Merrily We Stroll Along
Monday, August 3, 2009
If there is one word I could use that accurately defines a Basset Hound’s personality, I think it would be “lethargic”. Bassets are not high energy dogs. A Basset is perfectly happy to snooze all day, every day.
My girls are no different. When I want to walk them, I can’t take them very far because they get worn out fast. They are big, heavy dogs on very short, little legs. So, it doesn’t take much to tire them out.
The problem I have with this is that I can walk much further and faster than Cicely and Maggie. Because of this, I started searching for a stroller. For my dogs. I thought, this would be a great solution allowing me to walk my dogs part of the way. Then, when they get tired, I can put them in the stroller and finish my walk. A dog stroller sounded perfect! Also, a stroller seemed like an awesome way to take my girls with me when I go someplace - they are confined and mobile!
Turns out there are lots of dog strollers on the market. However, they are all for smaller dogs, less than 50 pounds. Well, my girls weigh in at about 65 pounds each, so the smaller strollers wouldn’t do. I researched quite a bit and found the Solvit Houndabout Stroller. This stroller looked like the answer to my dog walking prayers!
After putting it together, I was shocked at how big it is! But, I guess it would have to be big because it holds a dog up to 110 pounds. It is quite nice. It has a soft pad in the bed, and I added another dog bed and a comfy blanket to make it extra cozy.
Maggie was the first to give it a try.
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Today, Maggie and I took the new stroller for a test-drive at the creek.
Maggie thought this was the coolest new bed EVER! She didn’t want to get out of it. Cicely, on the other hand, is not interested in the stroller. My Cicely is really skittish about things that move. Baby strollers, bikes, skateboards, scooters all freak her out. I wasn’t expecting her to be happy about this stroller. She is way too high strung about things like that. She got in the stroller for about 10 seconds and had enough and wanted out.
The next morning after we put the stroller together, I got up and found Maggie making herself comfortable in the stroller again. She has found her new home!
Maggie did really well walking alongside me while I pushed the empty stroller all set for when she was tired.
My poor Maggie is out of shape. After we had walked almost a mile, she was tired, thirsty and had covered her ears and neck in spit. She was done.
So, it was time to stop, give the girl some water and let me do the rest of the walking while she rode.
Maggie had no problem with this set up at all!
So, I pushed her for another three miles.
The stroller worked great! What I thought was so funny was the other people walking at the creek. I would pass people and they would look at the stroller as we passed, of course, thinking it was a baby inside. My favorite was the double take and “What the HECK!” look each person would do when they realized that it was a dog inside the stroller! Most people laughed once they saw Maggie in there. A couple people asked me if she was old or sick. I just explained that she can’t walk as far or as fast as I can, so she walks part of the way and rides the rest so I can finish my walk. Maggie had it made!
There are a couple of downsides with this stroller. First, it is big, so you have to have a big car to haul it in. It does collapse, but that process takes a few minutes to take it down and put it back up again.
The other downside is it is heavy. Probably weighs about 35 pounds. Combine that with a 65 pound dog and you are pushing an extra 100 pounds. That is no problem until you get to a hill. This made the hills at the creek even more challenging for me. But, that is OK with me. Apparently, it is OK with Maggie too, because she had no problem relaxing while I did all the work.
Are my dogs spoiled or what?!? That is strictly a rhetorical question by the way.
