Duke's First Trail Adventure

Duke finally had his last round of shots and is ready to get out of the house.  He is so full of energy, he needs lots of exercise beyond what the yard can offer.  No matter how long the walk, he just never seems to tire.  Brian took him for a run and that didn't even phase him.  So, yesterday Emma and I took him out on the trail.  We had been waiting for a break in the heat, and we held steady at 80 yesterday.  Now, 80 at home, and 80 on the mountain do not feel the same at all. The mountain always feels hotter because of how the sun reflects right back up at you.  It did the trick.  Not too hot, but hot enough that it wore Duke out.  We only did a 2 mile loop, and he drank water 4 times, even though he was unsure of his portable water bowl. Overall, he did well, and I can see him quickly becoming a good trail companion!  We headed out of Borges Ranch so as to steer clear of Diablo property, where dogs are not allowed.

 So far he's equal parts curious, and timid.  He's very interested in things in the air.  Planes and turkey vultures are fascinating to him. Above he was listening and looking for the turkey vultures that were circling above.

 Above, he has our family gene for being fascinated with the sweet smell of horse poop.

 Hard to make out but there are quail in the above picture and Duke was quite amused by the noises they make.

 So he shows he's timid or alerted to something by sitting.  It took us a minute to figure this out.  Here, he had 2 deer off to his right, and 2 hikers ahead of him on the trail.  He wanted no part of either, and just sat down.  Once the hikers were out of site, we got him moving again.

I love our little dogs, but I gotta say, it's nice to have Duke! In a few short months he's going to be a big sturdy boy, and he'll be a blast to have out here on the trails!