Oz's first Hiking trip (Pics)

[ParNone]

I took Oz with me to visit friends in Bandera this weekend. We're
planning a big backcountry trip in May, so I wanted to see how
he was going to handle a shorter trip, car wise and hiking wise.
He did great! No carsickness and no real trouble on the hike. He
slipped off a rock in one of the creeks and landed in a lil' deeper
water than he liked, which scared him a lil'. He ran out and
was hiding behind a tree, but I didn't act like there was anything
wrong. Just called out for him to follow me through the shallow
area and forged ahead without looking back. He came bounding
on after me. He wasn't about to let me and my friend get
out of his sight, so one concern negated.

Here's some pics I took:

http://whitetrashdumbutt.homestead.com/files/oz_hike6.jpg

http://whitetrashdumbutt.homestead.com/files/oz_hike4.jpg

http://whitetrashdumbutt.homestead.com/files/oz_hike12.jpg

http://whitetrashdumbutt.homestead.com/files/oz_hike9.jpg

http://whitetrashdumbutt.homestead.com/files/oz_hike11.jpg

I wish I could have gotten a good pic of him leaping through
that tall grass, but they all came out blurry. Who would have
thought running and jumping through grass could be so
exciting.:)

Par...

[ramanth]

I cannot get over how gorgeous Oz is!!!!!

It sounds like he had a blast! :) Great pics!!

[DoggiesAreTheBest]

Oz is such a good looking dog! I am sure he had a lot of fun hiking. Does he look like a leaping Gazelle when he jumps through the grass? Drake does!

[wolflady]

Wow! :eek: What a handsome guy Oz is! :D I'm glad that he enjoyed the trip and hiking excursion! Looks like he'll be ready to go in May!! You'll definitely have to post more pics of handsome Oz for us! ;)

[Dixieland Dancer]

I bet Oz is still going strong when you are tired out! After all he does have 4 wheel drive compared to your 2 wheel drive! ;)

The pictures are wonderful! Thanks for sharing them with us!!!! :D :D

[ChrisH]

Great pics! thanks for sharing.:)

[mugsy]

My roommate here at school and I oohed and ahhed over Oz. He is absolutely stunning. Thanks for sharing. I can't wait for Mike to see him later tonight.

[primabella]

what a gorgeous dog you've got there! :) i especially like this pic: http://whitetrashdumbutt.homestead.com/files/oz_hike12.jpg he looks so majestic...or i don't know :p thanks for the pics!!

[ParNone]

hi ramanth!

Oh he definitely had a blast. I sure wish I lived out in the country.
I feel so sorry for him in my suburan back yard. He takes off
running and it only takes him a few strides 'fore he has to put
on the brakes. My aunt has a piece of property not too far from
me and I talked to her about bringing him out there, just so he
run. So now that I know he won't run away from me when he's off
the leash we're gonna start doing that.

Par...

[ParNone]

hola doggiesarethebest!

weeeeelllllll I'm not sure he's completely coordinated enough yet
to look like a gazelle. He only learned how to use his back feet
for jumping about a month ago. But he was really cute the way
he was leaping and prancing through the grass. It's definitely the
most animated I've ever seen him. I'd let my grass grow long in
the backyard for him, but then I'd have to supply Murph and
Maddie with a machete, so they could make their way through
the grass to go potty.:)

Par...

[ParNone]

aw thanks wolflady! Yeh I definitely think he'll do fine in May now.
My friend and I just wanted to make sure though. There's been
times when we've had to carry my other dog, Murph, who only
weighs about 20 lbs and that's not going to be possible with Oz.
Actually we're kind of hoping Oz will be able to carry his and
Murph's dog food, so I'm going to have to start having him wear
a pack when we go walking at night and slowly add weight to
it to get him in shape.

Par...

[ParNone]

hi there dixie!

Hard as it is to believe, Oz was totally pooped by the time we
got back to the car. We only did about 3-4 miles, but that's
about twice as much as we walk here at home. He zonked
in the car on the drive back to my friend's house. We couldn't
even get him to look out the window to see the horses on
the trail ride we passed.
They may be herding dogs, but Collies definitely don't have as
much energy as Border Collies.

Par...

[ParNone]

Thanks ChrisH!

hiya mugsy!

You know you'd think at some point people gushing over Oz
would be old hat to me, but it never is. I just beam whenever
somebody says something like he's stunning and especially
that ya'll oohed and ahhed over him. So thanks for my big
ole smile this afternoon.:)

Par...

[ParNone]

hey there prima!

Ah he's got you fooled with the Collie mystic. I think he's been
overly influenced by his terrier pals, cuz he's just way too
playful and exhuberant for the dignified Collie he's suppose to
be.:)

Par...

[mugsy]

Par, some of my roomies kids saw him too and said how pretty he is.I'm glad I could oblige, but I speak only the truth!!

[lovemyshiba]

Oz is stunning. And he looks right at home out there hiking--I'm sure he loved it!!!

[wolf_Q]

WOW! I can't get over how absolutely stunning he is! He has to be one of the most gorgeous dogs on Pet Talk! Great photos! I especially like the first one.

[Tina]

What great pictures! Looks like Oz really had a great time.

[ParNone]

hola lovemyshiba!

Yeh he definitely loved it, which I'm really thrilled about. I was
a lil' worried when he was younger, because he was quite the
nervous nelly about some stuff and didn't seem to enjoy just
walking. And I really wanted him to go with Murph and I and my
friend, when we go backcountry backpacking. But he was going
to need to love it as much as Murph to get to go, because we
won't be able to carry a 65 lb dog. Hard enough just carrying
our 50lb packs. If he'd been like Maddie and was only good for
about 100 yards, he'd been staying home with her.:)

Par...

[ParNone]

hola wolfq!!

I'm kinda partial to the first pic too. He's looking at the camera
and with him on the rocks you get a lil' feel of how rugged Texas
is.

My friend had to hold his leash, because he kept wanting to jump
off that rock to come see me, which you can see in that one
pic, where I captured him just fixing to jump.

Par...

[ParNone]

Thanks Tina! We most definitely had a blast. I can't wait to
take him out again. We're going on a car camping trip the first
week of Mar, so Maddie can go too. I'll have to get some pics of
her riding in my backpack.

Par...

[anna_66]

Terrific pics Par...
Oz is definately a stunning dog, I just can't get over those beautiful eyes though:)

[ParNone]

aw thanks anna! if you guys keep this up, people at work are
gonna start asking me why i'm smiling all the time.:)

Par...

[anna_66]

Hey, if I had such a beautiful dog as Oz, I'd be smiling all the time too.....wait, what am I saying, I'm smiling all the time too! Guess that's because I have 3 beauties of my own;)