On April 5th, 2014, which was a beautiful spring day here in southwest Florida, the Bradenton Puppy Raiser Group held their meeting at Robinson Preserve.
 |
| Walking in toward the observation tower at Robinson Preserve. |
|
|
Although we were walking on shell covered trails, the puppy raisers should still be staying to the left of the trail so that the puppy has a "line of sight" to follow. This actually proves to be more challenging then it may sound. For one, it puts the puppy closer to the edge of the trail which means they are closer to the impossible-to-ignore smells that they wish to sniff. The other challenge is that people walking toward them do not understand why they are walking on the "wrong" side of the path and thus create obstacles to go around or often give them strange looks.
 |
| Dogs From Left to Right: Sotheby, Guide Dog Sammy, Luke, Bobb, Dixie, Millie, Cash, Cooper, Pet Cory, and Archie. |
We had a good size group at our meeting even with the following pups being absent: Leah, Sophia, Gus, Montana, Idunn, and Sebastian.
 |
| Resting at the top of the observation tower. |
I believe that there were seven flights of steps with landings in between, which proved to be very good practice for our pups. We had a 10 foot lead to use on any of the pups who were unsure of the steps - the longer lead allows the puppy to go up and down at their own pace without feeling pressured - thus instilling confidence.
 |
| Tammy with her pup, Dixie, taking a break at the top. |
|
|
 |
| View from the top of the observation tower. |
|
 | | |
| Cash |
 |
| Mary with Millie on the left and Helen with Cash on the right. |
|
|
|
|
According to Mary's pedometer, it was a 2 mile walk round trip and even the pups who tend to pull a bit on the leash were demonstrating a nice loose leash walk on the way back to the parking lot.
Exercise, fresh air, good company, and a great group of puppy raisers - this Area Coordinator couldn't ask for anything more on a pretty spring day in Bradenton.
No comments:
Post a Comment