Doggie Joy
We don't have a fenced yard, and I'm not comfortable with dog parks, so Jazz's exercise consists of long walks on a leash, two to three miles most days of the week. It's not enough for a young dog that wants to RUN, but I'm too old and too slow to run with her--when I break into my top-speed trot, she just walks faster. We are lucky to have an isolated, multi-acre meadow a few hundred yards from our house, but I can't turn her loose even up there for fear she'll chase deer and never be seen again. Instead, I clip a 50-foot line to her collar and let her go. I love to see her fly across the grass, run in big circles, come directly at me, only to swerve at the last second, bounce, spring up in the air, and do at least some of the things she'd do if she could run free. It's especially fun for her when there's snow on the ground--she loves, loves, loves snow. It's pure joy, for her and for me.
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