Hi, I’m Juniper and I am a 16 month old isabella German Shepherd.  I’m my humans first dog and love joining in on all the adventures! This is my corner and here we will share some tips and tricks on adventuring with a pup. Enjoy 🐾

My beginnings …

My human always wanted a dog and timing was just never right. While camping at Lake Superior Provincial Park on Thanksgiving Weekend in 2020, my humans were sitting by the campfire watching people walk by with their dogs. It was on a hike up to the lookout at Awausee, sitting on the edge of a cliff and looking out across the vast landscape, that my human decided that it was high time to get a puppy to join on their adventures. As soon as they came back, they started looking. Actually, what the smaller human doesn’t know, is that mom had already been looking for a while. Even before the trip.

Long story short, they found me. Or, should I say, I found them 🙂 But where did my name come from? When they received the message that I was theirs, they were just pulling into the parking at home. The Proclaimer’s song 500 Miles came on the radio which is the song from their favourite movie – Benny & Joon. I’m named after Juniper Pearl, one of the title characters. I came home to live with my forever family on November 27, 2020. … and life has never been the same. 🐾

🐾 Juni’s camping list 🐾

Things we don’t leave home without when camping:

• Tie off line (we use the Ruffwear Knot-A-Hitch Campsite Hitching System)
• My 10 foot rope leash with locking carabiner and harness I use for camping (both are from Wilderdog, we do not attach Juni to the hitching system with her collar!)
• My own cooler (I’m raw fed and this way my humans aren’t tempted to eat my dinner ;))
• A cot for camping
• A cozy blanket for by the campfire (we use the Sherpa Fleece from Wilderdog with the waterproof layer)
• My own sleeping bag/blankets (they’re just using one of their old ones)
• A couple of sets of stainless steel bowls and a plastic mat to put my dishes on
• A small sun shelter (my cot gets moved there for shade if I’m waiting on my humans)
• A cooling vest or bandana (it can get very hot here in the summer and this helps me stay comfortable)
• My own towels (Usually 2 or 3 – the humans insist on drying me off before I come into the tent)
• My favourite toys (I have a set of camping toys that only come out when we’re on a trip)
• My favourite treats

🐾 Juni’s Hiking List 🐾

We go for a lot of longer hikes and, depending on the season, my human makes sure to bring the following things so I can have fun on the trail.

🐾 Juni’s Hotel List 🐾

Sometimes, a campsite is simply not available but we still want to get out and explore for a weekend. There are plenty of pet-friendly inns/motels/hotels available. A lot of them even keep dog treats at the front desk! Staying in a hotel is very different. There are people walking by the door, noises from upstairs, next door, very unfamiliar smells. And what is that noisy box at the window? They never leave me alone when we stay in a hotel/motel/inn. It’s not safe in case someone from housekeeping does come in the room and it’s not fair to the other guests if something spooks me and I bark. Not that I bark a lot but it does happen 🙂

Here’s a couple of things to keep me comfortable in Hotels:

• My favourite blanket
• My cooler with my favourite meals (mom uses the ice from the ice machine to keep things extra cold if there is no fridge in the room)
• My favourite treats
• A couple of favourite toys
• A small container of dish soap to clean my bowls in the sink

🐾 Juni’s Road Trip Recommendations🐾

Road trips are a great way of seeing a lot of different places. Sometimes we camp along the way, sometimes we stay in pet-friendly accommodations. One of the things to remember that, on top of the regular things to pack, making sure to stop in areas that are good for me to stretch my four paws is important. I love travelling by car. Love exploring new smells and surroundings. And my human makes sure that road trips are a good experience for me.

We went camping at Lake Superior last summer. On this 10 hour drive, mom made sure that we had at least one longer stop at a rest area. She always goes into the picnic area which is near the back of most rest stops so that I can have a nice walk, sniff, explore and do my business. I always still get my dinner around the same time as well. Everything is measured and packed into the cooler ready to feed me. It keeps things simple and keeps me a happy travel pup.

🐾 Juni’s Menu 🐾

My human switched me to raw food very early on and I love it! She makes sure to include supplements and a good mix of proteins to keep me healthy. I also get weighed regularly to ensure I’m not overfed.

You can find the following in my bowl*:

• A high quality frozen raw food. We absolutely love Big Country Raw. The dinners we get have some vegetables mixed in and ground bone.
• Berries such as blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, raspberries
• Fruits such as apple, pineapple, kiwi
• Dehydrated smelt, herring, green-lipped mussels
• A puppy supplement powder
• Bee pollen
• Fish oil
• Sometimes, instead of a bowl, I get a whole turkey neck or rib bones to eat

Treats and Chews

• Chicken heads (fresh or dried)
• Dehydrated duck or goose neck (love these!)
• Bully sticks
• Pig ears
• Rabbit ears and feet
• Chicken and duck feet
• Beef or pig snout
• Frozen tripe-stuffed trachea (this I have to eat outside. My human says it stinks but I think the smell is pure heaven!)

* Please remember to be aware of your pet’s special dietary needs and potential allergies. Supplements, bee pollen, and even fish oil, have a recommended daily dosage. Always check the labels for instruction.

Juniper is on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/juniper.the.isabella.gsd/

Juniper’s Feature on Shepherds’ Bone, a blog all about the German Shepherd breed: https://shepherdsbone.com/isabella-german-shepherd/

🐾This page is still a work in progress – make sure to come back often for updates and tips 🐾