HI. I’m Belle (or Isabella), a 6 year old Giant Schnauzer. My petner is Sandi and she asked me to write this blog to give a dog’s perspective about life. I’ve never considered myself a writer, but am always willing to share my opinions about stuff, so I said I would do it. We’ll be covering lots of topics that are interesting to dogs and animals in general and I’d love to hear from you – feel free to drop me a line and let me know what you think !

The Happiest Place on Earth!

While there seems to be some debate about this in the human world, for me there is no question about it: the happiest place on earth is the dog beach!

We go there a lot in the summer, especially when it’s hot. I guess I’m pretty lucky since I love to swim. Sometimes I like to go for sticks, but most of the time, I like swimming for my Kong Wubba. It’s nice and chewy and when I shake I throw lots of sand and water all around which is lots of fun. I like the expression on people’s faces when I do that. They look kind of surprised – which is funny given that it’s a beach!

There is always a lot happening at the beach. I like to see what everyone is up to, but I tend to focus on my own ball for the most part, because I’m really into fitness these days. My goal is to reach 1 million paw strokes in one year. I’m only at 250,000 for this year but then we started late in the season. I’m on a raw food diet, so that and swimming keeps my girlish figure in shape.

I have lots of friends who are there often. Some I know well because they are regulars like us, and some just kind of pass by. I can’t imagine coming to a beach and not swimming, but to each their own, I guess. Some of my friends include Cletus and Shelby and Hercules and Savannah. They’re pretty quiet and nice and kind of do their own thing, which is great.

Then there’s Baxter. He loves to come and bug me when I’m waiting for my human Petner, Sandi, to throw my ball. He’ll stop digging his hole, just to race over with his ball in his mouth and this goofy look on his face as if to say “Ha, ha! I have my ball!” Bounce, bounce! “I dare you to get it from me!” Bounce, bounce. “I dare you!” Bounce! “I double dare you!” Bounce, bounce! Then when Sandi throws my ball in the water, he races back to his hole and starts digging again! So annoying! It’s like having a pesky little brother around!Sandi thinks it’s hilarious and laughs every time, but I just roll my eyes and ignore him. Honestly!

Oh, and there’s Sherlock. He’s a big English Mastiff. Quite handsome I must say. I was a model (aka showdog) in my younger days, so I know handsome. He likes to play with a big log that his human Petners throw in the water for him. He’s quite possessive of his log and doesn’t like to share. I don’t always appreciate that in other dogs, but with him it’s kind of sexy – in a strong, silent type way.

As much as it’s a dog beach, there are lots of humans who come without dogs as well. Some pretend to be fishing, but I think they like to just come and watch us. Lots of times I’ll notice that when they come they seem kind of sad, and then when they leave they have a smile on their face which is pretty cool. I think human Petners spend a lot of time thinking about stuff that really doesn’t matter all that much. I hear them talking a lot about what happened the day before (or sometimes the year before), which I don’t understand.

Me, I like to live in the moment – as do most of my animal Petners. It seems silly to be thinking about the past when there are so many things to sniff, and water to swim in, and naps to take, and beaches to explore. There’s a whole world of fun out there waiting to be discovered! I figure life is just too short (especially in doggy years)! I think human Petners could take a few lessons from me and my friends.

Yep, my vote for happiest place on earth is definitely the dog beach. Maybe we’ll see you there one day!