We give Keizer Rapids Dog Park "two paws up"

Our dogs seemed to really like their visit to the Keizer Rapids Dog Park this afternoon. It was the first time my wife and I had been there. Impressive.

Just as Salem (Oregon) is the dowdy little sister to much more glamorous Portland, so is Keizer usually viewed by Salemites as even more lackluster than our aptly nicknamed So-lame.

Well, not when it comes to dog parks. 

My wife and I are pretty sure that Salem doesn't have any fenced dog parks. Keizer Rapids is fenced-- a big plus, especially for dog-owners like us. Recently we got a young dog who hasn't been trained to "come!" reliably.

Today we could practice with Zu-Zu in a safe environment, not worrying about her running wildly after a squirrel, or whatever, and dashing across a street. The entrance even has an "airlock" design, two gates separated by a small enclosed area, to further reduce the chance of a dog escape.

And there's a separate fenced area for small dogs, another good idea.

At first Zu-zu (in the foreground) was a bit overwhelmed by all the dogs playing near the entrance. This might have been her first visit to a dog park. So we took her and our calm older dog, Serena, out to the impressively poop- and mud-free grassy area.

Zu-zu soon calmed down. Laurel and I took turns calling her by name, then giving her a dog treat after she ran up to us. Even though Serena is well-trained, naturally we had to treat her also, to avoid playing favorites.

(In my light brown and black attire, Laurel thought I blended harmoniously with the dogs, though my head fur is grayer than theirs.)

An attractive Husky mix wandered over to sniff our "pack," who were deeply enthralled with their own smell feast.

The Husky'ish dog obviously was trained in ballet. Nice delicate footwork.

We've always thought that our twelve year old Shepherd/Lab mix, Serena, has some Husky in her. Seeing Serena next to the definite Husky mix (confirmed by the dog's owner), we thought in Shakira fashion, "tails don't lie."  

Comments

[Elaine]

Lived in Keizer for over a year and did not know of this place. THANK YOU!! Beautiful "pups".