Howl-Oween x2

Ahh Halloween… the one day a year I make Bo tolerate being dressed in clothing.  I know some dogs wear clothes all the time, but Bo will have NONE of that!  However on Halloween I get to at least dress him up for pictures! This year Bo was a pirate pooch and I managed to snap a few pictures before he tore the costume off of himself.

For those of you whose dogs enjoy the fine art and tradition of Halloween costumes more than Bo, there are many dog-friendly Halloween parties/parades happening throughout the city on Sunday.  Two of them sound particularly fun, but I have also included a list of a few others so you can find one near you!

Ok, so the main reason that the Haute Dogs Howl’Oween Parade in Long Beach sounds awesome is because there will be a bulldog kissing booth!  How adorable is that!?  In addition to a slobbery kiss from a fat lovable stranger, there will be a giant costume parade (over 400 dogs participated last year!), pet adoptions (not sure if the dogs come pre-costumed?), and vendors galore!  The event is from 12-5pm and the parade starts at 2:30pm.

Another fun option is the Downtown Burbank Howl-Oween Celebration for Kids and Canines.  This would be my pick for families because there will be trick or treating for the kids from 4-7pm and a parade for all of the costumed pups at 6pm!  I love Downtown Burbank and have no doubt they will throw a fantastic Halloween party.

Santa Monica- Healthy Spot Howl-O-Ween Carnival (Today)
Palm Springs- Dog Day Afternoon Halloween Extravaganza (Saturday)
Long Beach- spcaLA Halloween Pet Parade
Hollywood- Zoom Room “Doom Room” Halloween Party

And to finish things off, here is an old Halloween costume of Bo’s… and a video of him trying to destroy it.  Obviously Bo is the Scrooge of Halloween… party pooper!

  

Race for the Rescues

For all of you runners out there (I envy you… I wish I had the discipline!), there is an amazing 5k or 10k race for you to participate in on Sunday October 24th.  The 5th Annual Race for the Rescues event will be taking place at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena to raise money for local shelters.

For those of you non-runners- you can walk instead and still support the cause! There is even a special 1-mile race for kids so you can bring the whole family.   Plus, this will give everyone a chance to burn off all of the expected Halloween candy in advance!

The walk/run begins at 8:30am and is followed by adoptions, an auction, and even a dancing dog demonstration… hmm I’m intrigued!  Leashed doggies are welcome to the event and they can participate in the walk/run if they are ok in crowds.  If not, make sure to bring a friend to sponsor you and play with pooch while you run!

I won’t be able to make this one but hope there are some of you out there that can.  On your mark… get set… GO!
  

Good News for Me, Bad News for Blog

I have some exciting news to share!  I just got a great new job that begins in the November which will actually give me more free time to find that mythical life/work balance everyone talks about.  However, the bad news is that I will continue working part-time at the television production company where I am currently employed through the end of the year to help them out.  That means two jobs for the next two months… YIKES.  At least my pup is more than welcome at my old job (actually I think they all prefer him over me but let’s not talk about that…) so he can come hang out and play in the evenings that I have to pop into the office.


The reason that I am sharing this is because Trail of Pawprints is likely to be a bit quiet for the next couple months.  I plan on spending my very limited free time with Bo and friends… not in front of the computer!  But I shall return in full force in January with an abundance of energy and free time. Wish me luck!

Hiking at Eaton Canyon with Atchi!

There’s nothing better than a beautiful, sunny November Saturday in Los Angeles!  Today I took Bo on a hike in Pasadena with my friends Sean, Matt, and Dave.   Dave brought his dog, Atchi (short for Atchafalaya- the town in Louisiana where the beagle/black lab mix was adopted!), who Bo has known since Atchi was only a few weeks old!

The hike was at one of my favorite spots: Eaton Canyon.  It is a 1.5 mile hike that ends at a 60 foot waterfall (then you have to turn back so it is a 3 mile hike in total).  The beginning of the hike is a fairly flat, wide walking trail.  There is very little shade during this part, so be sure to wear sunscreen and bring lots of water for you and your doggy.  The second part of the hike is a winding little hiking trail along the stream.  We had to do a bit of stream stomping, as the trail often crosses the water, much to Bo’s delight!

Once we arrived at the waterfall, Bo was the first one in the water!  The pool around the falls is very shallow, with a gradual decrease to about 3 feet deep at the waterfall so it is perfect for puppy swimming.  Atchi had never been swimming before so he was hesitant at first.  But after a few tosses of a stick into the water, he was swimming like a fish in no time!

Puppy butts!  Look at Bo’s crimped little pantaloons!

Although dogs have to be on leash during the hike for safety/wildlife reasons, it didn’t seem to bother Bo, Atchi, or any of the many other dogs we saw along the way!  Overall this was a great, fairly easy hike for pups and people alike.  The swim at the end certainly helped on a hot day too!  Bo and I will definitely be enjoying this hike again soon!


View Larger Map
(parking and beginning of trailhead are at point A)

Mid-Week Wine Fix!

Does anyone else feel like this has been the longest week of all time? Well, I have good news- The Pourtal Wine Tasting Bar in Santa Monica has Wine Woof Wednesday tomorrow!  While you can enjoy a glass of wine on their pet-friendly patio anytime, tomorrow they have a free dog walking service provided by Big Sky Dogs!  You drink and your dog gets exercise- sounds good to me!

By the looks of it, there will also be puppy treats by Dogswell (and a delicious menu of human treats too!).  Tomorrow is the last Wine Woof Wednesday for the season so be sure to stop by!

Sorry Culver City Dogs... :(

Bad news for all Culver City pups and parents!  According to the LA Times:

Methane gas closes Culver City dog park

"Culver City officials said Friday that the municipal dog park has been closed until further notice because low levels of methane gas have been found at the site of an unexplained water seep in the portion of the park reserved for large dogs. 

Representatives from the city, Plains Exploration & Production Co. and the state Division of Oil, Gas and Geothermal Resources have investigated the matter, but have not yet determined the cause of the seepage. But, city officials said in a statement, “preliminary air samples indicate a very low level of methane gas is present.”

Although outside experts concluded that the low concentrations of methane did not pose a risk to public health or safety, the city decided to keep the park closed to make it easier for Plains Exploration & Production to investigate further and to allow for any necessary repairs. The company holds drilling rights to the area’s Inglewood Oil Field.

The dog park is on Duquesne Avenue in Culver City Park, east of Overland Avenue and south of Jefferson Boulevard. "

How sad!  But not to worry, there are plenty of other off-leash parks nearby!  Here are just a few in Santa Monica, including the Airport Park dog area.