A Resolution Your Dog Can Help You Keep

Most of us know the routine with New Year's resolutions - we make them on January 1st, but they're usually forgotten by about mid-January! 

Well, last year SlimDoggy challenged us all to move our mutts, and Rita and I took the challenge seriously!

FitDog Friday: Keep the Dog Hydrated with a "Cleanbottle"

A while back I saw someone having a wee rant on Twitter about seeing lots of folks out walking/jogging carrying water bottles for themselves and not for their pups. 

Now... what made that person assume the water bottles weren't for the dogs? Sure some dogs prefer to drink from a bowl, but there's no reason a dog can't drink from a bottle. 

Angel Abby demonstrates how:

It's Wildfire Awareness Week in CA. Yep, We're Aware!

I'm guessing you've seen on the news (or my Facebook posts) that San Diego county experienced a rash of fires the last few days. At one point there were 9 of them!

Here's a fuzzy pic from my phone showing the news graphic of the 9 fires.
(BTW, we're fine - we live well west of where the fires are.)

Ironically, this is all happening while it's Wildfire Awareness Week in California. Yep, you could say we are aware now! In fact, even though we aren't close to the fires, I was afraid to leave Rita home alone, just in case a fire would break out in our canyon. (It's happened before, although they put it out quickly!)

FitDog Friday: Creative Games From the Mind of a Beagle

Happy Anniversary to the FitDog Friday blog hop! There's lots going on for the celebrations, so check all that out at the end of this post.

I haven't joined in the FitDog hop for a while, partly because I've been trying to focus on getting book no. 3 done and partly because you can only write so much about walking the dog. We're boring, Rita and I. We mostly just walk and walk and walk. She's not much of a one for games. She'll play for a couple of minutes, but then she's done. 

It makes me fondly remember our beagle, Bailey, who was a great lover of games. 

Oh, she enjoyed the usual stuff too, like walking and hiking, ...

FitDog Friday: Five Ways To Rev Up Your Walk with Rover

Have you fallen into a slump with your dog walking? Did you resolve on January 1st to walk your dog more, but now it's just so boring you don't wanna?

Well, here are 5 tips to put some oomph back into your walks with your pup.

1. Bored with the scenery? Drive to a different 'hood!
I used to do this in our old neighborhood, which was kind of isolated so I'd get really bored walking the same loop over and over and over and over. Some days I'd drive to another neighborhood, even just a short ways away, and then we'd have someplace new to explore. New smells for the pup, new houses to check out for you.

2. Use the time wisely

Our sniffy angel on a hike

2A. Does your dog take unusually long to catch up on his/her pee-mails? We used to have a beagle, and believe me there is nothing like walking a scent hound to let you know that "walking" is a relative term. What I generally did with her was stand around a lot, while she sniffed like she was a recruit for the bomb squad. Luckily Rita is only half beagle, so she's much less stubborn when I tell her to heal and we can keep moving. Still, sometimes I let her sniff.

FitDog Friday: Counting Paws & Steps

The hubs and I recently added pedometer apps to our smartphones. We thought I'd easily hit the suggested goal of 10,000 steps/day (since I walk Rita every morning for 45-60 min, plus run errands, etc.), and we figured the hubs would have a hard time since he's often stuck in endless meetings and works 10-12 hour days.

The Unit enjoys a good walk

K9 Kamp: Are You and Your Pup Keeping Up?

It's time for a check in on how K9 Kamp is going. You might remember that I posted about this month's challenge a few week's back, which is to add an EXTRA 30 minutes of activity with your pup 3 or 4 times a week. 

K9 Kamp is Back!

Hey K9 Kampers - get yer booties on cuz Kamp is back and it's time to rise and shine! And walk! And hike! And do whatever else it is you like to do to get up off your butt with your mutt!

Q&A With Peggy Frezon for FitDog Friday!

Today, we welcome Peggy Frezon, of Peggy's Pet Place, and author of Dieting with My Dog, and Heart to Heart, Hand in Paw. I read both books and they're pawesome! Peggy's a fantastic writer, and I can't wait to get my paws on her new book: The Dieting with my Dog Guide to Weight Loss & Maintenance.

Pooch Smooches is excited to be part of Peggy's blog tour, spreading the word about the book and about doggy (and human) fitness! Today we've asked Peggy to join us here for a little Q&A about the book.

 

FitDog Friday: Rita's Favorite Way to Stay Fit

As I've said on the blog many times, our main way to keep Rita fit is just a LOT of walking. But one of her favorite ways to stay fit is to have a play date.

This is Rita's best friend, Dakota:

Keeping Up With K9 Kamp: A New, Old Hike

Since it's the last Friday of August (where did the summer go?) it's time for the Keeping Up With K9 Kamp monthly wrap up.



Koach Jessica at You Did What With Your Wiener said this month's Kamp challenge was to "try one new activity with your dog." Suggestions included: hiking, nosework (like hide & seek), agility, running, geocaching, kayaking, swimming, or walking a brand new route.

Keeping Up With K9 Kamp: Calories In, Calories Out

Remember when Rita and I were having fun with K9 Kamp last month, and we said the fun would continue with monthly challenges posted on You Did What With Your Wiener? (No, this isn't anything political about the NY mayoral race... that's a different Weiner. Seriously considered whether or not I should capitalize that last word...)

Anyway... Kamp Coach Jessica's mini challenge this month was to figure out if you're feeding your dog the right amount of food.

The basic idea was to calculate your dog's calories in and calories out and see, based on your dog's current weight (fine? A little pudgy? Too thin?) if you need to make some adjustments.

"Does this fur make my butt look big, Momma?"

FitDog Friday: The End of K9 Kamp?

Today is the last day of K9 Kamp. :(

Time to lower the flag, roll up the sleeping bag, track all the dirt into the car and head home.

Extra, Extra... Exercise & a Mess o' Followin' Up

It's FitDog Friday as well as Follow-up Friday, so we're (mainly) following up today on how K9 Kamp is going.

Have you been to Peggy's Pet Place and/or Kol’s Notes to enter the giveaway and find out more about K9 Kamp? If you haven't, then get over there. Lots of fun things to win!

So, the K9 Kamp challenge is to work an extra 20 to 30 minutes into your pup's exercise routine 3 or 4 times per week. As I mentioned at the start of kamp, Rita and I walk a lot - about a marathon a week, between a long walk every morning and sometimes another 20 minutes a few nights a week. Adding more time sounded tough, so at first I thought we'd try upping the intensity instead.

A happy-walker makes for a happy-kamper

FitDog Friday: Rise and Shine Kampers!

Rise & Shine K9 Kampers* - It's Time for K9 Kamp!
If you've been following the blog for a while, you probably remember last spring when Rita and I joined in the fun of K9 Kamp, with 4 weeks of fitness challenges sponsored by Koly of Kol's Notes and Kelly of Peggy's Pet Place.

We were so honored last year to receive two awards (Gopher Wrestling Champions** and the Beach Babes Award!), not to mention we won swag! This time, you can win swag too! Fun, right? Read on!

FitDog Friday: Dogs Don't Do Pilates

Today we are once again joining SlimDoggy and Peggy's Pet Place for the FitDog Friday blog hop.

Yesterday I asked Rita if she wanted to go do a cardio workout with me. Of course she did! We live at the end of a street that splits off into three separate deadends, each with a STEEP hill. Luckily we live at the top of the one deadend, so we don't have to always start our walk with a long uphill slog. But yesterday, I decided we'd hit the hills in each deadend, one right after the other. It was a good little 35 minute cardio workout and we were both panting by the end of it.

But Rita didn't really care about that - she just wanted to get out and GO! She doesn't give a hoot about cardio vs. strength training, and could care less about the latest fitness fad.

Don't get me wrong. She does cardio:

"I love aerobics, especially water aerobics! Gotta get the heart rate up!"

And strength training:

"More resistance, Momma! I need more resistance!"

Of course, she also makes time for stretching:

"You can make time for stretching by stretching & noshing at the same time."

And she knows that you need to recover after a hard workout:

"This is an important part of my recovery. Every athlete knows that!"

Abby even had a great core workout that she liked to do. (You think situps work your core - try digging on three legs!)

But Rita's not worried about getting in three hour-long cardio sessions a week, plus 2 - 3 strength sessions, or about keeping her heart rate at eighty percent of her max. She doesn't need a gym membership or any fancy equipment. She doesn't need a pedometer, a chronometer or an MP3 player. She just wants to move more, get out more, have more fun.

So, get out with your pup. Toss a toy around the yard. Chase each other around the dining room table. Move more, do more, enjoy more! It's good for you and the dog!

Happy FitDog Friday!



FitDog Friday: Pearly-White Canines!

... and incisors and whatever else a dog's mouth has going on in there. Yes, today on FitDog Friday, I'm posting about something that may not be the first thing you think of when it comes to keeping your pup fit and healthy: teeth. Just as with humans and dental health, keeping a dog's teeth healthy is super important too! (Note: Be sure to read to the end of the post for a link to a giveaway on one of our fave blogs!)

Do I Really Have to Brush My Dog's Teeth?
I grew up in the days of ignoring the dog's teeth, so it's been a little hard to get in the habit of regular brushing. When I came across Jozi the Corgi (yes, another Corgi! You know we love those around here, as evidenced by yesterday's post!) & the Pussycats' Smooch a Pooch Giveaway, we had to enter. How could Pooch Smooches resist a "Smooch a Pooch" giveaway?? Plus, I figured if we won I'd have no excuse not to brush Rita's teeth.

Well - we won! So now I have to start brushing Rita's teeth. And we've been lazy, but no more excuses.

I couldn't believe how big the box with our winnings was. Rita could have fit inside! I didn't remember everything involved in the prize package, so was expecting a tiny box with a doggy toothbrush and some Dentastix - but no! There were tons of goodies!

She's so excited, her head's all blurry in this photo.

I had to really dig around in there to make sure we didn't miss anything!

Rita with our haul!

Here's everything we won:

• A coupon for a free office visit and dental consultation to Banfield (inside Petsmart)** 
• Paw Print Keepsake 
• Doggie Toothbrush 
• 2 Doggie Toys
• Dentastix Fresh samples - yes sir, yes sir - 3 bags full!
• Sephora goodies including a $25.00 Sephora gift card (Whoo-hoo! Some shopping for the Momma!)
• Toothbrush, toothpaste & Altoids for us humans to keep our breath minty fresh and clean

Rita loved the toys that were included:

"Give, Momma!"

But quickly abandoned them in favor of the Dentastix:

"Oh, I love the easy-open packaging."

"Seriously, Momma. The Sephora thing is yours. Get away from my Dentastix!"

Just one, Rita!

After she finished the lone Dentastix I would let her have, she was back playing with her new toys. This one is really cute and is designed for snuggling - it sort of has a blankie attached to the stuffed part.

"I'll snuggle this later. Right now, I think I'll eat it."

Today we got out the toothbrush, which is really cool and 3-sided. As luck would have it, I'd been reading My Brown Newfie's post on all the benefits of coconut oil, (check it out cuz there's lots of good info about the health benefits both inside and out, for you AND the dog!). Via the comments and following some links, I found that some folks use it to brush their dog's teeth, so I thought I'd try that. I've tried in the past to brush Rita's teeth with one of those finger brushes and some gross chicken-flavored toothpaste, but she was not keen.

Today when I came at her with the new toothbrush with a bit of coconut oil on it, she was happy to give it a go!

"Yum!"

"Momma, could you stop the brushing action and just let me lick this??!"

Look at those pearly whites! Gotta keep 'em that way!

Thanks again to Jozi the Corgi & the Pussycats! (Stop by and check out their cute blog!)


**NOTE: I'm happy with our vet and he runs a teeth cleaning special every February, so if anyone would like the coupon for the free Banfield checkup, let me know. I'm happy to mail it to you!

Do you brush your dog's teeth? It's important for keeping them healthy!

Now... In Other News?
Remember when Taryn from A Tail of Two Cardis won my giveaway celebrating What the Dog Ate's first anniversary? Well, she's having her own giveaway starting today, so stop by A Tail of Two Cardis and check it out!





FitDog Friday: Kale - Good For You & Your Pup

SlimDoggy and Peggy's Pet Place have gotten together to start a new blog hop - FitDog Friday. We love fit doggies around here and have often joked about opening a fat farm for pups, so we thought we'd hop along on this inaugural FitDog Friday. (If you want to hop along, see details here.)