This Dog Walker's Dog Bed Recommendation

View fullsize

Many of you know that I have labs. Labs are prone to hip problems and arthritis as they age. As a dog walker and pet sitter, I am in a lot of people’s homes and I see a lot of different types of dog beds.

I’d been looking for a dog bed that would help support my dogs when they sleep and I found one!

Have you heard of Big Barker? They make an amazing dog bed. I highly recommend them.

They are pricey but they offer a year long money back guarantee. There is absolutely no risk. Try it and return it if your dog doesn’t like it.

That’s not the case in my house. Both my dogs love their Big Barker.

They have a Barker Junior too for smaller dogs and their giant sized bed will easily fit a great dane.. or two! They come in 4 color options too and a protective liner you can purchase to help protect the bed.

At my house, we cover our bed in a twin fitted sheet. Every week we wash the sheet and that really helps to protect the bed and it’s super easy to take off and on. I’m all about keeping things simple!

Check them out. I think you and your dog will love them!

Brady and Ferguson

View fullsize

These two cuties are Brady and Ferguson. They turned 9 in June which makes me shake my head in disbelief because I've known them since they were 3 months old. Their dad contacted me back in September 2009 and they've been a client ever since. I see them every day while their dad is at work.

Brady on the left in the photo above likes to walk. Fergie on the right loves to be outside (as long as the ground isn't wet) but he doesn't love to walk. He prefers to sit and look around with his nose in the air. His dad and I think that might be because he's had some foot issues.

Every day when I walk into their house, they come running to greet me. Brady usually gets to me first and he jumps up to say hi. Ferguson runs over too, waits for me to pet him and then they go flying to the back door and wait for me to open it. I sometimes think they must sit and look out the back windows watching the squirrels and the birds because they go zooming out and sometimes bark as if to say, "This is my yard, get out!" They're pretty funny and very predictable. 

They live close to me too so I get to see them frequently when their dad is out walking them. One of the best feelings in the world is when they see me and they get all excited. Even though I've most likely just seen them a few hours earlier in the day while their dad was at work, they're still running towards me pulling their dad along to come over and say hi. I've said it before and I'll say it again, I have the best job in the world. 

If you think your dog would enjoy a midday break while you're at work, get in touch. We will take them for a walk, let them roam your backyard or whatever they'd like to do. #bestjobever

Instagram

View fullsize

Are you on Instagram? If by chance you're not familiar with it, it's a social media site that is specifically for posting photos and videos and the posting can only be done from your phone. As a dog photographer, I started an Instagram account shortly after I started BARKography. You can check out my @barkography account here.

I really like Instagram. I follow other accounts. I enjoy looking at their photos and reading their captions. Other accounts follow me. I feel like I've gotten to know some of them even though we've never met. I actually have met a few of them. A couple of local Charlotte people and a few others across the US and Canada when I've traveled.

If you're on Instagram, I thought it'd be fun to mention some of my favorite accounts. Of course I follow a lot of dog photographers and a lot of dog accounts. YES, people create accounts for their dogs. If I'm being honest, I never know if I should comment as if I'm talking to the dog... I suppose I am supposed to do that but I usually don't.

I'd love to know some of your favorite accounts too.

One comment that I got from a florist that I'll always remember is how happy she is to always see my dog photos. She commented that she mainly follows wedding photographers, other florists, and other businesses that support weddings so she loves seeing the dog photos I post. That made me feel good.

So without further ado, here are a few of the accounts I enjoy seeing:

Viking the Lab - I don't know his story. I know he is rescued. I'm not sure why he is cross-eyed but his posts bring a smile to my face every time I see them. I laugh a lot at his posts too.

Nemocrr - Nemo the curly coated retriever is quite the joke teller. He's pretty amazing.

Dancers and Dogs - This one is amazing. I hope I have this right: 2 photographers out of St. Louis that were mainly dance photographers came up with the idea of adding dogs. Here is a link to their website and a behind the scenes photo of what they do. 

For someone who often suffers from wanderlust, I follow a few accounts that feed my soul. Accounts such as:   Wild Coast Adventures and My Banff.

Do you have Instagram accounts you always love seeing? Which ones are they?

Day 3 in Banff

I had a long list of places I wanted to see on day 3 but I wasn't sure I'd get to all of them. I left the hotel around 6:15am and headed for Lake Louise which was a 40 minute drive. It was another cloudy morning so I wasn't sure what type of shots I'd get. I didn't spend a ton of time here because I knew the shots wouldn't be great because of all of the clouds. The color of the lake water is just amazing but the clouds covering the mountains in the background is disappointing. After I captured a few photos, I headed for Peyto Lake.

A NOTE ABOUT BEARS If you didn't read my last post, This Pet Sitter takes a Vacation, reading it now will make this next part make more sense. :) I'd done a lot of research prior to the trip and I knew that I was in bear country; black bears and grizzly bears. Several of the places I was going required hiking in "tight groups of 4 or more." I may delve into that phrasing in another post.... but it did turn me into a huge chicken and not wanting to venture away from the crowds.

My photographer guide Mark from the day before told me this about the bears: He said to make a lot of noise when you are on the trail because you don't want to startle the bear. Let him know you're coming particularly if you are rounding a bend and you can't see what might be ahead of you. He said black bears and grizzlies are very different. If you see a black bear, get as big as you can and make a lot of noise. Most will have no interest in you and he will be reluctant to approach you if you seem bigger than he is. (He did also say if it was a black bear with cubs, get out. Mama bear will become much more aggressive if her cubs are around.) He said with grizzlies, forget the strategy of trying to get big. He said grizzlies know that they are bigger than you. You want to back out of the situation as quickly as you can. Back out, don't run. So this was my bear avoidance training.

I was really excited to see Peyto Lake (Pee-toe.) I'd read online that there is a lookout that gets really crowded with tourists as the day goes on so I wanted to get there early. I'd also read that there was a nice hike to do above the lake that was rarely crowded. I was hoping to find some people interested in exploring the upper part of the lake trail. When I got there, I found 2 people on the lookout. Turns out they were a couple from The Netherlands. They were super nice but not interested in hiking the upper trail b/c the husband had a bum knee. I asked if I could walk back down to the parking lot with them as I shared my fear of bears story. Turns out they shared some of my fear - they were carrying bear spray and the wife kept saying "Hi Bear" when they were out walking alone.

**I should mention that when I got to Peyto, I walked about halfway up the trail to the lake and I turned around to head back to the car. I was psyching myself out thinking about bears. I took a deep breath, turned around and headed back up the trail to the lake.

I didn't spend much time at Peyto and I was disappointed about not doing the upper trail. Part 2 of Day 3 to follow.

Snowy Owl Sled Dog Tour, Day 6

On our 6th day of vacation, we went to Canmore to the Snowy Owl Sled Dog tour. I'd looked up their website before going there so I had an idea of what to expect. I wasn't sure how I'd feel about seeing all of the dogs tethered. My expectations were exceeded by a long shot. The dogs certainly seem to be well cared for and loved. I was in heaven!!! Since it was summer, they give tours of their kennels. During the winter months, you can actually go sledding.

We were greeted by our host and she explained what we'd be doing. They keep the boy and girl dogs separated by a chain link fence. They rotate "play days" for the boys and the girls and today was the boys day to play. I didn't realize that we'd be meeting about 100 dogs - all off leash. There were probably about 20 of us humans and 100 dogs. Have I mentioned that I was in heaven?

As an aside, for those familiar with photography, I use the same lens about 80% of the time when I am photographing dogs. Up until now on vacation, I'd almost exclusively (aside from the bear sighting) been using a wide angle lens for landscape photography. It felt great to put the lens on my camera that I am most used to using.

I spent most of my time photographing the dogs. I need to go back again and spend less time photographing and more time loving on and listening to the hosts explain what and how they do what they do. And then I'd like to go back and photograph some more! And I want to go back to Canmore on a Thursday. Thursdays are their farmer's market days and we met a man who makes handmade kitchen items. I am still kicking myself for not buying the pepper grinder we saw. It would've been a great souvenir and it was my birthday.... I obviously wasn't thinking!

As with the wolves the other day, I took tons of pictures of the sled dogs. I only wish I had their names.

Snowy Owl Sled Dog Tour