After the Utah Mighty 5 Tour All We Got Was a Bath

Our owner went on a tour of Utah's National Parks, the Mighty 5 they call them. We didn't get to go. We went to Running Pond Acres, our Doggie Country Club. Now I like that but was looking forward to when our owner returned and brought us TREATS and GIFTS!

So she returned and we were happy to be home. But no TREATS and GIFTS materialized. Hmm. She brought out her souvenirs, five Mighty 5 refrigerator magnets:

Dogs don't care about Refrigerator Magnets

She had a great time and should have brought us something. But she didn't!

So today she got out our old treat box and invited us in to.... TAKE A BATH! I wasn't expecting that. But both Francesca and I were pretty good about having our baths knowing treats would follow. And, it was a sunny day to dry off in the back yard. So all we got from her trip was a BATH!

Here we are all clean and fluffy!

So that's all the excitement for the day!

Love, Cinnamon

A Dog's Thoughts on Los Cabos, Mexico

Our owner finally returned from Los Cabos. That's way down in the tip of the Baja Peninsula where it's warm. Meanwhile Francesca and I were stuck in the snow at the Doggie Country Club. When she got back she told us all about Los Cabos and we realized that we missed a GREAT TRIP.

Dogs hanging out on the Plaza

First of all, when she visited San Jose del Cabo she found out they have a really good humane society. So the street dogs can be adopted and cared for. The Los Cabos Humane Society cares for dogs from Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo. They offer accessible spay and neuter surgeries, adoption and foster care programs and promote the humane treatment of domestic animals

I could see myself walking
around here.

When my owner visited San Jose del Cabo she noticed there weren't many street dogs. Some that she saw actually had homes but were let out to laze around the Plaza. They looked healthy and well-fed. One of the hoteliers said she picked up a stray dog in a parking lot, took it to the humane society, left a donation and the dog would be helped on the road to good health and, hopefully, a new home. I was impressed. You probably know Francesca and I were both street dogs and were adopted from the shelter.

Now that we knew dogs had good lives there, our interest increased. While we didn't get any gifts from Los Cabos, we saw that the artists valued dogs and incorporated them in their art. We saw the photos our owner took during the Thursday night Art Walk in San Jose del Cabo.

The good thing about the historic district there is that there aren't too many cars. And, they cars go pretty slow through the narrow streets. It might be safe. And, there are parks and arroyos to hang out in. I could see myself trotting around checking everything out... and practicing my Spanish!

Here's a great piece of dog art that she didn't bring home.
I rather like it!

Here's some Muertos folk art showing love of a dog.. Mi Mejor Amigo, it says... "My Best Friend."
My owner should have bought this and brought it home for our wall but she didn't.

And then I found out they had beautiful beaches there with calm waves. On the beach you can run and play... as long as you don't chase the horses!

The beaches are big and sandy. But watch out for the Caballos!

Now where to stay... well, my owner spent some time at the beautiful boutique hotel El Encanto which is full of gardens and nice flowers to smell. They allow dogs. Well, they have a long list of rules but I could obey them easily!

This is where I'd like to stay.
They allow dogs at El Encanto

So then I thought I should find out about how to get to Mexico. The Mexican travel expert at About.com laid it all out in an article. Mexican regulations allow travelers to enter the country with up to two dogs or cats, but if traveling by air, airlines will only allow one pet per person. You have to bring the proper health paperwork and that has to include, of course, a Rabies Certificate.

I don't want to fly so we'd be driving ALL THE WAY. It's a long trip but if we could visit for the winter, it might be worth it. And, if we could stop a lot on the way. I just don't want to get stuck in the belly of an airplane.  Or, again, maybe we'll just send our owner!

I think I'll pass on flying. But I sure would like to visit Mexico!

Love, Cinnamon (Canela)

Part II: What we did on our Dogcation in Central Oregon

It's been nice outside so I haven't been writing too much. But I did promise to tell you all about our vacation in Central Oregon. We stayed at a dog friendly home rental that I talked about in my last post. That was pretty cool but what we ended up doing each day was full of adventure.

Since we had to be on leashes or tie-outs while we were in Sunriver, we were itching to get out and run free. So we looked up the dog parks in the area. While Bennington Properties had a small one, it wasn't our idea of ADVENTURE. So we found something in Bend that sounded ideal. It was in NE Bend and was part of Pine Nursery Community Park. The Bob Wegner Memorial Off Leash Park is a 14-acre off-leash area for dogs including grass field, splash pad, walking trails and separate small dog area. It was named after Bob Wegner a tireless advocate of Off Leash Areas in Bend.

That all sounded good but we were absolutely blown away by what we found at the park. It was a dog adventure area with trails, rocks to climb, trees, trails and even a huge grassy area for ball catching and rolling. Francesca liked that part for playing and rolling with other dogs. There were drinking fountains all over the place and benches for owners to rest on.

I like sniffing for lizards around the rocks and pine trees. It was a place we could get away from our owner where she couldn't see what we were doing. But you know what? We always came back to her.

We went to Bob Wegner park four mornings in a row. We got up at dawn and loaded into the car for the 25 minute drive. It was worth it. It was the greatest park we've ever experienced.

One day we found out it was a holiday... the Fourth of July. Now they don't allow fireworks at Sunriver so we almost forgot about it. But I heard some fire engines and police cars and wanted to investigate. So we (meaning everyone except Francesca) went over to the Sunriver Village and found out they were having a big festival. And we were just in time for the parade. Now there were supposed to be dogs in the parade but we only saw one. There were tons of families with decorated bikes. It was fun!

So that was an exciting day.

I have to admit that each day was exciting and the excitement started at dawn. That is when all the squirrels they put out in the woods started doing squirrely things and other animals traipsed through the area. So, of course, we had to ALL GET UP AT THE CRACK OF DAWN! I got frustrated because I wasn't allowed to chase the squirrels. One day there was a squirrel that climbed up onto our second floor deck and taunted me!

We took short walks every day and the last day we took a drive over to the river. We parked at the stables and walked down to the river. I wasn't in the mood to wade but Francesca walked right in. In fact, if she hadn't had a leash on, she would have gone swimming.

After that, it was time to get packed. We left at the crack of dawn the next morning before the squirrels got up! We had a good drive home and had a late breakfast once we got there. I was happy to be home. Francesca and I slept the entire first day home!

Love, Cinnamon

Summer Dogcation: Escape to Central Oregon

Sometimes a dog's just gotta get away. That's what I decided last 4th of July when my beautiful wooded neighborhood turned in to a war zone. The noise lasted a good part of the week and came to a rousing crescendo on July 4th. I think humans were celebrating something, but it was hard to be to get into the mood. I was cowering in my bunker in the master bathroom most of the time.

4th of July 2015 was horrible!

So this year was completely different. We had already researched fireworks-free vacation areas. I couldn't go to the beach because they allowed fireworks. I couldn't go to my country cousin's home because they allowed fireworks, and besides, they moved into a tiny place.

So we found just the place. A place that is so dry, they never allow fireworks. It was Sunriver, Oregon. In fact, Sunriver has a company that specializes in dog-friendly vacation home rentals. We got on the Bennington Properties website and found a house that would be perfect for our 4th of July grand exit from Vancouver, WA. Here's a list of their "Dog-loving Vacation Rentals." And here's the house we chose. We did everything online and our Dogcation was all arranged a year before.

Here's our rental house. We rented it on July 5th, 2015

So the day finally came. July 1st, to be exact. I had already heard a few pops so I knew it was time to get going. We packed the car with our beds, food, leashes and toys. We were loaded down so I got to ride shotgun with Francesca in the crate in the back.

Here I am. I'm in charge of the GPS.

It was a long ride... about 3 hours. When we pulled up, the house was all ready for us. We had to stay on a tie-out for a little bit while our owner unpacked. Francesca got in trouble because the tie-out was long enough for her to bust in on the neighbor's deck party while they were having chips and salsa. Needless to say, she didn't get any. Our tie-outs were promptly moved to the back of the house. When we got inside we saw our beds in place in the living room and something very interesting on the kitchen counter.

Welcome treats!

Things were looking up. However, at dinnertime, I wasn't very hungry. All that driving made my tummy a bit queasy. So I just wanted to rest. Francesca was already complaining because it was hotter in Sunriver than it was at home.

Francesca was hot so she laid down next to the A/C vent

Soon it was bedtime. We were both very tired after the trip. We were glad to see our beds and toys.

Here we are on our beds with NO fireworks to bother us!

Before we went to sleep, Francesca and I read the Sunriver magazine and picked out some activities. We thought a boat trip on the Deschutes River sounded nice and cool, and the 4th of July parade, which included dogs, would be worth seeing.

So what did we do on our vacation? Read Part II and find out!

Love, Cinnamon

Coonhound Tales is on Vacation: Back Soon!