Dog walking

I see people walking without a dog and several things run through my mind. First I tend to think that it's a shame that they don't have a dog or aren't walking one who would like to be walking with them, although I know not everyone can have a dog or wants to walk with a dog. But what really boggles my mind is how they motivate themselves to walk without a dog. I rather doubt that I could. I got into trail walking with Sparky many years ago and I enjoyed it mostly because he enjoyed it so much. It's seeing the excitement, joy, and enthusiasm in the dogs that motivates me and gets me going. Making them happy makes me happy. 

Being diagnosed with diabetes has motivated me to lose weight, and I have, but mostly that's been a result of dietary changes. I don't think I'm walking any more than I had been, though I am trying to do it more consistently. Exercise for the sake of exercise is a tough sell for me, but get a dog involved and then I'm interested. 

Maya was my primary hiking companion for about ten years because it was the only way she could get exercise because she'd hop the fence and go wandering if I left her out in the pasture, the yard, or even a kennel. She's not so interested in walking with me now, and that's okay, Della has really stepped up to fill that gap and Elvis is always happy to tag along. It's also the best way I've found to bond with new foster dogs and develop their trust. 

Chico and I did four miles on Wednesday evening.

Delvis and I did a quick two miles on Thursday.