FitDog Friday #58 - Fitness Gear Presents

Hope everyone enjoyed the holiday season! After a decadent holiday vacation, Mr. N and I are both ready for the New Year and getting back to our exercise routine. Mr. N and I both got fitness gear for presents this year to help us with our exercise goals.

Mr. N got a new harness from Hurtta (which I think may have to be exchanged for a smaller size), several jackets, and Musher's Secret which we ended up not using due to the lack of snow. As well as more frivolous things like his favorite soft squeaky toys and what I'm pretty sure is his weight in treats. 

My gifts included a Fitbit (exercise tracker), lots of woolen base layers, and a bright coral Saucony jacket with reflective strips and built-in LED lights which will be handy when I walk Mr. N in the dark.

Mr. N pictured with some of his presents

I'm aiming for 10,000 steps every day and I'd like to get Mr. N back into lure coursing this year, work on his conditioning and continue our hikes. 

Did you and/or your dogs receive any fitness gear for the holidays? What are your fitness goals? 

FitDog Friday #54 - Winter Preparations

We've currently going through a cold spell in Portland and the whole city is in a tizzy. We walked two miles yesterday and Mr. N was shivering despite his new winter coat due to the sleet. He was very happy to reach home and sleep on the down covers.

After trekking through two miles of snowy sleet, Mr. N decides to hibernate on top of a down comforter while wearing an alpaca sweater. #firstworlddogproblem #tenaciouslittleterrier #terriers #terriersofinstagram #yorkiesofinstagram #yorkie #maltese #portland #instadog #ilovemydog #dogs #pets #dogoftheday #dogstagram #doglovers #dogsofinstagram

A photo posted by Tenacious Little Terrier (@tenaciouslittleterrier) on Nov 11, 2014 at 2:23pm PST

Mr. N gets cold pretty easily due to being slim and having hair and not fur. He's generally OK if I bundle him up and he's moving. It becomes problematic when he's cold and wet which happens a lot with our rainy climate.

I freeze pumpkin (not the pie filling) in an ice cube tray and I put a cube in the microwave and warm it up for him after a walk when he's all soggy. I'll usually add a pinch of liver or treat crumbs on top. Making broth for him is also on my list of projects.

I've put a snowsuit for Mr. N on his Christmas wishlist as well as a reflective vest now that we're walking more often in the dark. And warm and reflective clothing for me on mine. I'm pretty sure Mr. N owns more sweaters than I do at this point. I donated/sold/threw out all the winter clothing that didn't fit/like last spring and I really need to supplement my winter wardrobe.

I've swapped out Mr. N's summer/fall wardrobe (light weight shirts and his cooling coat) for his winter clothing (sweaters, pajamas, and coats).

Mr. N and Sage in their winter coats by the train tracks. #tenaciouslittleterrier #yorkie #yorkiesofinstagram #maltese #portland #bordercollie #dogs #dogoftheday #dogsofinstagram #doglovers #dogstagram #instadog #ilovemydog #terriers #terriersofinstagram #hurtta

A photo posted by Tenacious Little Terrier (@tenaciouslittleterrier) on Nov 11, 2014 at 1:07pm PST

And I'm also going through our clothes and washing winter clothing that was in storage and pulling out items to donate. Various organizations in our neighborhood are collecting for the homeless.

If I thought there were any homeless dogs (of the street variety, not in shelters) that were Mr. N's size, I'd donate some of his clothing as well but you don't really see toy breeds on the street for good reasons! Mr. N would make a terrible homeless person's dog.

How are you preparing for winter?

FitDog Friday #43 - Dog Push-ups

You're interrupting my push-ups. Now I have to start counting again!

On a more serious note, does anyone have recommendations for a visibility vest? Mr. N's fur blends in with sand and dirt and yellowed grass which makes him hard to spot. Add fog to the mix and it's a wonder I see him at all. I put his cooling vest on him (despite the slight chill) just so I could keep track of where he was.

Someone suggested a bright collar but I don't think that's going to cut it. You can barely see his collar as it is normally. Mr. N has a lot of fluff.

I'm also getting my wisdom tooth out today so comments on other blogs may be sporadic and/or not entirely lucid. You were warned!

Winter is Coming (Gold Paw giveaway)

Winter is coming. It may not seem like it what with triple digit weather but it is on its way. That or I made Mr. N suffer through modeling a fleece in August for nothing.

This is Mr. N's you made me wear fleece in August face

Several of you have commented on the tartan fleece that Mr. N sometimes wears. It's from Gold Paw, a local company which also makes harnesses and rain coats and other items. To celebrate our blogiversary, we'll be giving away a solid color fleece so your dog can dress like Mr. N! He gets more compliments on his wardrobe than I do.

While Mr. N has many fripperies (like his dinosaur hoodie for example), I find myself reaching for his Gold Paw fleece quite often. It's quite stretchy so it doesn't impede his movement at all. The fleece is light and warm (fall-weight) and good for layering under his rain coat. Mr. N gets cold pretty easily (he was shivering yesterday after playing in the river and it was 90 degrees) due to having little body fat and having a single coat. So it's nice having something that I can stuff in my purse just in case.

It washes nicely and dries fast. I'll wash it the night before and it's usually ready to go the next morning. I haven't tried putting it in the dryer but the care instructions say it can tumble dry low.

The fleece comes in sizes ranging from two (Chihuahua puppy) to 30 (Great Dane), according to their sizing chart. Mr. N wears an eight for reference. The solid color fleeces are made with recycled polyester and spandex and made in the USA. Some are even made in Oregon!

The print fleece is not as stretchy as the solid colors. They sent us a size eight and ten (which is what he wears in the print fleeces) and the ten looks like a robe on him. Gold Paw suggests sizing down. He is wearing the eggplant fleece in this photo and marine blue in the others (it also comes in camel, grass, fuchsia, red pumpkin, eucalyptus, robin egg, blue, black and sunflower yellow).

My only quibbles are that I wish they would put harness holes in the smaller fleeces and it may not be the best for dogs with mobility issues because you have to manipulate their legs in order to put it on. Otherwise I love his fleece for everyday activities and hiking. Just not in August!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

This post was sponsored by Gold Paw. They are not responsible for the contents of this article. All opinions expressed are our own. 

FitDog Friday #31 - Canine Summertime Essentials

Now that summer is approaching, I've put away Mr. N's sweaters and coats and pulled out his summer gear. These four products have proven to be very useful now that we're spending more time at the beach and hiking.

Flea the Scene ($11.99):

Mr. N has a flea allergy so one flea crawling on him will leave him itching for days and will make both of us miserable. We use a topical medication on him and this summer, I'm experimenting with using Flea the Scene (inspect spray) before walks and hikes as well for extra protection.

So far so good and I haven't discovered any fleas on him. The scent is light and pleasant. Mr. N does not object to the scent unlike my insect spray which he hates. The ingredients are all-natural according to the company and the spray is safe even if the dogs lick it.

H2O4K9 ($11.99):

When the Cascadian Nomads visited us last weekend, they gave us their small H2O4K9 (dog water bottle/travel bowl), saying it was too small for their needs. The 9.5 oz stainless steel bottle fits in my
purse and Mr. N will actually drink out of it (the lid doubles as a bowl). He refuses to drink out of non-bowl shaped objects like the  
Gulpy. It's a little heavier due to the material but I prefer it to plastic.

vest

Ruffwear Life Jacket ($79.95):

Mr. N has an older model that just barely fits him with the straps tightened as far as they will go. He wears their smallest size (xxs). It would not fit any dogs smaller than him. Mr. N has so little body fat and gets cold easily so even though he can swim, he wears the life jacket as a backup.

I like the handle on the top so I can lift him if need be. Mr. N doesn't mind wearing the jacket at all. We've only used it a handful of times but it appears to be durable and well-made. My only complaint is that the straps hang loose and drag so I have to tie them up in a knot but I think this was fixed in the latest version.

The Cool Vest ($49.99):

Even though Mr. N's heat tolerance has gotten better since last year, he still gets overheated sometimes. His Cool Vest cools him down considerably. Last year, I took him down to the park with it on and he was literally running circles around these bigger dogs who were lying down and panting heavily.

It's usually good for an hour or two. Basically you just soak it in water and use the velcro straps to put it on your dog. It's shaped to cover the chest and vital organs.

Even though the liner is laminated, Mr. N does get slightly wet when I put it on him. I get the occasional "you are abusing your poor dog by making him wear clothes in the middle of the summer" speech but once I explain, people usually think it's quite clever.

What are your canine summertime essentials?

*I paid for all of these products myself except for the water bottle which was given to me by another blogger.