RestoPup

Izzy loved the beach.

We took Izzy on her first trip to the coast. It was 104 here in the valley so it seemed like the perfect day to take her and get away from the heat. We had visited a few weeks ago and scoped out activities for her. We found a great dog-friendly restaurant. She had so much fun and experienced so many things. She met lots of people and several kids. One young girl had a lot of energy as she approached, and Izzy initially backed up. The girl calmed a bit when I explained Izzy was just a baby and just starting to learn about people. Izzy then approached her for pets. The other kids she met weren't quite so animated and she approached them right away. We definitely will work more with kids in the upcoming weeks. She enjoyed attention from all the adults. People loved her. She loved the beach and dug her first hole and went in the water. The water approaching her was a bit strange but she quickly decided it was OK. We used the stroller (it's the cats and won't work for long but is great for keeping her safe and limiting her walking) to take her to lunch. She was a hit at the restaurant. What a great experience for Izzy and us. At least 10 employees visited her as well as people from neighboring tables and people walking by. She crashed after about 30 minutes. One person came to see her several times and really loved her. She said she could be their RestoPup (the restaurant is called Restobar). I promised we would be back. They all said she made their day. She's already making people happy. Our last activities were watching the gulls and the bay and walking on a ramp made of a grate. She really liked watching the birds and had no fear walking on the ramp even though you could see down to the water through it and it was a rough surface. Izzy gets lots of treats, praise and pets with each activity. It's really important to make sure new experiences are positive and fun. We crossed a lot off her list. Socialization doesn't need to be like this every day. Even just doing a short sniff walk or walking on a board is socialization.