No Car Day at the Beach

Today was No Car Day in Vancouver, but I'm not going to post about that right now. I will, in a few days, don't worry. The reason is because after all the excitement, Louise and I went to the BEACH. It's now warm enough and we had already determined that it should be a good night for a bath, so there would be no harm in letting her have her fun.

And fun is exactly what she had.

We were lucky to find a spot that was pretty empty today - fine weather on a weekend tends to bring the suburbanites into town and this weekend was no exception. The place was pretty busy. But, the sun was slowly setting so I am sure that the bulk of the people had already started to head on home. This was perfect for us as it meant Louise could explore without any interruptions.

Lately she hasn't been thrilled with the notion of having a camera pointed her way but after some time in the ocean she was in the mood. At one point the silly dog wanted to come up and sniff the camera, for no other reason other than she was happy, little tail wagging. Look closely and you will see me reflected in her eyes.

I like the days where we get to spend a little extra time with Louise, just goofing around and having fun. Judging by the way she is curled up on Holly's lap, snoring away after being dried off, I think that Louise likes these days too.

Here is a quick video I took as Louise ran up and down the beach:

Thanks for putting water out!

The last little while has been fantastic weather. Anytime this is true, we have to be a little cautious over when and how long we walk Louise. She does mind the heat. So far we have been able to get around this by concentrating her time out around mornings and evenings. But when a pug has to go, a pug has to go. Sometimes, waiting until the sun sets is just not feasible. A dog crossing her legs is not a pretty sight to see at all.

So we sometimes head out for a stroll in the middle of the day. It's still only Vancouver weather so really it's not that hot out. Besides, many people leave dog bowls filled with water out for passing dogs. We know of one at the local fire hall and another at a restaurant called Don Guacamole's. Sadly, as we headed past Don's we learned that they are not always consistent with the water. We arrived today and discovered it wasn't there. Louise's tail dropped immediately and she lost the will to continue. I had to carry her an extra block to get to a local aromatherapy store that also leaves water outside. Once refreshed, all was good in the world again.

Can it be Friday now?

We were out for a walk late last night, around 10:30 pm or so. I was in shorts and a tee-shirt and didn't feel the slightest chill in the air. We were out later in part because any earlier would have been warmer than what Louise finds to be comfortable. Judging by her mood, she was pretty happy with the decision.

Okay, so take a look at the bench in the second photo. Louise fails the graffiti test on both counts since she is not only a dog, but of a Chinese breed. At least they used correct spelling I suppose. I was hoping to think of something witty to say about it, but really at the time it just made me think 'hmm.'

It is also becoming quite clear that Louise doesn't only like to bark at cars, but also at boats. Well specifically the ones with engines. I think it's the noise they generate or something. At any rate, she finds them quite fascinating when we are down by the water and will often run to the edge of the seawall to get a better look.

Whatever she likes, I say. At least she can't get into trouble with boats since she refuses to enter water deeper than her chin. It gives her a chance to interact with something different and she is having fun. Isn't that what dog walks are supposed to be for?

Titles are the hardest part to write.

Another weekend, more time spent down by the seawall. The place is getting busier as the weather gets warmer and Louise is just loving all the extra people she runs into on a daily basis.

Okay, not really. She gets quite aloof at times and bored with it all. The novelty has clearly worn off and she would often just rather get on with her walk but she 'tolerates' her fans and they sometimes win her over. This happened tonight while I was walking with her and someone approached asking if they could pet Louise. At first she didn't want to even look at this person but within about 4 or 5 minutes Louise was all affectionate and enjoying the attention from her fan.

We can't possibly stop and talk to everyone who approaches and as I have griped before, I generally don't indulge the ones who scream movie titles or mimic her breathing. But I'm not griping now, we had a good walk tonight. Louise was energetic and wanted to run so it was good that we were in an off-leash area. She enjoyed her run and I appreciated the fresh air and the chance to stretch my legs out a bit after a morning ride.

As I mentioned before though, it's getting warmer and that means that Louise's endurance is already fading. Hot weather is like kryptonite to this little pug. Even now, about half an hour after our evening walk, Louise is flaked out on her bed in the living room after laying on several spots on the floor first (the floor is colder.) It won't be long before we need to bring water with us during the walk. Still, she really enjoys this time and doesn't hesitate to go out when the sun is shining.

Victoria Day weekend

Spring is here and Wheezie is already starting to feel the heat. Still, she seems to really enjoy this time of year - it's warmer, but she can always seem to find some cool grass under a shady tree somewhere. Vancouver is not the sort of place where the grass burns up by mid-summer.

I wasn't feeling up to a bike ride on Saturday so the whole family set out for a walk into Coal Harbour. The weather never did get as warm as all the news stations promised, but by the time we were at the waterfront we were confronted with some unexpected humidity that had us shedding our layers. Having a good walk in the morning is always helpful because that means she wants a nap throughout the afternoon. Groceries were purchased during this time, which was what we had planned. We also stopped into Bark & Fitz to try on some new harnesses but didn't find something we liked enough to buy. We did pick up a couple treats which is why you see pictures of Louise trying to hope up into Holly's lap. We also got another bone that is designed to help keep her breath fresh.

Late this morning I had Louise out again and this time she wanted to roll around in the grass. She does this as it gets warmer since it helps her to cool off. I caught a bit of video of this - I probably should have tried to stay in one place more but hopefully you will get the idea just the same.

We tried Louise on the breath freshening bone and she did chew on it for a while, at least long enough for me to snap a couple photos but quickly lost interest. She keeps coming back to it when she is bored though, so we haven't totally lost hope yet. Since returning after her night walk she has been tired and hot - so she lays on a spot on the floor for about 4 or 5 minutes before moving to a new, colder spot. I have a feeling she will sleep well tonight. Oh who am I kidding? She's already fast asleep while she waits for us to go to bed.

More photos from Langley

I was going through my photos and found a couple more shots from our weekend that I felt ought to be on the blog. The first one is Louise getting cuddles from Colleen. Nothing quite says 'loving the attention' like getting tummy rubs while being held in a lap.

When we were packing up we decided not to bring Louise's bed as we figured that the dogs might sleep together and it would be redundant. Well we were partly right - it would have been redundant to bring the dog bed we have because Louise was just as comfortable sleeping on Daisy's bed! With wall to wall carpeting in all areas except the kitchen and dining rooms, Daisy didn't care too much if Louise took a nap on the dog pillow once in a while. Oh by the way, those would be Daisy's toys next to Louise. She tried them out for maybe about five minutes before losing interest.

Country Visit

This weekend we went out to visit with friends in Langley. I like to tease them that they live in the 'country' even though they are still well within the urban sprawl that is the Fraser Valley. Afterall, they live about a 45 minute drive from us and due to the fertile soil in the area there are a lot of agricultural developments (ie. farms).

Louise of course, was up for the adventure.

It also meant that she would get the chance to play with Daisy, a German Shepherd - Greyhound cross. For the most part the two dogs got along, once Daisy realized how bossy Louise can be.

Before heading out we grabbed brunch at De Dutch, a nearby restaurant that had an open patio. This was key, as it meant we could have the dogs with us while we ate. Daisy wasn't really used to such a busy street so she started to whine a little, but we were able to keep her under control. Louise of course, was more focused on the possibility of food appearing soon and was looking for the best possible position to catch any scraps.

From there we went to the seawall, where Louise needed to find some shade every now and then. She was resting up for her big sprint along the water's edge. We did happen to find a stretch of sandy beach and let the dogs go for a run - Louise pretended to be a Labrador and was instantly in the water, racing along the surf. I think she liked being able to cool down so quickly.

From there, I didn't get a lot of good dog photos. But we did have a good time in Langley, eating sushi and watching a losing hockey game. Just like we would have at home.

A lot of flowers were used to make this post

All this biking is eating into my computer time which means I don't blog as often. Well at least that is the excuse I'm using this month and at least the biking part is true. Still, I do manage to get my usual amount of pictures while walking Louise, so at least the photos will keep coming even if they are a little after the fact.

I have to say though, the weather has been fantastic for April. It could be warmer (it could almost ALWAYS be warmer for me) but the sun has been shining a lot and I am not going to complain. Louise has also been quite energized by the warmer weather and some days gets really hyped up over it. For her, the cooler temperatures are also perfect as she tends to suffer in the heat.

Last weekend (yes, it has been that long) Louise and I were over in Coal Harbour and we walked along the new convention center in downtown Vancouver. It overlooks the float plane docks and gives a great view of them as they land and take off. We spent about half an hour just hanging around here before moving on to the rest of our walk.

We have had a whole week of great walks like this. Louise is just enjoying the sunshine and making sure she has her game face on when pug fans approach - some days she just hams it up.

This last photo is actually on the English Bay side of the West End. When we see flowers in bloom like this we have learned to take the photo because the next time through they might be gone. That hasn't really been very true in Vancouver these past few weeks as it is still vibrantly in bloom, with cherry blossoms staying on the trees longer than usual. Still, there always seems to be a fresh crop of flowers for Louise to smell, so I'll keep snapping photos.