Napping, it’s a favorite pastime of mine (and dogs all over the world). Here’s where I’ve been napping this past month….
Boy, that was exhausting….now I’m in need of another nap! Where has your dog been napping this month? 
Check out where else I’ve been sleeping in my “Oh the Places You Sleep” series!
Yesterday I shared some of the adventures my pal Shilah and I had during our annual camping trip (once the rain cleared), and today I’ve got even more to share!
One of the great things about camping is getting to explore the great outdoors! While I had many fun things planned for my weekend outside, the rain kept me from most of them, but the good news is I still got to visit the Beltzville State Park with Shilah.
The fun thing about Beltzville is that they have a lake! I was super excited to visit the lake because they also have a pet friendly boat rental (similar to the local lake I visit in the summer), and I was secretly hoping it had some speed boats because Beltzville has a 45mph speed limit (my local lake is much lower).
Sadly because of the overcast day the boat rental was closed for the day when I arrived! But I wasn’t going to let that ruin my fun.
Especially since there were so many things in the lake that needed saving! If you didn’t already know, when I’m around water I become Mr. Lifeguard, trying to save any and everything from drowning.
I tried saving people.
I tried saving lost shoes.
(this particular rescue attempt was a success).
And I even tried saving my pal Shilah!
Although truth be told, nothing I tried to save actually needed saving. But life guard skills need to be kept in tip top shape, so it’s always best to practice as much as possible. (although paws crossed no one ever ACTUALLY needs my life saving skills, because I’m not sure I could really pull anyone in from the water, but that won’t stop me from trying!)
Visiting the Beltzville Lake was the perfect end to our camping adventure, and I can’t wait to go back again when the boat rental is open!
Don’t forget, this week I’m giving away an awesome life vest from my pals at Ruffwear (as seen on me in this post). It comes in a variety of sizes to fit any dog, and is the perfect accessory for water adventures. Don’t forget to enter!
Wondering where to get any of my great camping gear? Be sure to check out my gear page!
P.S. Special thanks to Shilah’s mom from Mrs. Dailey’s Classroom for sharing some of her camping photos with me (the ones not watermarked with my website)!
Last week I started to recap my annual camping trip with my friend, Shilah the Husky, well now I’m back to share more about all the fun we had (despite the rain). It’s too much fun to fit into one blog post, so don’t worry, there’s even more fun than this to come ahead!
One of my favorite parts about camping is getting breakfast in bed. It’s one of those few occasion where I don’t even have to get up to enjoy a big bowl of my “cereals”.
Shilah and I were excited to see that the weather had begun to clear up some, and although the rain was on and off, it wasn’t down pouring all day like it had been. Yipee!
So we broke out the fishing poles again, and had a little contest with our dad’s to see who could catch the most fish. (spoiler alert, none of us caught any!)
That’s ok though, because there was still plenty to do on our camping trip, like hiking! We didn’t get to go to any of the great hiking spots we had staked out for our trip, but we did get to take some walks around our campsite.
We even stopped to take a few selfies along the way, it’s not often I get to spend 4 whole days with my pal!
There may have even been an awkward kiss at one moment. It’s still out for debate on who kissed who.
Do you blame me though, I mean how can you not sneak a kiss when you’re hanging out with a pretty girl like Shilah!
Back at camp things were starting to heat up since it was finally dry enough to start the campfire.
As our day started to come to an end Shilah and I broke out our Glowdoggies * so we could have our own personal “flashlights” in the dark. Although Shilah questioned, “won’t the bears just be able to spot us way easier with these things on?” I told her not to worry, I packed bear spray!
(*contains affiliate link)
As darkness really crept in the campfire started roaring!
That’s always my cue to hit the hay early, because campfires (or any fire for that matter) are not really my jam. That’s ok though, I much prefer snuggling up in the tent under my sleeping bag anyway.
I am a little sad I did miss out on the light writing fun everyone had with sparklers, but mom and dad made sure to include me in their own special way…
….it’s my name in lights! I’m famous!
Even celebrities like me can totally get down and dirty on a camping trip!
Stay tuned this week as I still have more fun to share about our adventures at a nearby lake!
Wondering where to get any of my great camping gear? Be sure to check out my gear page!
P.S. Special thanks to Shilah’s mom from Mrs. Dailey’s Classroom for sharing some of her camping photos with me (the ones not watermarked with my website)!
Disclaimer: This post and giveaway is brought to you by Ruffwear. All opinions are my own and I only share products I think my readers will love!
Every summer I enjoy hitting the lake, sometimes kayaking, most of the time Stand Up Paddleboarding (SUP), and always practicing water safety by wearing a floatation device. While I’ve owned several life vests over the years, I’ve finally found one that fits me PERFECTLY, the Ruffwear K-9 Float Coat.
Being a Dachshund means that sometimes I have trouble finding harnesses, coats and even life vests that can accommodate my unique body type. Thankfully the Ruffwear Lifevest is adjustable in all the right places making it the best fitting one I’ve ever worn.
This floatation device has a sleek design making it slimmer fitting than any of the other vests I’ve tried, but don’t worry it’s still full of plenty of “float”!
This life jacket is not only a great design for Dachshunds, but it is also designed for dogs of all shapes and sizes. It even includes thoughtful details like a strong handle, optimally positioned to lift dogs out of the water, and reflective trim for enhanced visibility in or out of the water.
I enjoyed how the front of the vest was adjustable, but once set is easy to slip over your pup’s head, and the belly straps are also fully adjustable.
The design of this vest allowed me to have great free-flowing movement of my front legs, which is fantastic for swimming (and for all those occasions when you accidentally fall in!).
A fun little fact about me, while swimming might not be my #1 favorite thing to do, I do on occasion like to swim voluntarily, but I’ll only do so if I’m wearing a life jacket and the water is bath water warm!
I’m a big fan of the Ruffwear K-9 Float Coat, and I can’t recommend it enough for all those water loving dogs out there! It’s now my go-to summer accessory that I never leave home without.
You can fetch your own life jacket from Ruffwear for $79.95. (and incase you’re wondering, I wear a size XS and I’m 20lbs).
And now for the best part…
ONE WINNER WILL WIN A RUFFWEAR K-9 FLOAT COAT!
Here’s HOW TO WIN:
No purchase necessary. To enter use the Rafflecopter widget below. You will be contacted via e-mail to claim your prize. All the winners will also be announced on this blog post once the giveaway ends. Open to USA residents only. Winners must claim their prizes within 48 hours of being notified or prize will be forfeited. By entering you are agreeing to the terms & conditions set forth in the Rafflecopter widget (see below). Good luck!
Read our full list of Terms & Conditions for this giveaway.
Since today is the start of a long holiday weekend for Independence Day so I’m taking off early! You better believe I’ll be doing a whole lot of this too…
Don’t forget to save some hot dogs for me!!
Happy Long Weekend Everyone!
Every year I go tent camping with friends during the summer. It’s a fun trip (filled with dog friendly adventures) that I look forward to all year long!
Especially since I get to spend all weekend with this lovely lady, my pal Shilah the Husky!
This year’s camping trip was a little different, because when I woke up on Saturday morning it was raining. And not just a little bit of rain, it POURED ALL-DAY-LONG!
The rain sort of put a damper on all the fun activities we had planned, but lucky for me mom packed my raincoat, and I wasn’t going to let the wetness stop me from having a good time.
The campsite we rented this year came with a bare-bones rustic cabin (although I always tent camp!), and thankfully the porch provided the perfect haven for lounging during the heavy rain.
Eventually we all started to get cabin fever though, and when the rain lightened up just a bit it was time to venture out for some outdoor fun (with our raincoats of course).
Even my camera crew dressed appropriately for the weather – so that I would have all these great pictures to share with you!
Our campsite had this neat stream that ran through it, and I quickly discovered my new favorite activity…..FISHING!
Consider my mind fully blown when Shilah’s dad actually caught a fish!
BEST DAY EVER! I love fishing!
And then when the fish we caught got released back into the water I couldn’t help myself from starting my own rescue mission. I mean he might drown!
I never did succeed, hopefully Mr. Fish was a good swimmer!
After a full day in the cold wet rain we all were a bit soggy, myself included.
So we had to make a trip into town to dry off, get food (for the folks that didn’t eat dog food), and make a walmart run for more rain gear!
After all my excitement in the rain I was pretty pooped. Thankfully my tent was nice and dry, and the perfect haven to rest up for another day of camping fun!
Stay tuned next week when I continue my adventures in the woods, where I even made a trip to the lake!
Wondering where to get any of my great camping gear? Be sure to check out my gear page!
P.S. Special thanks to Shilah’s mom from Mrs. Dailey’s Classroom for all the great photos of our soggy camping experience (the ones not watermarked with my website)!
Disclaimer: This post and giveaway is brought to you by Open Farm. All opinions are my own, and I only share products I think you and your dog will love!
With so many choices in pet food nowadays it can sometimes be overwhelming with choosing the best dog food for your dog. I’m lucky that my mom cares a whole lot about what I eat, and while she doesn’t claim to be any sort of pet nutrition expert, she does try to choose the healthiest options for me to eat. Recently I got the chance to try the brand Open Farm, a healthy pet food that is ethically raised and sourced.
Now the fact that mom even allowed to me to taste-test review the Open Farm food (which I have been eating as my daily food for the past few weeks now) is saying a lot about what she thinks of the quality. Because if we’re being honest here, I would never be allowed to test it if my mom didn’t think it was a-ok!
Now before I get into the ingredients part of this review, lets talk about the fact that everything inside this Open Farm bag is ethically sourced. What does that mean exactly? It means that all of the farms that they source their meat and poultry from are audited and certified in humane animal care by leading third party, non-profit organizations in the field, and their fish are exclusively ocean caught using sustainable fishing practices.
Now I can’t control the fact that I’m a dog and I was designed to eat meat, but I can do my part for animal kind by choosing to eat foods that were ethically treated. Which makes me and my mom feel a whole lot better!
Now sourcing ethically raised meats is great, but what about the quality of the actual food? Here’s whats in the bag I received:
MAIN INGREDIENTS: Humanely farmed turkey, humanely farmed chicken, ocean caught whitefish meal, russet potatoes, garbanzo beans (chickpeas), green lentils, field peas, coconut oil (preserved with mixed tocopherols), ocean caught menhaden fish meal, tomato, apples, pumpkin, natural flavor, flaxseed, sun cured alfalfa, carrots, chicory root, salmon oil, salt, potassium chloride, choline chloride rosemary extract
VITAMINS: Vitamin E supplement, calcium pantothenate, niacin supplement, vitamin A supplement, riboflavin supplement, vitamin D3 supplement, vitamin B12 supplement, thiamine mononitrate, pyridoxine hydrochloride, folic acid
MINERALS: Zinc proteinate, calcium carbonate, iron proteinate, copper proteinate, manganese proteinate, sodium selenite, calcium iodate
You can read more about what’s inside by checking out the Open Farm Website.
So my mom (who is in charge of quality control for all of my food) admits that she did not look up every single ingredient in this food, and she certainly does not consider herself an expert in pet nutrition. What she does look for in the foods she chooses to feed me is that the main ingredients come from whole meats (instead of byproducts and ground up meal) and she prefers to feed me a grain-free diet (which Open Farm is).
Jeeze, so much talk about food and now I’m starving! Lets eat this stuff already!!
I had no problem munching down a bowl of Open Farm each morning and night – although I am a dog (and I’ll eat pretty much anything…including horse poop!) So it’s a good thing my mom picks out the healthy stuff for me, or who knows where I’d be!
It’s also good to know the poultry and meat are raised without the use of antibiotics and growth hormones, and the fish is always ocean caught, meaning it consumed a natural and antibiotic free diet. The fruits and vegetables are all locally grown and sourced close by to their manufacturing facility too. Open Farm recipes are free from artificial preservatives and flavors, and their recipes are preserved using mixed tocopherols, a natural preservative that also provides anti-oxidants.
And since I’m sure you’ll ask, Open Farm contains no ingredients from China. Almost all of our ingredients are sourced in Canada and the United States with the exception of coconut oil and certain vitamins and minerals that are not available in North America.
Since I’m pretty sure I could be a poster-dog for Open Farm now (I do spend my spare time on the family horse farm after all), so I’ve been practicing my super model pose for when they decide to make the next bag with my photo on it. *wink*
If you’d like to check out Open Farm for your furry friend you can check out their list of retailers on their website.
And now for the best part….
TWO WINNERS WILL WIN A 4.5lb BAG OF OPEN FARM HOMESTEAD CHICKEN & TURKEY RECIPE
Here’s HOW TO WIN:
No purchase necessary. To enter use the Rafflecopter widget below. You will be contacted via e-mail to claim your prize. All the winners will also be announced on this blog post once the giveaway ends. Open to USA & CANADA residents only. Winners must claim their prizes within 48 hours of being notified or prize will be forfeited. By entering you are agreeing to the terms & conditions set forth in the Rafflecopter widget (see below). Good luck!
Read our full list of Terms & Conditions for this giveaway.
Sometimes when you’re a dog you just feel like you’re not being heard. Maybe it’s because humans and dogs don’t always speak the same language, and maybe it’s because they just CHOOSE not to listen to what we’re saying. Regardless, every once in a while I need to make a little noise about it….
So next time your dog “yells” at you, you better pay attention, because we have LOTS TO SAY!
Does your dog bark/yell at you too? What do you think he’s trying to say?
With a name like Ammo I always get questions about how I ended up with such an explosive name (for such a small dog). So I figured it was high time I shared the story of how I got my name.
I like to think I’ve really grown into my name over the past 6 years that I’ve had it, but my parents thought long and hard before they landed on “Ammo”.
In fact, it might help to show you a video of the VERY FIRST time I ever met my parents.
As you can see I really wasn’t too shy about asserting my personality! 😉
After meeting me, falling in love, and deciding I would get my forever home with them, mom and dad went home to contemplate what my new name would be.
Mom had picked out the name Ranger. She thought it was a strong name that sounded super cute with my soon to be best buddy’s name….Trooper! (Mom still says Trooper & Ranger would have been cute names).
Dad picked out the name Ammo. He said I looked like a little bullet because I was so long.
The wildcard name that almost came to be….Robot! Hehe, I like to think that would have been a pretty funny name to have too.
In the end I became Ammo. Mostly because my dad had never had a dog before (mom had) and it seemed only fitting that he get to name his very first fur kid (at least according to mom). So Ammo it was! And you know what, I think it’s pretty fitting. I’m fast, powerful, and explosive. I even found out later on (via a Facebook fan) that Amo means love in Italian. How cool!
Even though my name is Ammo, I’ve got lots of little nicknames around the house that mom and dad like to call me:
Amee
Am
Amer
L’Amee (short for Little Amee)
Ween
Weenie
Monkey
Peanut
Miami (short for My Amee)
How did your dog get their name? Does he/she have any fun nicknames too? Do tell!
Disclaimer: this post if brought to you by Chewy.com, but all opinions are my own and I only share products I think my readers will love!
My friends over at Chewy.com recently sent me a new toy. The KONG Squeezz Ball with Handle Dog Toy not only squeaks, but it’s perfect for tugging too! And even though it was well past my bed time….there was no way I was going to pass up the opportunity to take it for a spin.
Too tired to stand, but NEVER too tired to play with a new toy! How about your dog?
You can fetch the KONG Squeezz Ball with Handle Dog Toy from Chewy.com on sale for about $8!