Visiting The Dublin Pet Fair

 

Fall is coming a bit too fast and a bit too cold. The summer was great for us since there were constantly dog friendly events to go to, but as the weather gets colder, the less people want to go out with their pets. This weekend however, J and I decided to bring Mako to the Dublin Pet Fair since it was a beautiful day out. It’s about a twenty minute drive from where we live, and Mako was excited the whole way there.

As we pulled up in the parking lot of the park, we saw a bunch of tents from afar. After bringing Mako to so many pet fairs/festivals/expos over the summer, we knew the routine. There were a ton of rescues with so many cute puppies, there are always some sponsors and charity groups. Look at Mako represent State Farm in his super cute bandana. Of course there were also some vendors, both big and small. A few we’ve seen at other events.

We arrived a bit late, but we were able to catch a show from the Southern Ohio Flying K9s. They showed off freestyle disc performances and distance/precision throws. This pup was particularly amazing. Look at her balance on his legs! Anyways, this looked like such a great dog sport, but I don’t think Mako would like it. … He’s not the best when it comes to retrieving things. And on top of that, we’re in the middle of our agility class already, so I think it’s best we just stick to one thing at a time! All in all it was a beautiful day out this past Saturday, and we’re really glad we got to take Mako out to such a fun event! Are there any dog friendly events you go to? Let me know in the comments below!

 

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Wagfest in Hilliard, Ohio

Last weekend we brought Mako to Wagfest in Hilliard, OH. It was a very fun experience and I’m glad we got to go this year! Dogs have to be at least 1 year of age before they’re allowed at this event. I guess I could have lied last year… but Mako would have been obviously only 4 months old and super rambunctious. Anyways, there was so many stalls and so many events, we didn’t even get to see everything.

 

 

When we first got there we decided to just take a walk around and look at some of the stalls. There were a lot of dog food advertisements since Pet People was a huge sponsor for this event. It’s pretty helpful to us since we’re always looking for a better food to feed Mako. We got tons of samples that’s going to take us a long time to try each one. But I’m sure we got some quality choices so I’m looking forward to seeing whether my picky pup will like it or not. As we walked past the many stalls, there were of course a lot of crafty items for dogs and a few dog rescues. There was one rescue with the cutest pit bull puppies! J said we couldn’t have another dog until we get a bigger place.

 

There was a food truck at Wagfest that catered to dogs! I love food trucks, so I’m really glad that Mako was able to enjoy one as well. They provided samples and coupons for their treats, which Mako couldn’t get enough of. On top of that, they had a very comfortable lounge area that you and your pup could rest at. And my favorite part about their station was the “family portrait” that they do. There’s a machine that takes you and your fur baby’s photo and prints it out right away. On top of that, they’ll email you a digital copy just in case. We rarely have family photos that have all three of us together, so I was super excited when I realized we would finally have one together.

 

It was a really sunny day last Saturday, so all the dogs were panting from the heat. Luckily, Krogers created an ice castle for the poor doggies. The puppies could cool off in the ice pit and the humans could hide under the shade as well. The event was next to a lake where dogs can run free. If Mako’s recall was better, we could have let him loose too, but that’s still something we’re working on.

In another section of the lake, we saw a group of dogs who were jumping off of the dock. Apparently it’s this type of sport dogs can take part in. It actually looked really fun and amazing, but I’m not sure if Mako would enjoy it. He likes running into water… but then he freaks out once he gets too deep. Anyways, it was fun to watch and the dogs seemed to really enjoy it.

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Experiencing The Great Outdoors with Your Dog

With the weather being so beautiful lately, we wanted to make sure that we were able to do something fun with Mako before the summer ends. Now, hiking came naturally as something that we definitely wanted to do with our pup, but we wanted to do something more special. After some quick research on the internet, we decided to go to Hocking Hills and canoe with Mako.

Ice Cream Social With Mako

The one thing I love about Ohio is how dog friendly it is here. I feel like there are always dog friendly events going on, at least during the warmer months anyways. Yesterday was a gloomy Saturday and we weren’t sure what to do with Mako. We could have taken him to the dog park, but it would have just been a huge muddy mess. On top of that, he seemed to be a bit tired from his vet visit in the morning already. Then, we found the perfect events to bring him to. One was Dog’s Days Out: an event hosted by Whole Foods in Upper Arlington for dogs.

The Difference Between Good Play and Bad Play

When we were back in Boston, I made sure to set up a few play dates for Mako so he gets to stretch his legs with some four-legged friends. We just happened to set play dates with two shiba inus. (For some reason, I know a lot of them.) One belongs to my cousin’s coworker and the other belongs to a very good friend of mine. During Puppy Preschool, we learned what was “good play” and I’ve heard some angry play times in the background with the other dogs, but I’ve never experienced it first hand. I think it’s super important to know the difference. It’s pretty easy if you observe your puppy’s body language.

Gahanna’s Paws in the Plaza Event

Before we left for Boston, we decided to bring Mako to Paws in the Plaza to let him stretch his legs a bit in preparation for the long car ride the next day. Paws in the Plaza is a local event in Gahanna where you can bring your fuzzbutt with you to walk along the creek on a trail, or just walk around the plaza to look at all the different stands. There were stalls for mostly businesses like doggy daycare/boarding locations, the Pet People stores, and some crafts that people made for dogs. This includes biscuits, those pet bags for you to carry your dog around like a kangaroo, pet staircases, and more.

Driving Long Distances With Your Dog

 

On the day of our big trip, we woke up super early in the morning to get a head start on our road trip. We woke up around 4:30AM and got ready quickly. Mako of course woke up from our commotion. We got him up and ready and were ready to leave by 5:30. It was unbelievable how good he did in the car. Now, Columbus to Boston is about 12 hours away. It was pretty incredible that he was so calm in the car for such a long time.

Road Trip with Your Dog

 This Fourth of July, we’re road tripping home to Boston to see our families. I’m so excited for this trip because, it’s Mako’s first time meeting my friends and family. Being the worrywart that I am, I’m always cautious about forgetting something I might need. I swear, packing for a dog is the same as packing for a baby. I already have a tote full of supplies and I know I’m still missing a few things. But, I always make lists for packing cause… well, I LOVE PACKING! Now these are just a few things I would bring for Mako, you may or may not need this for your own dog. And since we’re driving, we have plenty of room for everything, so I might be going a bit overboard to pack for him.

Socializing Your Puppy at a Dog Park

One of the most important lessons that I wanted to be sure to teach Mako as a puppy was to be well socialized. He was always friendly to strangers and he loved playing with other dogs. But he has the biggest problem with reading social cues when a dog clearly doesn’t want to play with him. He’ll just keep bugging them and bugging them until they either give in and play for a bit, or they snap at him. I wanted to make sure that he got a lot of exposure to different dogs so that he can learn when to give up.

Pug Meet Up at Godown Dog Park

Occasionally, we bring Mako to a dog park in Worthington. (It’s pretty nice there since they have separate areas for smaller and larger dogs.) A few weeks ago we saw a meet up for pug owners. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so many pugs in one place. They were just so cute! I think it’s awesome that there are meet ups like this for pug owners to share their stories and meet other pugs. It’s also great to be able to socialize your dog with others that are the same size. I wish there was something like this for keeshonden! I don’t think Mako will ever meet another keeshond since they’re so uncommon.