Brown Town: Piper Goes to the Dog Park

Piper had a big adventure on Saturday, her first trip to the dog park. For all you puppy parents out there you know how important it is to socialize your puppies with other dogs and people. Piper just finished her series of vaccinations, which means we are able to take her on walks, take her to the park, and do all the fun doggie stuff. Piper is a wonderful puppy and loves tagging along with us and we are happy to have her join in. Saturday was sunny and blue skied so we decided to give the dog park a go. We headed out to the park. The dog park was divided into two sections, one for dogs under 20 lbs. and one for bigger dogs. Piper is right on the cusp of 20 lbs., but we decided to start on the smaller side. There were only a few tiny dogs and none seemed interested in Piper, so we took the jump and walked to the bigger side.

Oh boy, Piper had an experience, to say the least. As soon as we got there the dogs rushed her, wanting to play, not aggressively. If Piper was wearing pants she would have peed them. She was terrified. I felt like such a bad dog-mom, but I knew that this was for her own good. You know sometimes you have to be uncomfortable before you get comfortable. I imagine this is how it is to drop your child off at school for the first time, with them clinging to your leg and begging you not to let them off the leash, so to speak, but you know that this is a chance for them to grow and that eventually they will thank you. Needless to say, Piper did not really enjoy her first trip to the dog park, but we are hoping she will learn to love it. We know she will have to go through the jitters, but will soon be running and playing like the other dogs who so desperately wanted to invite her into their circle. Here is the story in pictures.