Fair Trade?

Here we go into these cold, crunchy days. Walking dogs can be physically painful when the temperature dips so low. Dogs like to meander and savor the smells on the snow which leaves me standing and shivering. The wind comes along and searches my coat for a way in. People think walking dogs is great exercise, but actually it is mostly waiting. I don't take dogs for a run anymore and I really miss that. I loved letting Wyatt or Heidi out of my van and we could all trot at our own pace through the woods. I knew the dogs would getting all their energy out and I was feeling healthy striding through the snow. The downside was worrying about running into other dogs or worse; worrying that the dogs would run off. I used to raise Akitas and they like to fight and run away, so those years have left me with a permanent "worse case scenario" thought process. Now I only walk dogs on leashes and my day is nearly stress free, but some of the fun is gone from the afternoons.