Smile Like a Dog » San Francisco Dog Parks

Three on a Rope

Mark — Mon, 19 Jan 2009 05:19:25 +0000

This weekend I took the Biz to Stern Grove, one of his favorite dog parks. During a spirited game of frisbee we saw a couple of dogs at the far end of the park playing with a rope tug. For once, Biz decided it would be more fun to watch other dogs play instead of him so we started checking it out. It started out as a casual game but after a couple of minutes another dog took interest and joined in. For the next 25 minutes or so a crowd of us watched as these three dogs partook in the most epic tug-of-war game I’ve ever seen.

In the end, Morgan the Pitbull emerged victorious. The rope, unfortunately, has seen better days and all three participants were last seen sleeping.

Fun at Fort Funston

Mark — Sat, 27 Dec 2008 23:24:01 +0000

Nothing like a morning walk at San Francisco’s own dog mecca: Fort Funston. We took the Biz to meet some friends down there and ended up with a good-sized pack of 5 people and 7 dogs. One of them, a newcomer named Fletcher, may actually give Bizzy a run for his money in both the underbite and cuteness department — evidence below. My favorite part of the hike, though, was watching a three-legged pitbull play in the surf — it didn’t even slow him dow. Wish I could bottle that sort of attitude.

Bizzy at the Beach

Fletcher – 9.8 on the cuteness Richter scale

Ok, maybe a 9.9

Three-legged pitbull at play (count, you’ll only get to 11)

Three legs but lots of speed

The Odd Couple

Jax the not-so-miniature schnauzer

Nothing comes between me and my Frisbee

Drool is good

Shake It off and Move On

Mark — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 17:54:26 +0000

My construction project has ended. I found a decent blog template last night and I’m up and running again. Please let me know if you find anything amiss — links that don’t work, etc.

Chihuahuas Everywhere!!!!

Mark Rogers — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 18:49:10 +0000

Yesterday I had the pleasure of attending the San Francisco Chihuahua meetup at Stern Grove – Pine Lake Park. This is not to be confused with the venerable Chihuahua Cha Cha that’s still held up at Corona Heights but, boy, this is one well-attended event. There were easily 75 small dogs there along with their owners and an onsite concession with tiny costumes and dog-treats provided by a local dog boutique. Needless to say, the cuteness factor was extremely high. You can see all the best shots I took in an online gallery but I’ve taken the liberty of posting my faves below…

Spring at St Mary’s Dog Park

Mark Rogers — Sat, 05 Apr 2008 17:46:19 +0000

Now that the rainy season is truly behind us one of my favorite dog parks in the city is open again (actually, it’s been open for a few weeks but I didn’t get chance to go down there again until yesterday). St Mary’s is one of those great little secrets in San Francisco. Technically it’s an outlying part of Bernal Heights wedged in between Mission St and 280 but the neighborhood has its own distinct flavor. The best part is the rec center which has an upper level dedicated to humans and lower one with a nice, grassy, fenced-in dog park. The dogs love it and you can actually see people take a deep breath and chill out when they walk throught the gate. I get the vast majority of my smiling dog shots here. It just makes the pups happy…

Ok. So I drool when I’m happy. So what?

In a clearing stands a boxer…

Clearly, I don’t need a bath

So, then I told them it was a package deal. They either hire both of us or they can forget about it

Living in the Moment

Mark Rogers — Sun, 17 Feb 2008 05:32:05 +0000

Sometimes when life seems really complicated and stressful I take my dog to the park and just watch him. No matter the conditions (though he seems to prefer the messier ones) he always enjoys himself and for that time. Playing is his only focus for that hour.

Yes, he’s a dog and that’s what they do but I always find these times comfortably grounding

Change of Scenery

Mark Rogers — Sun, 06 Jan 2008 18:37:18 +0000

Every once in a while it’s nice to take photos of something besides dogs and pets or, as in this case, at least while I’m photographing pets. This shot was taken at a local dog park at a school near my home a few weeks back when the moon was at her fall best.

Check out more scenery shots from San Francisco and the Bay Area in my latest gallery.