Saturday Morning Walk at Eisenhower Park on National Brownies at Brunch Month

On Saturday morning, Diane took Molly and me to another walk with the San Antonio Nature Hounds. This walk was at Eisenhower Park, where Molly and I have walked with the SA Nature Hounds before, but that walk was at night. This walk was organized to start at 8:15am, so that we could walk before the predicted record 106-degree temperatures set in.

We had approximately 16 people and about the same number of dogs that walked with the group. There were two Jack Russell terriers named Mojo on the walk. Early during the walk, Diane saw a human she knew who had been running along the trail. She walked with Diane and us for a while as the two humans caught up a bit on what has been happening in each of their lives.

We saw some runners and walkers along the Yucca trail and other dogs with their humans. There were actually quite a few other dogs with humans walking in the park on the trails. There are no bikes allowed in this park, so I couldn't chomp at passing bikes.

At the end of the walk, the humans gathered around a picnic table and ate brownies and drank cranapple juice or iced coffee. The walk organizer said that it was "National Brownies at Brunch Month." One human made some brownies with special chocolate and without flour. One human provided dog treats, which Molly and I appreciated.

San Antonio Medical Foundation Trail and the SA Nature Hounds

On Tuesday evening, Diane took Molly and me to a San Antonio Nature Hounds Meetup at the San Antonio Medical Foundation Trail in the Medical Center. It had been over a month since we had walked with the SA Nature Hounds. Diane determined our last group walk with the Nature Hounds was at Eisenhower Park on July 15. (She likes details.) It has been so hot this summer, so that deterred Diane from participating in more of the scheduled walks. I live outside and I like to walk, so I'm not too particular about the weather.

Tuesday night's walk included 7 dogs and 7 people. The San Antonio Medical Foundation Trail is a 2.2 mile trail. Our group observed 7 deer during our walk on the trail. Even though the area is surrounded by medical facilities, apartments, and other residential facilities, there is some wildlife in the trail area. We explored a new portion of the trail and veered past the apartment complex where Diane lived when she first moved to San Antonio. We eventually returned to the trail and got back to our starting point. It was fun to walk in a different location with some other dogs.

Brackenridge Park at night with the SA Nature Hounds

On the evening of July 3rd, Diane took Molly and me to Brackenridge Park to walk with the San Antonio Nature Hounds. (Mike didn't attend--something about HGTV.) Brackenridge Park is one of San Antonio's more historic parks, and it is heavily used, especially during holidays, like Easter and Independence Day.

There were about 20 humans and probably close to 25 dogs walking with our group. Several other humans walked with two dogs, and one human named Dianne walked with three dogs. The route was fairly flat, except near the end. We walked through the Japanese Tea Garden, so there were lots of steps to walk up and down there. Molly kept trying to pull ahead, but I just walked at a comfortable pace.

Molly graduates from beginner class

Molly graduated from her Beginner Education class this evening at PetSmart. Mike brought me along to the class to watch Molly. I had attended class at this store a couple years ago. I got a few treats during class, too.


Molly was rather excited and got distracted during the class test, but she still passed. The instructor, Charity, noted that I seemed relatively calm for my age.

Molly's certificate and scorecard are pictured here.

Molly and I will probably take a class together in a few weeks. Mike thinks it's important that we continue our education.

Buddy at Buddy Calk Trailhead

On Monday night, we had a family outing with the San Antonio Nature Hounds. Diane and Mike put Molly and me in the back of the Prius and we went to the Buddy Calk Trailhead along the Leon Creek Greenway. There were 12 other dogs and people who walked with us. The trail is mostly a wide sidewalk, so it's good for walking, and reminded me of the walk along the Salado Creek Greenway. However, the trail was heavily used this evening, and there were a lot of bicyclists (probably another Meetup group!) and a lot of runners and other people and dogs using the trail. We had a variety of dogs in the group. At the watering stop, which was next to a golf course and on a ridge, we had a nice breeze, which was pleasant, following the warm (about 86 degrees), humid conditions (about 63% humidity) we encountered on the walk. Mike was impressed that one of the dogs, who is part blue heeler, was so good at fetching. Mike is disappointed that I don't return objects to him when I fetch. We took this group picture. Molly and I are on the far right, and I'm looking toward the trail.

We returned along the trail at a more rapid rate, because it became dark as we walked. We walked behind a couple other dogs and female humans. Molly and I enjoyed our long walk in a different place!

Buddy's buddy

A lot has happened during the last few weeks.

In late April, Diane took me to the Callaghan Road Animal Hospital. This is a new veterinary clinic just down the road from our house. I hadn't been to the vet in a while, but it turned out the vet who saw me is Dr. Guevara, who had seen me before at another vet clinic. He remarked at how well-behaved I am, especially for a heeler. I got my rabies vaccination. It turns out that I have heartworms, so I have to take some medicine and get some treatments. I don't feel sick, however.

On Saturday, April 30 a tan puppy (probably 4-5 months old) squeezed between the gate and the fence post into my yard. How bold! However, she and I like to run around and play together, and Mike thinks we look good together, so she has been able to stay, so far. Diane was gone at the time the puppy showed up, so Mike decided the puppy would stay.

The following Saturday morning, Diane and Mike walked the puppy (who seems to be called "Molly" most of the time now) and me to the neighborhood park. We stood and sat around and there were quite a few other people there. The people were holding a ceremony to re-name the park from Ingram Hills Park to Joan Price Park. Joan Price is the president of the neighborhood association. She writes the newsletter that Diane or Mike and I deliver once a month to the houses on Stardust Drive.

Molly and I stood and sat patiently during the ceremony. We didn't bark or misbehave. We met the City Councilperson for this District, the city's Mayor's mother, and even the Mayor.

On May 14, Diane took me on a Volksmarch again. We left Molly at home. We walked along the Salado Creek Greenway. Diane saw some people she knew as we walked along the wide sidewalk or boardwalk. At one end of the walk, we went into the MacAllister Park Dog Park. I got to run around the dog park off leash. I saw Tang (another red heeler, whom I had met a few weeks ago on a SA NatureHounds walk) at the park. There was a large dog named Whiskey. There was a German Shepherd who seemed to tussle a little roughly with several dogs. We left the park after I had walked around and explored most of the park. We walked to the other end of the Greenway, near Los Patios, where the path currently ends at the access road along Loop 410. As we were walking back to the checkpoint, I saw a long black object along the edge of the sidewalk. Diane stopped and looked back and realized it was a snake. With the rain that we had on Thursday, snakes became more active. It didn't bother us, though. I wonder what adventures we'll have next.

I am having fun playing with my new buddy. I run around the yard a lot chasing Molly, and she seems to like to play a lot, too. She's got puppy energy, so sometimes I just need to rest a little, but I'm having fun with her!

Buddy and Diane on April 23, 2011 walk, at entrance to Singing Waters Vineyards. Photo by Martin Callahan.