The Dog Days of Summer Heat Picnic!

37 Cooks received a request from author Stephanie Weaver to help her Kickstarter campaign get her book, Golden Angels, published. What a worthy project.

The Dog Days of Summer Heat Picnic!
by Susan R

Some will say the 37 Cooks are all about food! Well, WE ARE! Just not always human food!! There are times when we need to embrace our four legged friends and give them special attention. This is one of those times……

Here in the Northeast, the last two weeks of July, along with the first two weeks of August, are the most miserable summer weather weeks each year. The intense heat and humidity affect even the heartiest of pets. Getting our dogs to take

walks for exercise is quite a challenge! To add a bit of adventure and get our four legged friends moving, we decided to have a picnic in the park. Well, I decided and Bodie & Benny will go anywhere in the car. We thought it would be a better picnic if we invited Duncan and

his human (Rita) to join in the fun. Duncan, Bodie and Benny are all Cairn Terriers and best friends. We rescued Bodie & Benny last year and it has been both crazy and hilarious.

Since the temperatures are still very high, I wanted to make something “refreshing” for the picnic and help cool the Cairns down after they chased balls (and each other) until their tongues were dragging. The night before the picnic I made IcePups. Details to follow!

After the short drive to our local dog park, the Cairns were eager to get started! We have to walk about ¼ mile to the gated park area before we could allow them off leash. Since they have been there a number of times, I was pretty much dragged all the way there. Before you say I should have more control over these energetic little beasts, please know they are both in the process of training. With terriers it always takes longer (correction, a LOT longer!). We have always had Cairns, so this is not new to us. We were really surprised when we adopted Benny and he was a bruiser at 25 pounds! Benny came to us after a horrible life and he is becoming a delightful fellow!

As expected, as soon as the Cairns were “released” they were a whirl of activity, chasing the tennis balls and looking for the best sticks to show off. Cairns are notorious for “capturing” a stick or other coveted item to run with and taunt their fellow Cairns. Cairns love a “job”. Bodie in particular loves having a job. He will wag his tail nonstop if he discovers a great stick and can show it off to everyone who will pay attention.

After a while, it was time to treat the Cairns to their IcePups and chilled water. None of the Cairns were in the mood to be photographed, but they each enjoyed their special treat. I think Duncan was the most fascinated with the IcePups. Duncan was also the best behaved Cairn at our summer picnic.

When the picnic was over and we made our way back to the car, it was evident all the Cairns had a great afternoon and were not ready to end their time together. Tomorrow is another day and the BFF’s will have another opportunity to wrestle and enjoy a great time together!

IcePups
by Susan R

This is simple, basic and really requires no real measuring!

1 apple (small dice) or carrot (small dice) or both!
Fresh baby spinach (chopped)
Low sodium chicken stock (I use Imagine)

You can use ice cube trays or, in my case, Zipzicles (they were a gift and this was the first thing I thought to make).

Divide the apple/carrot and spinach between the ice cube slots, fill with the chicken stock and freeze. When completely frozen, pop them into a freezer bag. It’s a great treat for you four-legged friend on a hot day!


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