Puppy and the last snow

Acton Dog Park-130324-04.jpg, originally uploaded by phaird.

I'm so looking forward to April and seeing all the green back on the trees again.
This is another pic of the Golden Retriever puppy that was at the park. He's such a friendly little guy. He went up to everyone and wanted to play with all the dogs. Even my grumpy old guy was good about it so that says something.

And they call it, puppy love

Acton Dog Park-130324-11.jpg, originally uploaded by phaird.

Sunday was all about the golden puppy. This little guy was taking everyone on. Especially the submissive other golden. They were having such a good time. I think this is a different golden puppy at the park. I wrote earlier of another Golden Retriever puppy that has been coming to the park but this little guy came with someone new (from what I could tell).
I'm guessing when they meet it's going to be a huge puppy love fest of jumping and playing. Can't wait!

Spring in New England

Acton Dog Park-130324-15.jpg, originally uploaded by phaird.

Yep, the calendar says it's spring but I'm not son convinced. Last week the park was a huge mud pit but it snowed a few days ago and now everything is covered up again. I don't mind too much but I think we might miss spring all together and one day, I'll wake up and it will be a hot sticky summer.
I'm glad I made it back to the park though. I've been out for a few weeks because of other engagements. Some photo related and others not.
This Sunday started out unique though. I was walking in with Tika and her owner when I noticed that Tika was caring something in her mouth. It was a turkey leg. No, it wasn't a bone or a cooked leg. It was just a leg and foot with tendons falling off. YUK! We're not sure where she found it but it really begged the question, where is the rest of the turkey? We didn't try to find out.
I'm guessing soon we'll be back to the mud fest and lots of dogs will be getting a bath when they get home. At least I hope so.

Waverly Oaks

chagall rolling in grass, originally uploaded by phaird.

Waverly Oaks was the first un-official dog park I use to bring toby when we lived in Watertown. It's a great big park with everything a park should have. Open areas, running water, Lots of trees and small nature walk as well as a paved path around the whole thing. What is better then that?
This is Chagall who is the dog of one of the great regulars who come to this park. Chagall was the king of the park at that time. He would stand around and let people know he was in charge. He wouldn't do much but he would let everyone know. A real sweetheart. It's amazing that it's been almost 6 years since We went there. I've been back a few times because Toby does really love that park but it's now very much out of the way to get there. Maybe this summer, on a slow weekend, I'll make that trip again.

Stoddard Neck Park

Neil with Jack, originally uploaded by phaird.

This is Neil with his dog Jack back in 2009 when I went to this unique park, Stoddard Park. It's a perfect little park because it's surrounded by water on three sides. It has a easy access from a parking lot and there is little chance of your dog running out into the street. It's a beautiful little space and if I lived near by, I'd be going all the time.

Other local dog parks

Sharon_Dogpark_101109_09, originally uploaded by phaird.

For years, I've been going to the Acton dog park for the simple reason that it's the closet park to me. This week though, I decided to share some photos from other parks I've visited over the past few years.
This photo is from the dog park in Sharon Ma. It's tucked into the woods in a perfect little spot. There is parking near by and you walk into the park. It's completely fenced in with a section for both small and big dogs. My friend, Angelo (a great painter) invited me and we got to spend a sunny October morning at the park.
As you can tell, Toby was his normal, defensive self through the day. He just doesn't do well with puppies no matter what.
If you get to Sharon, you could check it out. It is a nice place and I should make a point to get back there.

First 100 posts

bulldogs playing, originally uploaded by phaird.

This was taken back in Feb 09. It was the 100th photo I took and about the time my neighbor at the time loaned me her spare Canon 5D. That camera has a larger (full frame) sensor and offered a lot of control my older Nikon camera I was shooting with didn't. That was the beginning of the end of film for me because I could get what I wanted without compromising. It wasn't soon after that I finally went out and got my own 5D. I had to sell all my old film camera gear to get it but it was totally worth it.
These 2 bulldogs show up at the park now and again. It's pretty rare but they have such a good time.

Looking back

Dusty tugs - a, originally uploaded by phaird.

Here is Dusty with his dad from way back in November 2007 when I started coming to the Acton park. Dusty, Amber and Rudy would come very week no matter what. Dusty was so ball focused that it didn't matter what else was going on, he just wanted the ball.
They moved back west (Portland OR, I think) and he was the first person I interviewed for my book. The hardest part for him was that Rudi wasn't his dog so he was worried that Rudi wouldn't get to come to the park any more. He was king when he was at the park and it was a little sad when he wasn't around any more.

Almost 6 years

hunter and chagall at acton park, originally uploaded by phaird.

I've been shooting at this park for over 6 years and even though some days are a blur, every weekend I make it to the park is a great day. When I started, I was still shooting film and processing and printing my prints. (now that's retro). It's weird looking back but since I didn't make it to the park on Sunday, I figured I'd go back and look at some of the 1500+ photos I shot and think about who I don't see anymore or those that have passed on; both people and animals.
This is Hunter and his mom who were huge supporters of my blog and book idea (still want to happen). Kinda crazy but more eccentric then anything. A good heart and loved her dogs.

Becky getting in the middle of the pack

Becky getting in the middle of the pack, originally uploaded by phaird.

Becky always comes with a pocket full of treats so she can get her wild bunch to come back to her.

Bailey wouldn't sit still

Bailey wouldn't sit still but I got a nice shot anyway, originally uploaded by phaird.

Bailey is a young dog that came with his dad and human brother. He was so cute and was running around just keeping himself entertained. Some dogs run around in packs and play with each other. Bailey was just happy running around in the snow, checking in with his family and then running off again.
That is one of the beauties of the park. This is the one time of the day for the dogs that they get to run and play with no rules. They can just run around and be a dog. I just love that about the park.

Lando with his mom

Lando with his mom., originally uploaded by phaird.

I brought my boy Isaac to the park and found out that Lando, really loves little people. He loves them so much he wants to come up and lean up against them and play. That's why Lando's mom came over to make sure Isaac wasn't at the bottom of the dog pile. He was a really loving dog who doesn't know how big he is.
Funny how that always happens. Dogs don't know their size. My little dog thinks he's the biggest one at the park and big dogs just want to be lap dogs.
Just got to love it.

Best friends greeting

Best friends greeting, originally uploaded by phaird.

another fun shot from this weekend. I saw this happening and had to shoot it. It was a great moment of dog and owner greeting. So happy to see them come together. Warmed my heart on the chilly morning.

Kids playing with the dogs

Kids playing with the dogs, originally uploaded by phaird.

Sunday at the park was a lot of fun. It was another day where it had a light snow but the sun was still bright. I got to meet a few fun dogs and nice people but I had to cut it short because I brought my youngest who didn't think the pond was as fun as going to the beach.
These kids were running around having a great time with all the dogs.