On Saturday Cooper and I hiked to the Summit of the highest Mountain of New Hampshire. We came down the Tuckerman Trail, which was so crowded I was thinking that people could link up arms as they climbed up the trail.
- “Did he actually summit?”
- “Do you think that was a full poodle or a mix”
- “Shouldn’t he be in pom poms somewhere?”
- “He’s small for a big poodle”
- “Ohhhhh Cute!!!”
- *Discrete* attempts at taking pictures of dog.
- “Are poodles part mountain goat?”
- “Can I cuddle with your dog?”
- “World energy crisis solution: harness your dog”
- “That is the coolest poodle EVER”
- “Can I borrow a couple of your dog’s legs”
- “If a poodle can make it to the top, so can I”
And the best compliment I can be given:
- “What an exceptionally well trained dog”
A couple questions made me want to give a snarky response:
- “Does he like hiking?”
- “How can you be sure he’s not tired/hungry/injured?”
First of all, we probably do 90%+ of our hiking off leash (thus tons of well trained dog comments). This allows Cooper to set his own pace. He’s been hiking since he was 9 weeks old and has gradually increased in distance and difficulty.
As an intelligent dog he will often run ahead and lie down and wait for me to catch up.
As for feeding and watering him. I regularly take breaks to offer him food and drink. Often he just wants to get back on the trail and looks annoyed that I’ve stopped for any reason at all.
Injury wise, I also pay close attention to his gait/pace. I am prepared to carry all 36 pounds of him down the mountain if I have to. I have in the past. When we hiked Mt Tom this winter he developped ice feet. It was painful enough for him that he sat down on the trail and wouldn’t walk. I carried him down for a mile wrapped in sweaters until his feet thawed out.
And finally, clearly he loves it. Watch him as he bounces around from rock to rock. There’s a reason lots of people compared him to a mountain goat.
So to those who said nice things, thank you. To those who doubted that I had my dog’s best interest at heart, I hope you are now a believer.
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Thanks for giving poodles a good rep. Some day the whole world will convert!
BTW – you’re looking skinny in that pic!
Mindee@ourfrontdoor recently posted..Whats That
Way to go Miriam, looks like you’re well on your way to recover. All anybody who doubts Cooper’s ability has to do is take a run with him. That’s one hardcore poodle! We hikes the Franconia Ridge Sunday and I can relate to the traffic. And not all of them were, ah, prepared, lets just say…
Hi there! That’s a super cute dog!
If you replace “poodle” with “baby” you’ll have about 90% of the comments I got when flying to Europe with my (big, cute, exceptionally well trained) son.
That said, I’m not sure i could carry C down a mountain trail, so kudos to you!
Ofthesea recently posted..Reason 56 – It’s work if I say it is