Camping Cora

We have a great friend who also happens to be the breeder of our sweet beagle, Cora. We met one day in February of 2007 when our family stopped by her house to look at her newest litter of beagle puppies. We knew the puppies were all spoken for, either going to forever pet-families or to the show-ring, so the threat was zero that we'd be coming home with a tiny fur ball of love.

But we fell in love and knew that her next litter we'd want to be on her list as a pet family. A few weeks later she gave us a thought that we could not pass up: would we be interested in purchasing Grace (we renamed her Cora) who was the mother of the litter we had seen. Grace was being retired from the show ring, having her one litter of pups, she was ready to move on to her forever pet-family.

We are so thankful for that open door - as she has been the absolute best dog for our family.

When we travel, Cora gets to vacation back at our friend's house amongst all the other beagle puppies and dogs. It is a great situation for both of us - allowing time for our friend to stay connected to her previous Champion and love, and a chance for Cora to be a dog among a pack of friendly four-paws like herself.

However, this year we ventured and tried something different. Cora came with us to Camp. I am not sure if she has ever camped before - but it was a first for us. She did beautifully.

We set up our prior Lab/Retriever dog's kennel in our campsite, proving it to be huge to her 12.5 inch body; allowing her a way to stretch out and play with toys with out having to be leashed. For bed she cozied up in our tent in her smaller kennel. Usually she sleeps in a kennel in the family room at home while we are all upstairs in bed. It was unique and fun to listen to her antics at night - trying to get her blanket just perfect to curl up in, and then drift off snoring the rest of the night. Silly dog.

She went on plenty of walks. She loved the smell of the open campfires. She was quiet and would take in all the activities around us with her cute beagle eyes and perked ears. She only started barking at passing dogs the last 48 hours of our trip; by then she felt "at home" and became more territorial of her acre camp site.

The biggest thrill was letting her experience the lake. In typical Cora style, she was very cautious. She was not so sure about the motion of the water, the waves lapping on shore, the splash as momentum took the water over a rock or log.

But she would fetch a treat every single time. Slowly entering the water to my outstretched hand, she would grab the treat and retreat. Then I'd go a touch farther out. And she'd do the same. Until she reached her belly and then she planted her feet and would only stretch her nose as far as it would go to grab and dash backwards.

She did it!! Thumbs up to Camping Cora!

Ready to go home to return next year