There are many nice hikes around Cañon City Colorado, some of which are dog-friendly. Many travelers pass right through this area while on their way to the high country and this is a mistake. Some may stop at the Royal Gorge, to see America's highest suspension bridge, or to ride the crazy-high zip-line , or perhaps the less-scary tram car that spans the gorge. Most travelers sadly miss out on some of the best hiking and biking trails in Colorado, along with some very nice dog-friendly hikes around Cañon City. Cañon City Gets A Bad Rap Unfortunately, one of the reasons some people keep on goi ..read more

Lulu Belle was the third to join our pack. For a couple of days, Melissa had seen what she thought was a coyote lurking around our rural property, so when - arriving home one rainy moonless night around midnight - she saw a shadow by the front door, she assumed it was a wild thing. Troy was dispatched to investigate, and on closer inspection, the “coyote” turned out to be a leggy, damp, spotted dog he brought inside out of the rain. The plan was for the homeless pup to spend the night on a bed by the door and for us to search for her owners the following day. Thirty minutes after her arrival ..read more

How To Cross into Canada With Your Dog During the Covid-19 crisis, the Canadian border has been closed to non-citizens (and their furry friends). The border will hopefully re-open soon, and tourists will be able to resume their cross-border travel once more, bringing their dogs along for the ride. As dual-citizens, Melissa and I have crossed the border with our dogs several times as we've moved and taken vacations in both countries. Crossing the border into Canada with a dog can be easy or challenging, depending on many factors - not the least of which is the mood of the customs officers on a ..read more

If you're on a road trip with dogs and are visiting Colorado Springs, Colorado and considering driving up the park road to the summit of Pikes Peak with your dog, it might be a good idea to check out some of these tips before taking your dog along for the ride. Dogs Can Get Altitude Sickness Too Just as with humans, altitude sickness in dogs is quite common, especially at altitudes greater than 8,000'. The altitude of Pikes Peak is 14, 115' and both humans and dogs will feel the difference in atmosphere - especially if they exert themselves at all. We have taken several of our dogs up Pikes Pe ..read more

This summer we're planning our first road trip since the pandemic began. Aside from taking along some Covid-19 safety supplies, we're taking the usual road trip safety gear, tools, spares and gadgets that we normally bring along in our pickup truck. Whether you're planning some travel off road - as we are - or are sticking to paved roads, the car safety items that you need to take on a summer road trip are basically the same, with a few exceptions which we'll discuss later. Have Your Vehicle Checked Out Before Leaving Town The first step that you should always take to ensure that your car is r ..read more

Where do you find the best bluebonnets around Austin? One of our favorite places to see them each year is at Muleshoe Bend Park, located near Spicewood, Texas, about 45 minutes West of Austin. This 654 acre park is operated by the Lower Colorado River Authority or LCRA. It features 10 miles of hiking and biking trails, along with several miles of dirt road that parallel the Colorado River (that other one in Texas). If spring wildflowers and bluebonnets are your thing, this is the place to go from around mid March to mid April each year. Many families come to Muleshoe Bend Park each spring to ..read more

Having a dog become lost in an unfamiliar place is one of every pet owner's greatest fears. It's a constant worry for us - even though we've traveled thousands of miles with our various pack members over the years. We've had a few close calls and have learned some things from our past mistakes, yet we always have to keep reminding ourselves to not let our guard down and become complacent while traveling to a new place with our dogs. Here are some of the strategies that we use to make sure that we keep our fur babies from getting lost while traveling. Follow a Routine & Keep Them Leashed I ..read more

If you're planning a summer road trip with your dog and they're on any type of medication, it's important that you follow a few simple steps to ensure they stay safe and healthy on the journey. Here are some things we've learned from traveling with our pack of senior rescue dogs. Start Off With Enough Dog Medications For The Trip Before you head out on a road trip with your dog, determine how many days that you'll be gone, then add in a week or two for safety to come up with the maximum days of medication your dog might need. Take a look at all the bottles and check the required dosing, count ..read more

Here are some tips on how to secure pet-friendly Airbnb accommodations, get great reviews, and have a stress-free stay. When we're not camping we often choose to stay with our dogs in Airbnb rentals and we've found some amazing ones in both the US and Canada. We've had excellent reviews so far, thanks to choosing pet friendly Airbnbs with great hosts, and by doing our best to practice what we do everywhere, when we travel with our dogs, which is to "leave no trace". Step 1. Finding a Dog Friendly Airbnb On Airbnb, we generally set our search filters for: "entire place" and "pet friendly". Be ..read more

Stevie Ray is the baby of the family and was the fourth member to join our pack. Back in 2009 - proud parents to three rescues - we were eager to adopt “just one more”. We figured that a fourth pupper wouldn’t complicate our twice daily walks beyond adding one more leash, and our acreage had plenty of room for another rescue to call home. We hadn’t yet realized that, as a gangly “teen”, our chosen adoptee had not yet been initiated into the wonders of basic training and would put an immediate damper on this - and other - plans. After much investigation, we settled on adopting from Austin Dog ..read more