Olivia took her first trip to the dog park on the day she turned four months old, yesterday. Puppies need to be sheltered from diseases until they get their full set of vaccinations which is at about four months. Olivia got her last puppy vaccinations ten days ago, and yesterday she turned four months old. It was definitaly time to hit a dog park. Bailie and I went to this park for the first time last winter, and approved it for our little sister to test out.
You know Mom isn’t real big on dog parks. They can be dangerous, lots of out of control dogs, irresponsible owners, and so on. Still, Mom wanted to see how Olivia would do in a big dog park, in a place she had never been before. They went in the middle of the day when it tends to be almost deserted, and it was hot out. Olivia was a bit scared about it all at first and stuck close to Mom.
Why did Mom only take Olivia? Most parks have a two dog per person rule, and she was concerned about us protecting her if Olivia was scared of other dogs. It is good for her to learn about the world on her own sometimes.
There was only one other dog at the park until they were leaving, so it was a calm environment for Olivia to do some exploring. Since she is young, and it was hot, the plan was to walk the perimeter once and leave, about a twenty minute walk. Olivia even took some time to stop and smell some flowers.
As they walked along, Olivia’s curiosity started to win her over. Slowly, she ventured a bit further away from the safety of Mom, but never more than twenty feet or so. Look at those giant hiking paws she still has! Oh man!
A few times she ventured off the trail into some of the grass just to sniff around. She told me she was almost overwhelmed with all the new, fun smells.
The entire trip to the dog park took just under an hour, including drive time. It was just enough to give Olivia something new to try. It was super windy, so in the above photo, her ears were blown back! Maybe next time one of us will go with her.
Today we are joining our friends at Living Laughing and Barking in Our Backyard is for their Nature Friday blog hop.
ooh what a wonderful girl you are… you even tokk the time to smell the flowers ;O) …we are with your mama, dog parks can be funny but at a risk…
We are always careful when we go, and we never go at the busy times.
What BIG feets you appear to have, Olivia! I am sorry you and Bailie had to stay home, but this was basically a Mommy and Olivia walk. Have a wonderful weekend, XOXO, Sparkle
It was really warm out, so we were fine making sure the A/C was keeping the house cool.
Awwww, she’s growing up. What a fun time.
She is growing up super fast!
I’m glad you had a good time at the dog park. We have a dog park near our house, but it’s too small so we don’t go there.
We have some nice big ones that are fun at off times.
What a SuperFun time for you, Olivia! You are such a cutie!
Thank you.
Some many things to explore!
Her nose was pretty tired out.
What a fun day!
It was just a short visit, but still fun.
Yes, those parks can be a little overwhelming, specially if you’re the “wee one” in the bunch … so t’was nice you had it to yourself the first time around … to really enjoy it a lot! Great to discover new things and new places!
New place discovery is very important for the little ones.
Such a good and caring mom, you are Joy!
We can tell by the last picture what a pawsome time Olivia had!
xoxo,
Rosy, Jakey & Arty
She was worried, but got busy and had her fun.
It looks like you had a really fun outing!
She found it interesting, but also a bit scary.
What a great plan your Mom had, and Olivia really looks like she got more comfortable and enjoyed herself. ♥
She started to relax when she realized it was a safe place.
You couldn’t be any cuter, Olivia. I think your mom is very proud of you.
Have a woof woof day and weekend. My best to your mom. ♥
We are all super proud of her. She is a great little puppy.
I’m glad you had fun exploring sweet Olivia and we loveyour big paws too.
Mom thinks they are growing because no matter how big Olivia is, the paws still seem huge.
Madison! Olivia is so adventurous!! Me too!! I went to a beach today — that is for dogs!! But mom didn’t let me off leash. Too many people and distractions she said. Isn’t it fun to try new things? I’m really tired tonight. Have a great weekend. your friend Chester!
Olivia likes new things, but she is always cautious at first. Once she warms up, look out!
Great photos! We don’t take the boys to dog parks. Bentley doesn’t really like other dogs and neither of them can be trusted off leash. Like you, I know too many bad things happen with unruly dogs and irresponsible owners.
We are quite selective with dog parks. As long as they are fully fenced, Mom isn’t worried about us running away. The really big ones at slow times are fun to go walking at for some off leash time.