Things To Do With Your Dalmatian - DCA Distance Log

Looking for an activity to share with your Dalmatian?  Why not check out the DCA Distance Log Program?    DCA Distance Log

As you undoubted know, Dalmatians love to walk and are great companions for hiking.  They have incredible stamina, endless enthusiasm, and are cheerful companions.  They won't argue about the route, never get caught up in political arguments, don't talk all the time, and never sulk or whine "I'm tired, can't we go home?"  If you want to walk, they want to walk, for as long as your feet hold up.

I've always been a walker, using it as a way to keep both me and dogs in shape.  Because I live in the city and have a small yard, the dogs NEED to walk.  When Argus retired from the show ring, after being extensively campaigned for several years, he needed an activity that we both enjoyed.  Nature hikes were just the thing and we started walking the river parks, dog parks, county and city walking trails.  So many interesting places to walk!

Last year because we were not showing very often, and because I had two enthusiastic young dogs in Max and Fern, they were added to the mix.  Normally just one dog at a time, but sometimes both Argus and Fern.  We did a lot of exploring, found interesting trails, and covered a lot of ground.  And I never kept a record of it.  How many miles did we walk last year?  Many, is all I know for sure.

This year I'm doing it differently, keeping track of the miles covered.  That's actually fun, and has added a new dimension to walking. Fit Bit offers a variety of mileage trackers that are lightweight, fun and easy to use.  What I really enjoy though is Motion X GPS which is available as an App for my iPhone.  It tracks mileage, average speed, current speed, and maps your path, while announcing every 5 minutes how far you've walked and your current speed.  Fun!  You can view maps of your tracks and save them.  I find that I tend to compete with myself from track to track which keeps me moving briskly.

Last night I walked the three dogs on snowy streets, listening to a book on my iPhone while the MotionX was working in the background, tracking my progress using GPS technology.  The Fitbit was clipped to my pocket tracking my steps, converting steps to miles and calculating calories burned.  Such fun.

We're off to a rather slow start this year as the weather has been difficult.  On the coldest nights the dogs only get about half a mile apiece, but when the weather is better we cover a lot more ground.  It's been fun keeping track of the distances, especially with such fun gadgets to play with.  My goal for the year is at least 1,000 miles, hopefully a lot more.