August 26, 2014

We had so much fun today! A.J. and I went to the Natatorium, Boise’s public pool, for See Spot Splash. I didn’t know how it was going to work or how A.J. would handle it, but he was great. I’m pretty sure today was the best day of his whole life.

The pool was open from 3:00 – 8:00, with a new batch of dogs (up to 50) allowed in each hour on the hour. After the hour is up, everyone clears out and the next batch comes in. I decided our best bet would be to get there early for the first shift, which turned out to be a good choice.

We pulled into the parking lot at about 2:50. A.J barked from the car, but once he was out he walked nicely next to me and behaved wonderfully as we met other dogs. We registered and got in line.

When they let us in A.J. continued to walk nicely next to me until we were by the pool, at which point I unhooked his leash and told him “OK!” He took off! He ran all the way around the pool, into the kiddie pool area, hit a dead end, ran back out, around the pool…. I walked to the far side of the pool so he’d stay away from the entrance and everyone still coming in. He came running over to my side and then ran into the grassy area. He continued to run and swim almost nonstop for the next 50 minutes.

At first he was a little hesitant to go in the water. He ran around the edge and barked and leaned in trying to get to tennis balls. Finally he fell in. When he came back to the edge he went straight to the ladder and climbed out. What a smart boy! Well, sort of. He did that one more time later in the day, the rest of the time I had to keep pulling him out. But pretty soon he was running to the edge of the pool and taking a flying leap into the water. He was very good at going after balls and toys that were meant for other dogs.

He tried many times to run and get other dogs to play with him, but for the most part they were all busy. So he kept running around on his own and jumping into the water.

He was so much fun to watch! I wasn’t the only one watching him. Another woman threw the ball for him just to see him jump in the water again. This was a Humane Society event and on our way out we saw the volunteer coordinator. She looked at A.J. and said “That’s the springer that was having so much fun!” I laughed and told her this was the best day of his life.

Everyone there was happy, the dogs were happy and having fun, the sun was out…and on the way home “Walking on Sunshine” came on the radio. What a fun day!