“It wasn’t until later that night that we would learn that Lola was rescued from a shelter and she used to have fear issues with men with beards.”

We had signed up for the afternoon shift, so we went to the Dogtown HQ/clinic building for our volunteer initiation. We sat down and watched a video that went over the basics of volunteering, like what is and isn't all right to do when working with the dogs. It went over the dog collar color coding system, like green collar means okay to walk, and okay with kids and adults; red collar means staff only. Once the video was over, we were all given whistles. The whistles were to be used if any kind of incident occurs while we're with a dog, like if the dog gets loose somehow, or gets into a fight with another dog, or the dog bites somebody, things like that.

Hoping we wouldn't have to use the whistles, we went out to the front desk and signed up to volunteer. We just said they could put us wherever they needed help, so they signed us up for the lodges. One of the people there was kind enough to walk us out back to New Friends, the puppy training and care facility. From there we asked the caregivers what they would like us to do, and they looked at a chart on the wall and asked if we'd like to start by walking some dogs. That sounded good to us, so we hopped in a golf cart and went over to lodge #9, where we were introduced to Pacer and Lola.

Pacer and Lola live in the same run together, so it was okay to take them on a walk at the same time since they got along. The caregiver showed us how to leash them up (and Pacer needed a harness and a chain leash because he chews through regular leashes) and how to take them out through the gate at the back of the run. She pointed us in the direction of the walking trails behind the lodges, and we went to try one of them out.

The trail went up a hill and over, winding through the trees and down the other side, with spectacular views of the surrounding hills and valleys. The trails go on for miles, and we were enjoying the fresh air and some exercise as we walked with these very happy dogs. They were just enjoying being out, and Pacer in particular was pulling pretty hard. He just wanted to go, go, go! At one point we came across a bench just a few feet off the path, and it was strategically placed so its occupants would have a particularly wonderful view of the hills and the big sky in the distance. Something else that I thought was a stroke of genius was that there was a metal dog bowl on the ground and a couple of dog brushes sitting on the bench. We wished we had brought some water with us for the bowl, but we used the brushes to  brush the dogs a bit. They seemed content enough with the brushing, and they liked the affection and the petting.

Lola and Pacer

Then we continued on, making our way down the trail until we thought we had gone far enough, and we turned around. We stopped at a different bench on the way back, one that was sitting on a higher point and afforded another amazing view of the surrounding countryside. We gave the dogs some more hugs and petting, then we got back on the trail and headed back to Lodge #9. We brought Pacer and Lola back into their run via the back door, and once they were inside with the gate closed, we took their leashes and harness off. They ran to their water buckets and had a nice drink, and An and I snuck through the main entrance to their run and locked the gate behind us. We left the building and went outside to find Pacer and Lola standing just inside the fence, looking at us as if to ask why we weren't going to stay there with them all day.

It wasn't until later that night that we would learn that Lola was rescued from a shelter and she used to have fear issues with men with beards. I have a beard, and she was wonderful with me. She enjoyed me petting her, and a number of times she wagged her whole body at me and licked my face. There was no sign of any apprehension around me, which as I see it is a testament to the dedication of the trainers at Best Friends. They had a bearded trainer work with Lola until she wasn't afraid of beards in general any more.

Lola is OK with beards now

"Bye guys," I said as we turned to walk back to New Friends for our next assignment. When we got there, the caregivers went over the list and asked if we could walk Andy and Orlando, two dogs from different runs. Because they didn't live in the same run, they had to be kept separated from each other on the walk. Andy in particular had dog aggression issues, so they emphasized keeping them apart for the duration of the walk.

An picked Orlando up from his run and brought him out, and I got Andy. We went back up towards the trails, this time keeping some good distance between us. This time we chose a trail that went off to the left, and I followed An and Orlando, maintaining some distance. The trail wound around to the left and it ended up putting us back behind the lodges. We stopped there for a moment, but unfortunately I had allowed Andy to get too close to Orlando, and he tried to attack him. I had his leash firmly in hand though, and I was able to immediately pull him back before anything could happen. After some more distance and some gentle prodding to take Andy's mind off of Orlando, he went back to being happy to be outside on a walk. We turned around and I stayed in front this time, and Andy seemed perfectly happy to sniff all the bushes and take his time on the way back.

We made our way back down the trail, and back to Orlando and Andy's respective runs. After we got them back in and made sure everything was secure, we went back to the clinic office since it was about 4 o'clock.

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