Mountain DAWGS

07/19/2026

I’m so honored to be trusted to walk Atlas. This guy is a runner with a well known story https://www.summitdaily.com/news/atlas-the-exploring-dog-reunited-with-owners-after-29-days-and-hundreds-of-miles/?utm_source=share_link&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_campaign=share_bar

After weeks spent assisting in his rescue, a kiss, snuggles, and a walk with Atlas is an amazing reward.

For now we are double-leashing him to ensure there are no repeats.

07/17/2026

Voting has opened for the annual Best of Summit. Mountain Dawgs has been nominated in the Pet Sitting/Boarding/Day Care category.

We may be new but we are quickly gaining a loyal following from those who recognize that their pets love us!

Please share the love and vote for us: https://www.summitdaily.com/bestofsummit2026/ #/group/2623

07/04/2026

🇺🇸 𝗛𝗮𝗽𝗽𝘆 𝟮𝟱𝟬𝘁𝗵, 𝗔𝗺𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮. 🐾🏔️

Today, we get to celebrate the 4th of July in true Summit County style: good friends, happy dogs, small-town magic.

With no fireworks in Summit County this year, it should be a little easier on our four-legged family members. That means more tail wags, fewer scared pups, and hopefully a lot more relaxed holiday fun.
Mountain Dawgs will be celebrating with friends and our dogs in Frisco at the parade and concert.

If you are in Frisco today, we hope to see you out there.

A few friendly reminders for the day:

• Bring water for your dog�• Keep dogs leashed and secure in crowds�• Watch paws on hot pavement�• Give them breaks from the excitement�• Keep cookout food, bones, alcohol, and trash out of reach�• Watch doors, gates, garages, and car doors as people come and go from gatherings

Even without fireworks, busy holiday weekends can be an easy time for dogs to slip out unnoticed. A little extra door-and-gate patrol can save a lot of heartache.

Here’s to a safe, happy, dog-friendly 4th of July weekend.

𝗦𝗲𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗶𝗻 𝗙𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼. 🇺🇸🐶

06/27/2026

Sharing this post for this sweet senior dog in FairPlay.

Courtesy post,

Fairplay, Colorado 

06/27/2026

𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲? 𝗠𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝗠𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗗𝗮𝘄𝗴𝘀.

Mountain Dawgs provides local, fun, safety-minded pet care across Summit County, including dog walks, drop-ins, adventure outings, and overnight in-home pet sitting.

We serve Frisco, Breckenridge, Dillon, Silverthorne, Blue River, Keystone, and nearby areas.

We are not an out-of-state app. We are local, built for Summit County, and grounded in the realities of caring for pets here: weather, wildlife, trail traffic, reactive dogs, visiting families, and pets who need comfort when their people are away.

𝗦𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝗱𝗲:

• Dog walks
• Drop-in visits
• Adventure outings
• Overnight in-home pet sitting
• Customized care for dogs and cats

Built for mountain dogs. Trusted by mountain families.

Book or learn more at mountaindawgs.co

06/25/2026

This week's PSA - A lost dog doesn't stop loving its family.

**It simply starts listening to survival instead.**

One of the hardest lessons I've learned volunteering in lost pet search and rescue is that **lost dogs don't behave like the dogs you know at home.**

I donate dozens of hours each month helping search for lost pets across Summit County, and unfortunately, 2026 has kept volunteers busy. Nearly every day another family is searching for a missing dog.

This post is for anyone who may someday lose a pet, or encounter one.

When dogs become lost, many enter **flight mode**. Adrenaline, fear, and survival instincts take over. Their priority shifts from finding their family to finding safety.

In that state, they'll often run from strangers, good Samaritans... and even their own owners.

It's difficult to believe until you witness it firsthand.

Last week, I was driving home after helping search a lost dog that has been spotted in Breckenridge, when another call came in. A frightened dog was running along Highway 9 in Frisco.

Within minutes I had eyes on him and spent the next hour keeping him out of traffic while patiently working to gain his trust.

Eventually, his owners arrived on the scene.

Like any loving family, their instinct was to call out and run to their beloved dog, but a fearful dog sees movement, noise, and pressure, not comfort.

We asked them to slow down, stay calm, and let their dog work through the fear. Give him space. Let him catch their scent. Let him realize he was safe.

It wasn't easy. Every instinct told them to do the opposite.

But they trusted the process.

Within minutes, their dog came out of flight mode, recognized his family, and was safely reunited with them.

One lost dog found.

One family made whole.

Several others are still waiting for their moment.

If your dog ever goes missing, remember this:

**Fear can temporarily overpower familiarity. The calmer you are, the better your chances of bringing your dog home.**

And if you encounter a lost dog, please don't chase it. A calm, patient approach can make all the difference.

🐾

06/16/2026

**Your dog’s AirTag may be giving you more confidence than coverage.**

An estimated **10 million pets go missing in the U.S. every year**, a stat that hits close to home for us because I volunteer hundreds of hours each year helping search for lost pets.

Lately, I keep seeing the same pattern: loving, responsible pet owners trying to protect their dogs with technology that may not match the risk.

I recently learned my parents use an AirTag for their Jack Russell. Then I met new clients whose flight-risk dog was relying on an AirTag. At another client’s house, the dog has both an AirTag and a Tile.

And last night, I assisted as a volunteer in the search and recovery of a true Houdini dog who managed to open the front door and escape while the owners were out.

Thankfully, that story had a happy ending. But it was a strong reminder: dogs don’t only go missing on hikes, trails, or off-leash adventures. Sometimes they slip out of a house, push through a door, jump a fence, or bolt when nobody is home.

AirTags, Tiles, and other Bluetooth trackers can be useful backups, but they are not true GPS trackers. They were designed more for finding keys, bags, and wallets than tracking a scared dog on the move. They rely on nearby phones or compatible devices to update location, which can work in busy areas but becomes much less reliable on trails, in wooded areas, around open space, or anywhere a dog may run before a phone gets close enough.

In a previous career, I spent a year working with tracking technology, so I wanted to put together a simple breakdown of what works best in different situations.

The short version:

**AirTag / Bluetooth:** good backup
**GPS + Cellular:** best everyday option for most flight-risk dogs
**Garmin-style Radio GPS:** best off-grid option

No tracker is perfect. Batteries die. Cell coverage drops. Terrain matters.

But when a scared dog is moving, the right technology can make a huge difference.

**Mountain Dawgs PSA:** Use an ID tag, keep microchip info current, have recent photos, and choose a tracker that matches your dog’s risk level and environment.

06/15/2026

06/15/2026

Summer is certainly here and our trail time mileage is quickly stacking up. A tired dog is a happy dog.