A Beautiful But Steep Uphill Climb
I get bored with walking the same stretches over and over, so this morning, we went back to HP Regional Park (last time I went there, I came home and found 3 ticks on me). It's gorgeous there, but the walking paths are narrow. It was pretty muddy in spots, too, which makes walking side-by-side with Cabana very difficult. After getting so much better about pulling on her leash, today Cabana seemed to have taken a couple steps back (only in the figurative sense; literally, she was a few steps too far ahead). But there were horseshoe tracks in the mud, so Cabana may have been extra excited by the different scents and unfamiliar territory.
Here's the steep climb at the beginning of our walk. We took that center path all the way to the crest, but I don't think the photo conveys just how steep it is. Maybe I'm just a wuss, but my lungs were burning by the time I got up to the top. Cabana, of course, wasn't phased in the slightest--I think she was looking at me like, "What? Are you tired already?"
A few other shots of Cabbie--with her leash around a sign post near the top...
and in front of a little lake in the valley. 
Looks like fun, I LOVE hiking. Too bad the weather is so poopy right now, I don't get out nearly as much as I would like to. :) And to answer your question, no I don't have him wear his coat all the time. Only when we are going in a store or something. I don't usually put it on him for walks. I had it on him yesterday for picture purposes. I wanted proffesional looking 6 month pics. (Just a warning, I am a pict-o-holic so there is always loads of pictures on my blog) :D Sounds like Cabana is an excelent hiker. :)
Looks like lots of fun! Also the pictures are adorable! :)
Cabana is so pretty! I am a big walker and my dogs walk a LOT. Funny how after a few miles they're still ready for more. ;)
Aww Cabana is so cute!!! I love taking my dogs in hikes--it's fun AND wears them out ;)
Oh, and to answer your question, a starter raiser is someone who gets the baby puppies off the puppy truck, and raises them for a few months. We get the potty training completed and start socialization. There's lots of reasons people starter raise. My first puppy went to a family who wasn't fully trained when Lawrence came off the truck, so after a month they were ready. My second went to a family who were still raising a puppy when Pomona came, and a month later their pup was recalled and we transferred P-mo (although she might have been planed for someone else, but they were up for the challenge). Often they use starter raisers for people who have to have an older pup who they can take to work/school or as a testing ground for new raisers. They'll check out the puppy's personality before they hand it off to someone new so that dogs like Pomona don't get sent to new raisers. :)
Hi, I am Katlynn and I am raising Focus, Cabana`s half brother. From the posts that I have read they act a lot alike. Check out Focus` blog at www.desotokatlynn.blogspot.com