A Walk in the Park ~ Trisha, Technician

The very best part of having a weekday off (since our hospital is open 55 hours per week, I simply can’t be there all the time) is that Ruby and I are able to hit the trails with much less traffic! Our favorites are Eno River State Park and Duke Forest, both of which are within walking distance of our home in western Durham. We also will make the trips beyond and have been to Occoneeche Mountain State Natural Area, Umstead State Park, American Tobacco Trail, Horton Grove Nature Preserve, Historic Occoneechee Speedway Trail, and the variety of Durham city parks & greenways.

Ruby LOVES her walks, and it’s a way for me to stay mildly fit since we go for 2-7 miles depending on the day, time available, weather conditions, park conditions, etc. However, there are factors that I have to encounter and think about before every walk.  

Day Pack & Planning Ahead:  The bag has a hat, sunglasses, sunscreen, energy bar, water bottle, phone, wallet and keys for me.  (It also now gets an Epi pen given my recent encounter with fire ants!). For Ruby, it includes a water bottle, collapsible water dish, and bag of kibble. Keeping her hydrated while on our adventures has been challenging. I’ve tried various ways, but we struggle nonetheless. I’ve tried the bottle with dish attached, the folded cloth-like dish, the pop-out rubber dish, and I’ve even tried carrying the large metal dish she uses at home. She hardly ever drinks, even when she’s panting and eating grass, and if she chooses to drink, it’s from the puddles or streams flowing by. This makes me super nervous with the prevalence of Leptospirosis in this area. (Lepto is a bacterial disease that is spread through the urine of infected animals, most often in and around lakes and streams or in heavily wooded areas.)

The best way that I can get her to drink is to toss kibble pieces into the water bowl, then scoop them into my hand and encourage her to “eat” them while floating in the water. And although it’s more difficult in our blistering summers, really my only other alternative is to walk her early enough that I won’t risk putting her into heat stroke or overheating. And whether I’m wearing it or carrying it, I also try to having something that I can pull off and use as a sling/ towel-drag should anything injure her to the point where we have to exit. It’s also why I won’t own a dog greater than 60 pounds, since that is about the most that I can reasonably carry (and even that would be a LONG walk depending on how deep we are in the park).

Walking gear: My preferred gear is a Gentle Leader head harness. We will also sometimes walk with the Easy Walk harness, but my personal experience is that the Gentle Leader is easier to prevent her eating something unintentional while on the trails since I have more control of her head. The harness is better than a collar at potential neck jerking, so if neck pain ever becomes an issue, I definitely will use that. When we get home, Ruby has developed a habit of rubbing her nose around the couches (even when we walk on the harness) following the walks, but she really does so well on the Gentle Leader that we predominantly use that. We also have a poop-bag dispenser with plenty of back-ups to ensure that we can pick up after ourselves and carry it back out of the park.

Staying leashed: Every place that I regularly go has signage reminding people to keep dogs on leashes, but I cannot tell you the number of times we’ve encountered off-leash dogs. This is the most frustrating part of my walk. Ruby is a fantastic dog around every single human she’s ever met, but other dogs can be hit or miss. Most of the time, we’re fine. But a few almost-altercations have happened, and every time has been when a really excited dog rushes into her space and then she feels threatened by the otherwise friendly intentions. Ruby is a rescue, adopted 2 years ago at the age of 4 where she was previously the breeding female at a puppy mill. Her socialization is actually pretty darn good considering her history, but I also fear the day that something may ruin her good relations. Whenever we’re on the trail, we avoid saying "hi" to the passing dog and keep our distance as we pass, or even pull off the trail to let the other dog pass if there’s not enough space. The bag of kibble is also great at distracting Ruby since she is so food motivated. But dogs off leash don’t always understand my intentions of creating space, and with the human yelling at the dog, who is not responding, and then the dog coming into our space, I cannot blame Ruby for feeling threatened.  Even if your dog is VERY friendly, everyone should keep dogs leashed since you don’t know the disposition of other dogs on the trail; I would hate for your dog to get injured due to the lack of verbal control when my dog is following the rules.

We love our walks.  There is not a more peaceful place for me when I can hear birds and/or frogs, running water, rustling wind, etc.  Be prepared, and hopefully these tips will help make you enjoy your time outdoors as well.

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