Happy Holidays Gibbons and Toki! I hope you had a lovely Christmas and enjoyed spending time with visiting family. Upon my arrival, the girls were thrilled to see I had brought Robbie along to enjoy our evening of playtime and cuddles. Receiving a new dog toy in a gift exchange over the holidays, I decided to re-gift it to Gibbons and Toki as I figured they would have more of a use for it than my kittens would. Toki was elated with the squeaky dinosaur toy and did not put it down for the first hour we were there. Gibbons, on the other hand, seemed to be in the mood for a nap and quickly trapped Robbie under a blanket for a snuggle. After supper, we went for a short stroll around the neighbourhood then returned home to warm up and continue playing. Thanks for spending a fun afternoon and evening with us G and T.  We had a blast!

Pet Sitter: Jaime

It was a Sunday Special today.  Ennis joined us for the afternoon. DGR Oliver is staying at our house and these two got on superb!  I think they both appreciated having another pooch their age.  Aoife our 7 month old pup was getting groomed today, it let the ‘boys’ have a good old time together.  We headed out for our walk (recorded on Doggy Logs) to the Varsity Estates Off-Leash.  There were loads of other dogs out today.  Needless to say, there was lots of playtime.  Plus many tobogganers.  I think all this excitement may explain Ennis’s ‘Goldilocks Syndrome’ when we got back to the house.  First Ennis tried out his bed, that was okay but just not right.  Then he laid on the sheepskin rug - that was okay for a few winks.  Oliver’s orthopaedic bed was just right!  I told you they were instant friends.  Ennis was not so interested in watching the Christmas Movies, just as long as his sleeping quarters were just right. Oliver stayed close and kept me company.  Funny though, when the treat bag crinkled, all ears and doggies perked to attention.  Merry Christmas my Special Pal Ennis and to his humans.  I will see you in little over a week.  I think we can even get in some walk time with Oliver.

​Pet Sitter: Michelle

DISTANCE: 6.2 km  DURATION: 1 hour 9 minutes

It was a mild morning with Mr Marley. My friend was quite the social butterfly this morning: chatting with, giving kisses to and sniffing everyone he encountered. We had a very special moment where, on our way home, our golden beauty saw a woman crossing the street toward us, to her car. Marley leapt over snowbanks to approach her at her car. I asked her if they knew each other. She said no. But the magnetism was strong... He waited til she got to the curb and her arm went out and he filled it. He was smiling at me, she was delighted and I stepped back as they shared a moment. This woman was so grateful for Marley's tenderness and friendliness and repeated how he 'made her day'. Situations like this are simple reminders of the sheer joy and uncomplicated love dogs can give us. They want nothing in return but to be noticed, petted, and appreciated. Oh, Marley, you are such a special boy. Happy holidays to you, your mom, and dad. The Scoop: no poops and I lost track of peeing.

Runner: Cheryl

DISTANCE: 3.6 km . DURATION: 30 minutes

Hello Wilson, it is so nice to meet and welcome another Goldendoodle to the DGR pack of athletes.  Wilson is one handsome fellow and we got to explore his hood and check out all the festive Christmas decorations at night. It was truly magical! As the saying goes, the apple does not fall far from the tree and both Wilson and his mom are strong runners.  It took a bit of encouragement to get Wilson to steer away from mom and his home but when we got running, he was in sprint mode and full of glee!  I got a glimpse of future runs with his cute boy and he will be a joy to run in 2020.  The Scoop: 1 poo, 1 pee

Runner: Ruth

DGR RUN OF THE DAY ​

DISTANCE  8.7 km DURATION: 2 hours

Good Morning Lovebug😍. Huxley, you have the most exuberant greetings. Shoes, mitts, balls, toys whatever he can fit in his mouth is what he greets you with. Today, he took the mitts out of my hand to come back smiling and wagging his tail. It is just you and me today Hux Pup. Your bestie Marley B has started her Christmas vacation. Plus Aoife is on delivery presents with her Poppa. Let's try and hit as much off-leash as we can get in. Huxley was lumberjack obsessed. Branches & sticks just were not acceptable. Tree trunks it had to be🤣. The other unique ’Huxley’ move was the drop-flop-and-roll. There were multiple of these antics today. I believe the snow has to be just the right consistency for this to be accomplished successfully. Oh, Huxley, you crack me up. Xoxo. Merry Christmas to all your humans and furry family members.  The Scoop: 2 poos, 24 pees.  P.S. Huxley got double treats because he gave me those big eyes to say he would really like Marley’s portion. Yep, totally wrapped around those big:

​Runner: Michelle

DISTANCE:  7.0 km DURATION: 60 minutes

​I always get a bit sentimental and teary when I know it is the last time I will run a DGR dog. Gogol’s official last run will be with Destiny on Friday but today I got the honours along with prospective DGR Runner Ashley. Gogol was doing his best imitation of Prancer as he galloped into the snow bank with his blue booties! He also enjoyed being on bunny patrol and finding a stick to carry! His blue booties were coming off left and right but we made sure to take good care of those paws. Gogol sure does make me smile and I will miss him! He did leave a present close to the tree that I sent an email to his dad about. Maybe he got into some Christmas goodies. Well, Go Go Gogol, stay true to you and take good care! We took some Calgary city photos so you don’t forget us!  The Scoop: 3 poos in total and 1 pee.  Today. I will celebrate all the good Gogol times.

Runners: Ruth and Ashley

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DISTANCE: 3.4 km; DURATION: 47 minutes

Traffic on the drive over to Jasper's today was sub par, but I was blasting Christmas jams that were playing on the radio and living my best life. Jasper and I headed over to the hospital paths where we went to the second bench and looked out at the mountains. I took it nice and easy with Jasper, and did my best to listen to his requests. Towards the end of our outing, he laid down in the snow to rest. I decided to get a little snowy, so I laid down with him. Let me say this, jeans are not the best at keeping out snow. Great job today Jasper!  The Scoop: 2 pees.

​Runner: Ryan

DISTANCE: 5.0 km DURATION: 1 hour 7 minutes

​Molson demonstrated a very unique skill that I finally recognized today. Our dog park walk involved a very nervous Yorkshire Terrier who Molson helped calm down and his owner said that was a very positive interaction as he is nervous around big dogs. This was the second time in two weeks that Molson has met and calmed down dogs who were afraid of big dogs. So that cool calm Molson demeanour might just be the road to be a dog therapy expert. Wow to Molson.  The Scoop: 4 pees, 1 poo.

Runner: Bob

DISTANCE: 7.1 km DURATION: 1 hour 41 minutes

Good morning my friends! It is official - Shadow and I believe Santa lives in his neighbourhood! It was so cold here today.  The car showed -23C. Yep, Santa lives nearby.  He doesn't need to be in the North Pole 🤣🤣. We decided to stay on the trail as the snowy path would be too cold for Shadow. With that cold, we went twice around the lake (a short distance). Shadow was very exited today.  I told him he was to be my only running date for the week. No Kopek as he is with his nanny for the week. The run was like heaven on earth, no chaos. I think Shadow and I are suffering with some kind of PTSD as we realized how zen/meditation-like the run was without Kopek 🤣.  I am kind of glad Kopek can't read this.. Baahhh! Then it was the girlies' turn. It was cold for them as well.  Even Java didn't even try to go into the deep snow.  We met a few doggies which was surprising considering how cold it was. The Scoop: Shadow had a poo and few pees. Mocha and Pinky had a poo and a few pees each and Java had only one pee.

Runner: Fab

DISTANCE: 2.3 km DURATION: 32 minutes

​Today was a much colder day than yesterday, especially with the windchill, so « mom » and I made sure that the girls were bundled up well!  Gibbons, Toki and I were matching with our winter parkas, down to the fur-collared hoods. The girls kept their ears warm throughout the run, thanks to fuzzy scarves. Compared to yesterday, the neighbourhood was eerily quiet; we only came across a single rabbit and two humans walking together. Toki always investigates the Christmas displays on front lawns, which gives me and Gibbs a chance to soak in the Holiday spirit. We cut the run short today for the sake of the Vizsla paws, and overall body temperatures. The girls sure were troopers today in the cold, picking up the pace as we turned the corner for home. The scoop: 3 pees for Gibbons, 2 pees for Toki! (I could not decide which picture of the two of them was cuter, so I posted both!)

​Runner: Jaime

DISTANCE: 12.1 km DURATION: 1 hour 31 minutes

Today was my final day of doing 12 days of 12K's starting December 1st so it was great to have fit Ollie join me.  I decided to do my blog in the 12 Days of Christmas theme.  On the 12th K of of our run, my true love gave to me - 12 geese a honking, 11 bunnies leaping, 10 frozen fingers, 9 stoplights blinking, 8 snowflakes drifting, 7 strangers smiling, 6 dogs passing, 5 inflatable snowmen, 4 hills to climb, 3 parks to run through, 2 squirrels scrambling and 1 happy puppy!  The Scoop: 1 poo, 4 pees.

Runner: Ruth

 DGR RUN OF THE DAY # 2

DISTANCE: 4K DURATION: 1 hour 2 minutes

It’s starting to feel a lot like Christmas! Someone shook the snow globe pretty vigorously this morning and Gibbons was not impressed. We dressed for the weather but Gibbons didn’t want to go farther than the end of the driveway. Just Toki and I went for a nice run in the snow—it sure is coming down hard. We cut the run a little short to spend time inside with Gibbons. Toki and I played with her green rhino while Gibbons curled up by the fire.  The Scoop: 2 pees for Toki, Gibbons wouldn’t stay out longer enough to go.

​Runner: Lauren