Roc on the Rocks

Rocco hikes the Iron Hill Trail at Red Top Mountain State Park in Georgia

We had so much fun hiking last weekend, including this stop at Red Top Mountain State Park.  We hiked the 3.8-mile Iron Hill Trail which follows the shores of Lake Allatoona much of the way.  It was surprisingly peaceful given the holiday weekend and we highly recommend this dog-friendly trail!

Hike On!

Today we're joining the BlogPaws Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop.

Our Best Agility Weekend Yet!

Rocco rocks out with his ribbons from last weekend's USDAA agility trial

Perfect for Wordless Wednesday as the photo speaks for itself! ... but just a little commentary...

Snow Zombies vs. Snow Zoomies #AtlantaSnow

Zombie Rocco

Sometimes Zoomies can lead to Zombies, and in Atlanta yesterday that was unfortunately for some… all too true.

If you were lucky enough to be at home when the snow started falling, it was a fun event for dogs and people too. But our hearts go out to all the folks who were stranded on the streets, schools and businesses last night.

Ironically, our pals -- Garth Riley (the dog) and Kona at K9Karryall -- found that Zoomies autocorrects to Zombies!

Bring on the Zombies… I mean Zoomies!



Check out the rest of our pals at the BlogPaws Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop!

St. James's Park Dog Walk

I snapped this pic during a recent visit to London when I needed yet another dog fix! Here, a woman walks her two dogs at St. James's Park near Buckingham Palace. Dogs are welcome in the Royal Parks with just a few guidelines.

Dogs in Art at the Louvre

Jeune Homme et Chien at the Louvre

Over the holidays I had the chance to take a lovely trip to England and France. This time I traveled without Rocco, though you might remember some of our fun international trips with Cosmo.

So just to get a little dog fix during my trip, I set about to find all the dogs in art at the Louvre in Paris. In this one, the dog looks like a Havanese to me, and it's thought to have been created about 375 - 350 B.C. in Greece.

Outside the Louvre on a rainy night

We visited the Louvre on a Friday night when it's opened late. The lines to enter were short at that time but the museum was still PACKED with people!

More dogs in art...

Titian, Supper at Emmaus
(to learn more about biblical feasts in art, click on this link) 

Veronese, Supper at Emmaus
(click on the third picture at this link to learn more about this painting) 

Jacobo Bassano, Two Dogs Tied to a Tree Stump
(go to the third page in this link to read more about dogs in paintings in mid-16th century Venice)

Happy New Year 2014 from Rocco Havanese!

We took a look back at Rocco's New Year just one year ago and look how much he's grown! In 2013, at just three months old in the photos above, Rocco approached the new year with some hesitation.

This year he's ready to jump right in with all four feet, and so am I!

Happy New Year to all! Here's to the best year yet!

Christmas is Better Spent with Friends!

Rocco, Sugar and Dolly

Dolly the Doxie's mom snapped this pic during our recent visit to Chicago and walk through the dog-friendly Shops at North Bridge.

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas with family, friends and fur friends!

Dog-Friendly Shopping at Home Goods

Shopping's more fun with friends and even better with fur friends! Rocco Havanese helps with some holiday shopping at Home Goods during our recent trip to Chicago!

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!

Wordless Wednesday: Falling Leaves

Three Dogs on Deck!

I've been trying to get the perfect photo of Rocco and his two pals Bingo and Codie. Have you ever tried to get THREE dogs to pose! 

We moved from the yard to the deck. Dogs on stairs always seems to work.

How about dogs on chairs?

Or a roundtable discussion!

Or maybe perfect photos don't need to be perfect at all!

Happy (almost)  Wordless Wednesday!

Watch us "Play" on Homes.com Today!

Our backyard is featured as a place to "play" on Homes.com today! It's all part of the Homes.com Inspiring Home Moments campaign.

Some of you may remember that I bought my backyard (and house) so that Cosmo would have a place to play.  Before that, we lived in a condo and it was tough raising an active dog without a yard. That's ultimately why we started doing agility, so that Cosmo would have an outlet and a place to play.

But now, it's been a lot easier raising a young pup like Rocco with our own place to play unleashed. And, we have a place where we can practice agility skills everyday. Short little practice sessions work great, especially with a young pup.

So what's the biggest thing you've ever bought for YOUR pet? Let me know in the comments below. And then check out our home story on Homes.com!

Meetup for a Dog Hike

We love finding new places to hike with our dog hiking Meetup Group.

Rocco takes in the view from our hike last weekend near Atlanta. Want to know where we were? Come back this FitDog Friday to find out!

Guess why Rocco is flying!

First, Rocco is pretty excited and flying high because Monday is his birthday and he'll be one year old! Wow, how fast they grow up!

Next, he wants you to come back on Friday to find out what he's up to here. (It's not too hard to guess, but we thought a little suspense would be kind of fun!)

Happy Wordless Wednesday! Now let's see what everyone else is up to.

Wet Dogs on the Rocks

Rocco and his pal Miko pose on the rocks after a swim day this past weekend.  Just another reason why a "stay" is so important... read reason #3!

Come back on FitDog Friday for a peak at our swimming adventure!

Wordless Wednesday: Beaufort, S.C. Edition

Rocco takes in the view at the Henry C. Chambers Waterfront Park in Beaufort, S.C. last week

View from the other side of the cannon! 

We've had a busy (and fun!) July with travel to Asheville and Highland, N.C., Charleston and Beaufort, S.C., Savannah, Ga., and a tour of the North Georgia mountains!

Rocco traveled with us to all those locations, so we'll be posting updates soon of all our dog-friendly adventures!

In the meantime, here's a sneak peak at dog-friendly Beaufort, S.C. (see our photos, above!) We learned about Beaufort from our pal Garth Riley, who told us all about his trip a few months ago. He even has a photo with the same cannon and he posted about his adventure here.

Thanks Garth for the great tips! We can't wait for you to see how much Rocco loved Hunting Island State Park, too!

Come on back on Friday and we'll show you where we hiked and dined in North Georgia!

A Walk Through Not So Dry Falls!

During our recent trip to Highlands, N.C., we took advantage of a short break in the rain to visit four nearby waterfalls. 

The heavy rainfalls made the falls even more impressive than usual. Just a short drive down the road from Highlands we viewed Bridal Veil Falls, Cullasaja Falls, Bust Your Butt Falls and finally Dry Falls.

When we were here last year, the paths to Dry Falls were under construction so we weren't able to view the falls. This year, Rocco enjoyed the meandering trail to the falls ...

... that winds around and passes underneath the falls! He loved the sound and the water, but was limited to getting his zoomies on around my feet. Waterfalls are no place for a dog to run free!

Take a look and listen...

We made the finals! Please vote for us in the Petties Best Overall Blog category. You can vote once daily until July 31 at http://petties.dogtime.com/finalist-voting. The winner in each category wins a $1,000 donation to the pet rescue group of their choice. Please help us help a rescue pet!

Now let's head over to the BlogPaws Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop!





Wordless Wednesday: Surf Doggie

Rocco rides the wild surf, hehe! 

Wordless Wednesday: Pool Time

Rocco beats the heat with some pool time last weekend!





Wordless Wednesday: Have a Coke and a Smile!

Rocco Havanese, like Coca-Cola, is delicious and refreshing 

In addition to reminding us to pause and refresh, this sign also motivated Rocco and me to bring you these trivia questions today!

• In what year was the slogan "Have a Coke and a Smile" introduced?
• In what year did young people from all over the world gather on a hilltop to appear in a commercial to sing "I'd like to bring the world a Coke"?
• Extra credit! Where was the hilltop?