DISTANCE: 8.24 km  DURATION: 1:03:12

It was a very quiet run with Lincoln this morning. While the sun wasn't out, it was still very hot even early on. Lincoln and I didn't pass by many people or dogs, and there was hardly any construction. This would usually mean that there would be few distractions from our run, but today that was not the case. Lincoln was on a mission to smell as many bushes and posts as he could! There must be a lot of interesting scents in the neighbourhood today that he was picking up on! Nothing caught the attention of my nose though. Lincoln had 11-12 pees and 1 poo.

​Runner: Hayley

DISTANCE: 8.41 km  DURATION: 1:03:51

Good morning, Harley sir. It's another bright and sunny Monday, let's go enjoy it. I like Monday morning runs because I feel like they hit a "reset" button. And it's not that I had a particularly indulgent weekend that I was looking to erase. But I had a sick little one at home and I needed to shake off fatigue and a lingering anxiety about their slow recovery. Running, to me, is a miracle cure for all that ails and weighs on my health and soul. It's my reset button. Harley got off to his usual start, sampling an entire weekend of dog aromas along our route. As we moved into a more steady pace I found my foggy weekend slipping away. And as we paused on the Peace Bridge I couldn't help but snap your yawn too, Harley. My, we both needed a reset apparently. The good news was that we still had half our run in front of us and plenty of time to shake off any crusty feelings. And I know you did Harley as the last picture finally featured a happily panting puppy. Perfect. We both win today. The scoop: 8 pees, no poops.

​Runner: Sheri

DISTANCE: 8.75 km  DURATION: 1:15:53

Happy Monday! Mira and I took our shenanigans on the road today and headed to Bowness Park. At first my friend wasn't quite sure what was happening so it took a minute to get her in the truck. 😁 But once we got there, Mira was on sensory overload! I wasn't expecting a fast run this morning, the smoke was thick and Mira was in unfamiliar territory. There was a lot of sniffing, backtracking and enjoying the river. We headed into the woods for a short trail run but there were just too many squirrels. 😳 Perhaps that's where we should have started our adventure Mira. Oh well, there's always next time. Thanks for another entertaining outing my friend! And for being so patient with all the other pooches out today (there were many). Well done Mira! Only about 5 pees for Mira today (I think she was too excited) and 3 pees for my handsome friend Mulligan. Cheers!

​Runner: Tracy

DISTANCE: 10:28 km  DURATION: 1:15:51

Happy Monday, Nell!! As soon as I came up the elevator, Nell was in the hallway awaiting my arrival.  She was so excited her mom had to let her out of her apartment. Sure enough, Nell couldn't even contain her excitement; she was sitting, lying down, rolling over, showing off all of her tricks to get the leash on as soon as possible. Once on, we were off! Despite the clouds, it seemed way warmer out today than my weather app was saying. Therefore, the river is where we headed! We spent a few minutes along the river's edge where Nell could lie down and catch her breath. We zoomed around the loop and back to Nell's downtown apartment. We weren't even fully into her building before Nell collapsed on the cold slate floor. Must be nice living in a building with lovely cold AC! As always, an excellent run with this pup and the perfect way to kick off the week! See you next Monday! The scoop: 1 poop, 1 pee.

​Runner: Paige

DISTANCE: 7.02 km  DURATION: 53:51

Today was Gibbons and Toki's first official DGR run. We had so much fun. I feel like I got even a better sense of these girls' personalities today. Toki is a go-getter. She likes to take the lead with a smile on her face. If the grass gets tall (which it did as we headed up to Artists' View) she would hop like a rabbit, I think because she didn't want to miss out on anything. It's funny because Toki is actually the Korean word for rabbit! Gibbons took on a tail-gunning role. She brought up the rear, but executed some quiet leadership from this position. There was a particular route she had in mind, and she let us know if she thought we were going the wrong way. What was my role in this? I was literally caught in between the two. But unlike other runs with two dogs, I never once got tangled between the two as we each kept our position throughout the run. Once back home, I played with the girls in the backyard. Toki got even more playful, to which Gibbons relented a little, but seemed to want to maintain some level of grace and dignity. Toki's playfulness continued indoors as she stole my shoe. She thought it was pretty funny as I chased her around for it. Finally she gave it up in return for a treat. Maybe she didn't want to see me go. It was hard for me too! I know Jaime's going to have a ton a fun getting to know these girls even better!  Scoop: nothing for Toki and two pees for Gibbons.

​Runner: Tammy

DISTANCE: 5.05 km  DURATION: 58:12

We are officially in 'the dog days of summer'. These hot, and if you are a dog, lazy days from early July to the end of August actually have nothing to do with the temperature. The expression comes from the ancient Romans and the star Sirius - the Dog Star and the brightest in the constellation Canis Major which they associated with this time of year. And because it was hot today and that our time together was mid-day, we chose a leisurely walk with as much shade as possible. Summer treats, the theme of this blog, relate to how I managed to get both Molson and Roxy sitting for a photo (you guessed it, treats), as well as visual and culinary treats for me (check out the photos of the clematis and raspberries I enjoyed along the way!). Two poops for Molson (he struggled a bit) and one for Rox.

​Runner: Susan

DISTANCE: 6.95 km  DURATION: 56:52

Lucky me, I get to hang out with Ennis twice this weekend! I even caught him peeking around my car while I was gathering up my running supplies and he went right onto the leash. We did go a little slower today, though, as the heat kicked in a little earlier this morning. Ennis, being a black dog, felt it a little more I think, so I let him set the pace; we even stopped to smell the flowers (and a photo op!) A quick dip in the river to finish off our run, and another mellow day with Ennis comes to a close! Two pees and one poop for Ennis today.

Runner: Janine

DISTANCE: 7.31 km  DURATION: 54:58

Hello Ennis, handsome boy, it's been so long since I've run with you! Long enough that he was a little hesitant to go on the leash with me, but maybe not so long that we weren't even a block from his house and he was grinning ear to ear. Ennis and I had a pretty chill run this morning; we got out a bit early in the day so we could try and avoid most of the heat. We still stopped off at the river, though, for a nice water break and cool down, and we worked on Ennis' glamour shot because the lighting was so pretty! Ennis is a natural at posing, though he could maybe use some practice at looking at the camera 😂 Thanks for a lovely start to my Saturday Ennis, see you tomorrow! One pee and no poops for Ennis today.

Runner: Janine

DISTANCE: 11.08 km  DURATION: 1:13:31

Go Nell Go! She was on the move today; the heat wasn't going to stop her.  She was on a serious mission! We came tearing out of her condo without a moment to spare. The Bow River Pathway was a little more crowded today than usual, and Nell being the Border Collie that she is, went right into her herding mentality. The mass of people to her seemed like a giant herd of cattle. It was hilarious watching her stalk up on people and bikes along the path. She particularly liked the Segway Tour; she was ready to coral that bunch of wild tourists. In addition to pretending to herd she managed to race around our river loop with only one pit stop in the river. She's a blast to run with and always pushes me to keep going! Thanks for the run, Nell! See you next week! The scoop: 1 poop, 1 pee.

Runner: Paige

DISTANCE: 8.34 km  DURATION: 1:04:27
    
Happy Friday, Happy Lunch Time and Happy Hour! Today I had the pleasure of reuniting with my Running Girlfriend Reilly. Her human and I had previously spoke about our game-plan for today and beating the heat. Reilly and I pushed out our start time and it was a tad warm just hitting the end of the lunch hour. No worries when you are running with Reilly all is good with this gentle feather. She runs beside you like she is floating in mid air. We hit the pathways that were heavily treed and stopped for a cool down splash at my house in the doggy pool. Both Reilly & I are not heat worshipers so when I got right in the pool Reilly gave me this look and giggle. She loves when you pour water on her back and wash her face, getting right into the pool was not in the cards today. So I gave a cooling helping hand😉 Back home we flew or floated and Reilly hit the cool tiles on the floor beside her bed for an afternoon siesta. See you soon Girlfriend, thanks for the hot & wet hour. The Doggy Business Report: 1 poop and several pee stops.

Runner: Michelle

DISTANCE: 4.92 km  DURATION: 57:41

Another gorgeous summer day here in Calgary! Roxy, Molson and I hit the Lakeview green belt today. It's a wonderful route to get the dogs off- leash and playing! As we all know, our city is full of wonderful people. One such kind soul has set up a 'parched pooch hydration station' in her garden which borders the green belt. How nice is that? Doggies were grateful for the cool drink along the way. Two poops for Roxy, one for Molson and both had a couple of pees.

Runner: Susan

DISTANCE: 8.23 km  DURATION: 59:51

Good morning Lincoln! It's a mostly sunny morning in the mid teens. Let's get back to it before it gets too hot for big dogs. There's still lots of sidewalk and road maintenance going on near Lincoln's home, but we managed to stay out of trouble. Around the schools and around and around Optimist Athletic Fields today, a few fenced in dogs, and a few other jogger dogs at a distance, It was pretty quiet overall. After wrapping things up for the day, Lincoln had many, many small #1's and 1x #2. Looking forward to seeing you again next week Lincoln.

Runner: Mike

DISTANCE: 4.92 km  DURATION: 1:04:17

IS THAT MICHAEL PHELPS? No, it's just Kamber! Kams did you hear that Michael Phelps is going to be racing a shark?? (Well a simulation of a shark's speed) do you think you could race a shark Kams? I sure do. This heat is making it hard to get in long runs but Kamber made use of all of our time together! We headed to the off-leash park to toss around the ball a bit then spent some time swimming in the river. I swear Kams could spend the whole day in the water.  A hot walk home from Sandy Beach allowed Kamber to dry off before we got home! I love your new home and your new neighbourhood Kams and it sure seems like you do too! Till next time my Kamber Phelps! The scoop: 1 poop, 2 pees.

Runner: Jaime

DISTANCE: 8.53 km  DURATION: 1:13:50

It was another Friday morning frolic with my friend Mira.😊. My friend and I had that peaceful easy feeling going on so I opted to just follow along and let Mira make all the decisions. I think she thought she had won the lottery or something because every time Mira would take me on a trail less traveled she would look back at me.... seriously? Just go with it Mira I think the heat is getting to both of us😜 Okay,  truth be told my folks came to town last night and we got into the sauce (if you know what I mean) . We stayed to the shady trails as much as possible and casually made our way back home. Thanks for taking it easy on us today Mira!😁 1 poo and several pees for Mira; 3 pees, a couple of bunny nuggets and a quick jog around the block for Mulligan. Have a fantastic weekend. Cheers!

Runner: Tracy

DISTANCE: 4.67 km  DURATION: 1 hour

Well good afternoon Ms. Zenna! It sure is hot out again today and I cannot imagine what it feels like for you with that thick black fur! I just treated your doggy cousin Kamber to a river run and I think you and I will do the same! Walking through the neighbourhood, we made sure to stick to the shaded side of the road (something which Zenna really appreciated). Nearly every heavily shaded area looked like a good spot for a belly rub according to Zen! The excitement in Zenna's eyes when we saw the river bank was adorable. She was even able to convince me to take my shoes and socks off and join her in exploring the river banks. No gold or jewels were found, just some pointy rocks beneath our feet and moss around our ankles. We did however find a sprinkler on our way home, and we took full advantage) It was a great day with such a sweet girl. The scoop: 1 poop, 6 pees!

Runner: Jaime