Sweet Pea did great on the trail, sticking close by us and interacting with other dogs in a mellow manner. We stopped twice in the shade to offer her water, then the group split into two.
Waving off the summit-ers, Sam, Mae, SP and I took a nice long rest in the shade before walking back along the higher, shadier section on the trail. Our plan was to beat the others, run to the store for more water, and meet them back at the trail head.
Almost immediately after starting back, SP lay down and wouldn't get up. She was hot and tired and darned if she was going to keep this foolishness up, we felt like we could hear her saying. A kindly young mother gave us an entire bottle of water (yes, she had been drinking the entire time but by this time our water was running out so extra was awesome!) which we poured into her water bowl and on her back and head to cool her down.
I admit I was a little worried. How in the world was I going to get this 90 pound dog down the mountain? Had we overtaxed her? Was she going into heat exhaustion? My sweet children gave up their water for her - how long would they stay so patient?
SP finished off about a half gallon of the water and then happily dozed at the foot of the trail in the shade while we waited for Ted and Paul to meet us. We all felt badly that we had obviously worked her too hard and she spent the rest of the day napping.
Last night around midnight I awoke to a terrible smell. The poor thing had had diarrhea, luckily on the hardwood floor and not on the carpet! We cleaned it up and sat with her for a while to be sure she was "finished," then returned to bed.
She seemed fine this morning and had her regular walks today. Let's hope she continues to improve, and for heavens sake, we need this heat to break! Poor dog.
But, all in all, a super fun hike and we know she'll do better next time when we go on a cooler day! We love you Sweet Pea!
Good for you, Sweet Pea. Rest easy
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