There’s something bittersweet about knowing it might be your last summer with your dog. Part of the privilege of having a senior dog, but it's still a difficult one. Vibe just turned 15, and with the back issues he started having when he was 13 I never thought he would see 14. I know how luckly I am to have this time with him. I am also certain, he won't be around for another summer. So, last year I knew I need to appreciate each day and do whatever I could to make his days the best I could.
He's no longer able to do the things he used to, so this was more about keeping it simple, but also getting out and letting him sniff and explore places - new, old, far and near as well as savoring the small, quiet joys that make life with dogs so special.
We enjoyed several adventures, and when I say summer, I should clarify, it was a little bit of spring and fall as well.
We started with a trip to Bishop in March. I was actually there to photograph a flyball tournament for two days, but then stayed a few extra days to enjoy the outdoors. I ended up getting a tick on me and I'm still pretty traumatized from the whole thing. So maybe that wasn't my favorite trip of the year.
The big exciting trip was to Oregon, where I discovered the most beautiful beaches I've ever seen in my life! I will need a whole separate blog post on Oregon beaches. I had so much fun walking those beaches every day. I was focused on enjoying my time with my dogs and being in the moment, so I mostly took pics and video with my phone. I know, shame! But, to be honest, Vibe is no longer easy to photograph. He's deaf, so he needs to be on leash, and he doesn't have the patience for me to sit around and take photos of him, he'll just bark at me like I'm wasting his day and the senior dog gets what the senior dog wants. I did however, get my way too and I captured the image at the top of this page.
We also spent 8 days in Tahoe, which is my most relaxing easy trip of the year. It was supposed to be 9 days, but, I cut our trip short to head to Missouri to photograph flyball championships at Purina Farms. On the way to Missouri, we stopped in beautiful Colorado for the night so we could enjoy some outdoor time near a lake.
Vibe walking our little beach in Lake Tahoe
One of the biggest lessons I learned last year was that I need to make more time for play with Vibe. We used to play tug all the time, and while we were in Oregon, he reminded me—loud and clear—by insisting on tugging with the leash during our walks. Even though he’s a little wobbly, he still wants to play. Of course, it wasn’t really tugging; it was more me pretending to tug while he sat down and held on. But he still wanted to have fun, like he was a young dude again. And honestly, I hadn’t been playing with him much because I’d been treating him like a fragile, rare vase.
Between our bigger adventures, we took plenty of walks, had sniffing sessions around the neighborhood, and played a little "fake" tug.
Now that I don’t play sports, I get caught up in the day-to-day and forget to play with my dogs—something I used to do every single day. Vibe reminded me that I need to make time for play at least a few times a week.
As I write this, Vibe is still here and doing pretty well. But I know our days together are limited, and I’m so grateful we had those special adventures last year. So, if you needed a reminder—this is it. Go play with your dog today.
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