Today I took 4 dogs on a free run on our lower trails. It was a warm day in the 40’s with lots of sun. I started out with Pixel on a leash and Misty, Ivy and Loon running free. Those 3 are dogs that usually always go with us on dog walks because they are so trustworthy. On our trails below we often see bikers, runners, mushers, skijorers and sometimes moose! Usually if we go through the week we don’t see too many people so I like to get out in the middle of the day and not on a weekend.
Pixel was wild and ready to go. At the bottom of the road where we cut off down the trail I just dropped her leash and let her run. The dogs were still a bit wild at that point and there are several turns to different paths. Loon, Misty and Pixel headed one way and it wasn’t the way that I wanted to go. Pixel has never free run before so she was just wild with excitement. It took a few minutes for the dogs to come back so I decided to keep her on the leash until the group got more tired. So we did a 2 mile loop. When we got closer to home I let her go and put Misty on the leash. Misty is great walking on a leash and she had all her initial energy out of her. But…Misty is also one that sometimes has a mind of her own and goes exploring. She never goes too far but I didn’t want her to train Pixel any bad walking habits.
Pixel was great the rest of the way home. She often would run back to me to make sure I was still coming along. Loon and Ivy made great walking pals for her because they respond quickly to calls and don’t run off too far. Once on the road I let Misty loose again so all 4 ran up and down the road (rarely any traffic on our little dirt lane!) all the way home.
It was a delight to see and knowing how young Pixel is and that she will continually need a lot of exercise to keep her happy, I’m confident that she will join a small group of free running dogs.