On our adventure Eko and I have run on trails together, marched in a parade together, rode the Polar Express together, and even attended Mardi Gras together.  But it wasn’t until this past Friday that Eko and I had the opportunity to jump into a pool and swim together.

Rummy’s Beach Club is an amazing facility (one of only two of its kind in the country) just north of Houston where both you and your dog can swim together.  Whether your dog is recovering from surgery, ailing from joint pain or just looking to jump off the end of a dock, Rummy’s is the place to go.  Lisa Goebel, the owner of Rummy’s, named the facility after a Siberian Husky she rescued who went on to fame as winner of Purina’s Rally to Rescue contest.

Lisa welcomed us to Rummy’s on Friday afternoon and was kind enough to snap some photos of Eko and me having a blast in the pool.

The pool has a gradual sloping entrance for beginners while experts are welcome to jump off in the deep end

Eko’s favorite game in water is the same as his favorite game on land: tag

Eko spent an hour happily chasing me around the pool

No quicker way to tire out a dog than with a great swim

Lisa also got some really great video of our swim with her waterproof camera, so you can see those on Rummy’s Facebook page.

Hopping in the pool with Eko was some of the most fun I’ve had all trip and I can’t recommend Rummy’s highly enough.  If you live in the Houston area, or you and your dog are just passing through, make sure you take a trip up to Rummy’s for a swim!

I took a risk and brought my phone in the pool for this shot, but luckily it paid off! Mr. Eko may be an African plains dog, but today he looked more like a sea lion at Rummy’s beach in Spring, Texas.

We had one of our best adventures yet today, and I’ll post the full rundown once we dry off!

One of the best parts of our adventure has been meeting the entrepreneurs who build the amazing pet-friendly businesses that we visit.  I was excited to check out the indoor dog park at My Dog & Me, but it put a damper on my mood when I saw the going out of business signs at the entrance.

Bummer

My Dog & Me might be moving on, but before that happens Eko made the most of the agility course.

Eko happily scaled this obstacle, but was less certain about how to make his way down. In the end, he decided to take the elevator (aka I carried him)

Why drink the water out of the bowl when you can just bite it out of the air?

Next stop: Dog Olympics

With its notoriously bad summers, Houston seems like a perfect spot for an indoor dog park.  We’re sad to see My Dog & Me go, but we hope more people will continue to open great pet-friendly businesses that offer similar services.

Today we’ll be making a trip to Rummy’s Beach Club, a facility with a warm water pool that both you and your dog can dive into.  Can’t wait to check it out.  Providing that my phone stays dry I’ll make sure to provide some updates poolside!

Yesterday we took full advantage of the beautiful day with a trip to Bill Archer Park, a seventeen acre fenced in paradise that the locals refer to as a “small park.”  Everything really is bigger in Texas, including the dog parks.  The centerpiece of the park is a large bone shaped pool that Eko loved running around. And into.

Eko must be part racehorse because he always kept to the inside on turns

For one brief moment, Eko questioned whether he should take the plunge

But he never questioned if I remembered to bring a towel (I didn’t)

Even adventurers get water in their noses and make crazy faces sometimes

After regaining composure Eko dried off with a few runs through the agility course

Bill Archer Dog Park is an amazing place and I’m sure Eko and I will be back at least once before we skip town.  The park has you covered with a wash-down station at the entrance, but if you ever visit, make sure you bring a towel!

The title of yesterday’s post had a question mark, but not today’s.  There’s no question in my mined that Bill Archer Dog Park is the best park in the city. If it’s not, then Eko may just want to move to Houston permanently.

Grey skies and impending rain might keep most dogs at home, but luckily for us Houston has a large indoor dog park too.  We’ll be heading down to My Dog and Me to check out the facility around noon.  Come on down, the weather is fine! it’s indoors, so who cares what the weather is like?

I have no idea who Bill Archer is, but I do know that he has an awesome dog park in Houston named after him.
We’ll be hanging out here for a while on this beautiful day so bring your dog out to play!