bridge going North, but we prefer to park on the street behind the Suntrust buildings (take 12th Street off of Semmes to get there).  From there, just follow the sidewalk to the footbridge over the railroad tracks, then take a left on the trail after the bridge.  (If, instead of taking the left down the trail, you follow the trail straight for a short distance, there's a great view of the city from the top of Manchester Wall.)  You can also park in the parking lot off of 14th Street just south of the 14th Street bridge, but that puts you kind of in the middle of the floodwall walk.

I love hiking the Floodwall!

Don't forget - today is the last day to enter my BarkWorld Ticket Giveaway!  Winners of the BarkWorld ticket will be announced tomorrow!

I've got more fun giveaways coming up!  

On Monday, I'll be giving away A YEAR'S SUPPLY of Doggie Walk Bags Dogbags for Scoop That Poop Day, so definitely stop by on Monday!

FitDog Friday - Great Places to Walk: Key West, Florida

It's Fit Dog Friday!  

Fit Dog Friday is a blog hop hosted by my friends SlimDoggy, Peggy's Pet Place, and To Dog With Love. Check out our hosts and the other bloggers in the hop (see below) for ideas, tips and inspiration for getting and keeping your pups fit and healthy.

Mom and I love to walk.  Whenever we travel, we try to find good places to walk.  Each week I will tell you about a new place to walk.

Our favorite place in the world is Key West, Florida. One of the many things we love about Key West is that you can walk almost anywhere you want to go if you stay in Old Town.

When we're in Key West, Mom and I like to take our walkies early in the day when it's cooler and the streets are quieter.

Morning in Key West

My new friend

 There are lots of interesting things to see when taking a walk around Key West.

I wanna' feed the fishies!

Fishies!!!

FISHIE

929 miles to Richmond, VA
Not sure I feel like walking that far this morning

There are lots of these wandering around Key West

Sometimes they will try to sneak up on you

Where else can you see a Kapok Tree?

or a Banyan tree this big?

Not only is Key West very walkable, it's also very dog-friendly.

Most restaurants in the Keys are dog-friendly

Here I am hanging out at Geiger Key Fish Camp

A Note from Garth's Mom: There are chickens everywhere in Key West, and they can sometimes startle you and your dog. Stay alert and ready to distract your dog with treats and hold on tight to his leash if he has a taste for chickens. Walking along Duval Street can be a challenge if your dog doesn't have a good "leave it" command - there are often dropped foodables to be found. I prefer walking along the side streets like Whitehead and Simonton and Greene and Caroline, and walking along the water from the Westin Marina to Mallory Square to the waterfront at the end of Greene Street. 

There are poisonous toads that live in Key West called bufo toads (see Bufo Toad Poisoning).  I learned about them from my friends the Key West Collies in their post Toxic Toad.  The skin of bufo toads secretes a poisonous substance that, if untreated, will kill a dog that bites or licks them.  They come out at night and at dawn and dusk and like to be near standing water.  It's probably unlikely to see one if you stick to the sidewalks in Old Town, but I'm told they can be found out near the golf course.  Before visiting a new place with your dog, research local hazards to your dogs.  Check out my guest blog post 7 Tips on Traveling With Your Dog.

  

FitDog Friday - Great Places to Walk: Hunting Island State Park, South Carolina

It's Fit Dog Friday!  

Fit Dog Friday is a blog hop hosted by my friends SlimDoggy, Peggy's Pet Place, and To Dog With Love.  Check out our hosts and the other bloggers in the hop (see below) for ideas, tips and inspiration for getting and keeping your pups fit and healthy.

Mom and I love to walk.  Whenever we travel, we try to find good places to walk.  Each week I will tell you about a new place to walk.

And now for this week's segment of Great Places to Walk . . .

Last week I told you about a wonderful little town in South Carolina called Beaufort, where we spent part of our vacation this past April.  While we were in Beaufort, we drove over to Hunting Island State Park, which is a GREAT place to walk.

First we walked out on the Marsh Boardwalk.  It was a short, but very interesting walk, and was a great place for viewing marsh creatures.

Looking for marsh creatures

The Marsh Boardwalk

Marsh Creatures!

Next we went to the beach near the lighthouse.  We parked in the parking lot near the lighthouse, had a picnic lunch in one of the covered picnic areas, then walked out on the beach.  We timed our walk for low tide, which is the best time to walk on the beach at Hunting Island.

Mom and I have always loved walking on the beach, but the beach at Hunting Island was like nothing we had ever seen.

What manner of beast is this?

Is this some prehistoric creature?

Showing off

But how do I get down?

There was a lot of driftwood on the beach . . .
the biggest driftwood we've ever seen

I suppose, technically speaking, it's not driftwood if it's still attached to the ground, but it sure looked like giant driftwood

I found a GREAT stick

I LOVE this place

Having a post-walk drink

As you can see from the photos, Hunting Island Beach is not your typical beach.  It's wide and flat and the sand is firm and easy to walk on.  But the most beautiful part about it is the weathered dead trees.  I know that sounds odd, seeing as dead things aren't often beautiful.  But you should check it out for yourself if you visit South Carolina's Sea Islands.

Go at low tide, and you can park at the lighthouse parking lot.  There's a $5 per adult admission fee (but it's well worth it).  To see the trees, go out to the beach and take a left.  From the lighthouse to the campground and back is about 2 1/2 miles, but you could walk many more miles if you wanted.  We didn't walk on the beach to the right, but it looked like there were fewer trees and more sunbathers in that direction.

Note that the park website says there are gators that live there, so use caution, especially around the lagoon area.  We don't expect to see gators on a beach on the ocean, but we always keep a look out anyway.