On hot days there really isn’t anything else better than hitting the pool to keep cool.
Lucky for me my sister loves pool days too, so I’ve got a best friend to keep me company while we float around.
And with one mention of watermelon by mom…..our hot summer day is complete!
What do you do to beat the heat?
P.S. In case you are wondering, my spiffy life vest is made by Ruffwear and available on Amazon.*affiliate link
It’s come to my attention that I may need to open my own Lake School. Until recently I didn’t realize how many dog’s I’ve mentored on their very first lake outing.
First there was Shilah, who I introduced to the water and her first paddleboarding experience.
Then there was Maya, who had her first dip and also took to the paddle board under my supervision.
And then there was Hank! The latest victim trainee in Ammo’s Lake School.
Being that Hank is a Miniature GoldenDoodle (Golden Retriever/Poodle Mix), it didn’t take much convincing for me to get him into the water.
Just in case though I coached from the sidelines, ready to swim Hank to safety if need be.
Thankfully he was a natural!
Although when he emerged it became apparent that there really wasn’t much dog hiding under all that fur!
So I did what any good dog would do, I let him borrow one of my life vests*! No drowning dogs on my watch!
*affiliate link
Swimming was one thing, but the true test of a lake dog is the boating. So we took to the docks for a boat adventure. Hank passed test number one with flying colors, making friends with the boat shop crew.
I led the expedition (as always) and things were going swimmingly for my pal Hank.
And after a dip overboard to cool off….
….Hank was officially a Lake Dog just like me!
Since Hank made my job super easy and passed my rigorous training with ease, it made it possible for me to divert my attention to victim trainee #2 of the day…
*affiliate link
….Baby P!
After we mastered wearing the uncomfortable but necessary life vest* (thanks to some helpful cheerios that mom packed), I am happy to report that Baby P also mastered my Lake School and survived her very first boating adventure. (with very minimal crying I might add). Although she still has a ways to go in the doggie paddle department, but we’ll get there!
So what do you think, should I open up my own Lake School? Likely we’d need sailor hats (and a captain hat for me) with really cool logos. Good thing I know a great graphic designer! 🙂
Disclaimer: this post contains products from Martha Stewart Pets. All opinions are my own, and I only share products I think you and your pets will love.
For Father’s Day last weekend I decided to hit up the pool. It was a perfectly hot day, which meant it was a great way to cool off in the summer heat.
You may have even noticed my super cool new tank top, gifted to me from my pals at Martha Stewart Pets. I’m sure you can probably guess why I decided to wear it to the pool….
….because when I flex it really shows off my guns! Which way to the pool ladies?
After floating around for a bit it quickly became evident that there wasn’t going to be any ladies on this particular trip to the pool. Well unless you count mom and my aunts….but they don’t really count at all!
That’s ok though, because the “FEED ME” sign on my back seemed to work pretty well as everyone thought I looked adorable and was happy to toss me a cookie or two while I was floating around. Score 1 for the Martha Stewart Pets Shark Tee!
Eventually all my cousins showed up to play and it was time to strap on my life vest and get to the serious business of swimming!
I even got in some quality time with my dad as I worked on my dog paddling skills.
Swimming is a great calorie burner and I gotta keep up my fit figure for whenever those ladies do decide to show up at the pool!
My most important job of the day though is when I’m put on life guard duty. Someone has to make sure the cousins don’t drown, and when things get out of hand I have no problem barking up a storm to alert everyone of all the “unsafe” antics going on in the water. And despite what mom and dad say, it is not annoying, it’s necessary!
Does your dog enjoy a good pool day?
P.S. You can snag one of these super fun “Feed Me” Shark Tees from Martha Stewart Pets available exclusively at Petsmart.
A couple weeks ago some of my out-of-town family came to visit. I had a blast going on adventures with them, and you may recall I even performed a daring water rescue of my Uncle Taylor.
See my uncle, he’s a bit of a daredevil. (or clumsy on the water, depending on how you look at it).
When I’m not busy saving him from drowning, I’m just as much a daredevil as he is!
See, I know how to have a good time on the lake…..and keep up with the best of them! (P.S. did you see my super model strut across the paddle board?)
Is your dog a daredevil too?
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.
By now you probably know that hanging out at the lake is one of my favorite things to do in the summer. I love it so much that whenever I can I like to bring my dog friends to the lake with me too. You might remember a few summers back when I introduced my gal pal Shilah to the lake when she was just 1 year old.
Well it seems my gal pals keep getting younger and younger (*wink*), and this time I brought along my new friend Maya the rescue pup to the lake.
It was a bit more of an overcast type of day, and I was a bit worried we might get rained on, but you know what…..when you go to the lake you gotta expect to get wet!
This time I decided to rent a double kayak with my mom and dad. Since the water was a little cooler I didn’t feel like getting as wet so a kayak seemed to be the way to go.
Maya started out on the kayak too so that she could get her sea legs.
And it didn’t take long for her to take the obligatory accidental lake plunge. Don’t worry Maya, we’ve all been there!
But Maya didn’t let a little dip in the lake discourage her, she hopped right back on and even tried her paw on the paddleboard too.
She even got brave enough to take a purposeful plunge later on in the day (which my camera crew totally missed!)
And incase you’re wondering, life guard Ammo was on duty the whole time and I kept a watchful eye on my young puppy friend.
Needless to say I was very glad she figured out the whole swimming thing on her own, because I was much too comfortable to perform any daring rescues!
I’m pretty sure it’s safe to say that this won’t be Maya’s last time on the lake.
After all, how could you not come back with a view like this!
As you saw yesterday, I went on a weekend camping adventure to the Pocono Mountains – in search of fun! Well aside from lounging around the campsite, my pal Shilah the Husky and I also went on a day-time adventure to hike the nearby Glen Onoko Falls.
After checking out some scenic overlooks we decided to hit up the popular trail to see some of the falls.
Hiking is one of my all-time favorite activities, in fact I get so excited that I charge up the trails like I was the lead sled dog instead of Shilah!
This particular hike was quite rocky, but Shilah and I were up for the challenge!
Our parents were glad to have our new Ruffwear Roamer Leashes with them, which made the hike so much more enjoyable. Stay tuned on Monday for a full review on them, and a chance to win one for your dog!
We crossed water and fallen trees, and mom found herself wishing we had one of Ruffwear’s Hiking Harnesses with the handle to lift me over obstacles like my hiking pals Chester & Gretel from You Did What With Your Weiner.
Shilah and I made it pretty far up the hike before stopping for a group photo….because that’s how we roll! We didn’t make it all the way to the big waterfall at the top because the climb started to get pretty steep and our parents were worried about the decent for us dogs (although I totally could of made it!).
On the way back down we ran into these two pups. I warned them that they may wish they had leashes attached to their humans as it got higher – because we all know those of us with 4 legs have to keep those with 2 legs from falling off the side of the mountain!
When we reached the bottom of our hike Shilah and I decided to take a dip in the river while our parents ate lunch.
I showed off my swimming skills to all the other pups hanging around the river, and I’m pretty sure they were all wishing they had a spiffy life vest just like me.
After cooling off Shilah and I decided to head into Jim Thorpe to grab some ice cream!
Italian Ice was just what I needed after an invigorating hike!
I was sad to end my weekend full of camping and hiking, but I have to say it was nice to finally get back home to my air conditioning!
Rumor has it I won’t have to wait too long for my next camping adventure, as I’m headed off on another adventure soon….this time with my ponies!
Last year I shared a collection of what I packed for a summer camping trip to the beach with my pal Shilah the Husky. Well this year I’m back to share my new packing list for a camping trip to the mountains that I’m taking with Shilah this upcoming weekend!
While I tend to pack a lot of the same things each time I head on a camping trip – there are a few things extra that I throw in when headed to the mountains (where I plan to do some hiking and water-related activities).
So here’s a list of a few of the things I plan to pack this weekend:
Ammo’s must-have Mountain Camping Gear:
I’m very much looking forward to doing a bit of this soon….
So what do you think? Anything I’m forgetting to pack?
Disclosure: This is not a sponsored post, but some links do contain affiliate links. All opinions are my own.
Disclaimer : This is a sponsored post and giveaway brought to you by Lasso Ropes.
My new friends over at Lasso recently sent me one of their fun rope collars, the Jib Petit. (to which I immediately attached one of my Pod ID tags – because one should never go without identification!)
Inspired by the sea, Lasso makes wonderful nautical collars, leashes, and even harnesses for all sea-dogs (or even non-sea dogs that just want to look super cool).
With lots of rope styles, colors, and sizes there is something to fit every dog’s need.
Of course as soon as I received my Lasso Collar I did what any dog with a nautical rope collar does……I strapped on my life vest and headed for the lake!
Even the boat rental crew at the lake commented on how appropriately dressed I was in my nautical collar! It held up well to all my water-time adventures and the size was perfect since all of the Lasso ropes are handmade!
All of the Lasso products are made with brass fittings, which have great corrosive resistance, so I never have to worry about it looking less than stellar after my many summertime trips to the lake.
So if you are looking for some fun nautical rope accessories for your dog this summer (or even yourself since they sell a variety of human-friendly products too), I highly recommend you checkout Lasso!
You can save 10% off any small dog items at Lasso with code AMMO – coupon is valid until June 15th at 11:50PM.
And now for the best part…..
ONE Lucky WINNER will WIN a 4ft Blue Eco Leash with red knots from Lasso!
Here’s HOW TO WIN:
For this giveaway I will be using, Rafflecopter. We only use the information you provide to contact the winners and we never share it – so not to worry. Winners will be chosen at random and 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 on 6/10/14 12AM EST. Open to US Residents Only. Winners must claim their prizes within 48 hours of being notified or prize will be forfeited. Good luck!
Disclosure: This is a sponsored post by Lasso, but all opinions are my own!
Don’t forget, today is the last day to enter my Sleepypod Yummy Bowl Giveaway!! Also there is still time to enter Ruffwear My Dog is My… Giveaway!
I’m no stranger to the lake, and one of my favorite warm-weather activities is to go Stand Up Paddleboarding (aka SUP) with my mom and dad. So over the weekend we hit up our favorite lake and boat rental – Marsh Creek Lake.
I enjoy the paddleboard more than any of the other rentals (kayak, motorized rowboat, sailboat) because the paddleboard puts me the closest to the water – and I do in fact enjoy swimming when the water is just the right temperature.
Most of the time I end up taking a dive into the water when mom and dad drift too far apart. I think I channel my inner herding dog (thanks to my pal Trooper) and I worry a bit when my “pack” gets too far apart. So I’ll dive into the water and swim to dad to make sure he’s still ok.
When we finally get further out on the lake it’s enjoyable just to lay around on the paddleboards and soak in the sun. After all summer is almost here – and I gotta work on my tan!
As much as attention as I tend to draw on the lake – you would think that it’s pretty rare to see dogs out on the water.
But in actuality I tend to see quite a few dogs when I head out, like this pup Kahula, who’s owner has an awesome go-pro setup on their board and posts amazing instagram photos of their paddleboarding adventures.
So if you’re looking for a fun summertime activity to enjoy with your dog I highly recommend paddleboarding. You can check with your local boat rental to see if they allow dogs on their rentals (as I’ve found most do) and even if the paddle board isn’t for you there are lots of other rentable water vessels! Just make sure your pup wear’s it’s life vest! Mine is from my friends at Kurgo.