Atlanta Reindog Parade Fun! #FreebieFriday

Rocco, Codie and Bingo show off their ribbon at the Atlanta Botanical Garden Reindog Parade

Last weekend we attended the annual Reindog Parade at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens. It's one of our favorite events in the garden and the only day dogs are allowed in the gardens.

This year, Rocco and his pals Codie and Bingo went as the Reindog Fitness Pups. And we took home a third-place prize in the judging! The competition is fierce, so we were very proud of our fitness pups.

We wrote a poem that told of the dogs' hiking adventures and carried the sign that you can see in the photo above. See below for the full poem (we don't claim to be prize-winning poets!).

Codie, Rocco and Bingo at the garden entrance

Rocco is practicing his Fabio impression

Dogs and mums with Botanical St. Nick at the Reindog Parade

Codie and Bingo are the pups that Rocco has been hiking with as part of the Georgia State Parks Tails on Trails program. So the theme for these pups was very fitting!  We have one more hike to do as part of this program... in Savannah! Since that one requires a road trip, we hope to do that one some time next month.

Our poem written for the Reindog Parade:

Reindog Fitness Team

  

With wagging tails and holiday bells, we three dogs are on a hiking spree

Working on our fitness,

Our humans as witness,

We are all filled with glee

Hark the herald doggies hike,

We are the Reindog Fitness Pups

Even though not much bigger than a teacup.

We’ve traversed miles and miles of hiking trails

While our moms eat kale…

We’re here to prove small dogs can have big dreams

And hope you’ll join our Reindog hiking team!

Happy Holidays to all!

The Reindog Fitness Team.

Rocco, Codie and Bingo

Now, it's time again for  Fido + Fluffy's  Freebie Friday, the weekly blog hop for pet-related giveaways!

Check out the goodies in the Fido's Freebie Friday giveaways listed below. You can enter them all or add your own! We make it easy by linking them up all in one place.
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We hope you enjoy the Fido + Fluffy's Freebie Friday blog hop that we co-host with DogTipper and CatTipper!

Good luck!

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Reindog Parade and a walk at the Atlanta Botanical Garden

Rocco takes in the Reindog Parade at the Atlanta Botanical Garden

Last weekend we headed to the Reindog Parade at the Atlanta Botanical Garden. It's the one time a year dogs are allowed in the garden, and with all the pretty walking paths, it's an event we love attending each year.

This year we didn't compete in the parade but instead we watched from a prime viewing spot across the small pond from the main stage. Rocco rocks his holiday neckwear in the photo above!

Careful with those fingers so close to the yummy treats!

Before the parade, we visited the vendors. Rocco sniffed out the Lose a Finger treats right away. There's good reason they're called Lose a Finger! 

We saw lots of friends and their pups dressed in their holiday finery!

After the parade we took a long walk through the gardens.

You never know who'll you'll find on the bench next to you!

Rocco says, "can you tell which one is real?"

The garden also offers a wooded walking trail that weaves through the grounds. It was a beautiful day for parade and a walk!

For more fun photos from the parade, check out this story on wabe.org, Atlanta's NPR station.  Don't miss the second photo in the slide show!

Do you have a Reindog Parade in your town?

Let us know in the comments below!

The fun and games continue every Friday with FitDog Friday, the weekly Blog Hop brought to you by To Dog With Love, SlimDoggy and My GBGV Life to promote a healthy active lifestyle for pets (and their people, too!). Join in every Friday by linking up your FitDog story or visiting the blogs in the hop.

Atlanta Reindog Parade 2013!

Rocco, with his pals Bingo and Codie had a great time at the Reindog Parade at the Atlanta Botanical Gardens this past weekend.

The idea was that each would ride in their own little compartment, and mostly they did. Except that Rocco really preferred to ride with Bingo... I think he kept her warm!

We walked and rolled to the event, since the little triplet wagon wouldn't fit in any of our cars! 

Here's a few of the other Reindog pups!

Head over to the BlogPaws Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop for more photo fun!

When Dogs Rule the Atlanta Botanical Garden: Reindog Parade 2012

The Dogger does double-duty as a sleigh ride for Rocco Havanese!

One day a year, dogs are allowed at the Atlanta Botanical Garden for the Reindog Parade, and the event has become one of our yearly favorites. That's our new puppy Rocco, above, enjoying his ride.

It was a big day for 12-week-old Rocco. He won Best Puppy and took home that enormous basket on top of the stroller. It's bigger than he is!

We draped some garland over our Dogger, added a few flashing snowflakes and counted on getting by on Rocco's cuteness! Other costumes were more elaborate, with folks competing for Best Botanical, Best Adult, Best Dog Pack and Best Dog - Owner Dress-a-like! We figured this year might be our only chance to win!

Here are a few other's dressed in their finery. That's a Garden Service Dog above!

Everyone paraded across the stage for he judges. That's Victoria Stilwell and Holly Firfer, in the background, as emcees.

For more fun photos, see our album on our To Dog With Love Facebook page.

Atlanta Botanical Garden Opens its Doors to the Dogs for Annual Reindog Parade!

If you want to take your pup to the Atlanta Botanical Garden, this Saturday is the day to do it! Once a year, the Garden opens its gates to the dogs for the Reindog Parade, a competition for prizes and a chance to enjoy the Holidays in the Garden.  Cosmo and I plan to be there and we hope we get the chance to meet Victoria Stilwell, host of this year's event and celebrity dog trainer of Animal Planet's "It's Me or the Dog."

Pre-registration has ended, but the Garden will be accepting walk-ups. Here's all you need to know!

Reindog Parade

Date: December 11

Time: 11 a.m. - 1 p.m. 

Registration begins at 10:30 a.m. 

Join the once-a-year fun of dogs in the Garden! Dress your pooch in holiday finery to compete for prizes or to just show off. Also, connect with local canine enthusiasts and businesses in the Doggie Expo.

Dogs compete in the following categories:

Best Dog-Owner Look-Alike

Best Botanical

Best Puppy (under 2 years)

Best Senior (older than 10 years)

Best Dog Pack

Not competing -- just showing off

Get more information here.

Here's a few photos from past Reindog Parades. We went last year and the costumes were a hoot! Some people go all out, but you can enjoy the fun no matter what you wear! 

Two little angels!!

Top Dog!!

Holiday finery!

See you at the Garden this Saturday!