Excursion to the Dog Park

well, this was a big weekend.

chibi and sumo had their first trip to a dog park. mom forgot our camera, so we dont have any documented proof, but we still had a great time.

we went to meet another shiba owner from the area. we got there and the dogs were excited (just excited to be out and about mostly), but we still werent sure what to expect with our shiba's unleashed and free running with other dogs. we got to the entry gate, and each seemed excited to be there.

we walked around for the first 5-10 minutes with each on a leash just to make sure there wouldnt be any huge issues. they were both mostly calm and more interested in sniffing dirt/grass/bushes/fence than playing with the other dogs.

once off leash, they had fun sniffing almost every square inch of the park (sumo mostly trailing chibi around the park). they sniffed and were sniffed by other dogs, nothing dramatic. there was one shiba 500 burst of chasing each other that lasted about 20 seconds. the rest of the time was just happily trotting around exploring. sumo made the most friends (dogs and people), while chibi mostly stuck to her own agenda.

once the heat and exhaustion took over, she actually walked along side me for the rest of the day. sumo found a shady spot under one of the other dog owner's chairs and sat there. we were happy to say the "ill tempered, self absorbed, dominant" myth of shiba's in a dog park were just that for us.

the only close call was when chibi was sniffing a bush and a HUGE MEGA SIZED male malamute came along side and needed to pee on the bush. since the malamute was about a foot and a half taller than her, he was just standing above her (didnt see her), lifted his leg and started to pee. she missed being peed on by about 0.5 seconds and 1/2 an inch.

we'll have to head back soon :)