Author: Roxanne Hawn

Trained as a traditional journalist and based in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, USA, I'm a full-time freelance writer for magazines, websites, and private clients. My areas of specialty include everything in the lifestyles arena, including health and home, personal finance and other consumer interests, relationships and trends, people and business profiles ... and, of course, all things pet related. I don't just love dogs. I need them in my life. Seriously.
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    Weekly Training Update (March 27)

    Between taxes, errands, magazine deadlines, and other grown-up concerns, we didn’t do much training this week. Katie is on activity restrictions at home due to a puffy wrist, but Lilly did visit once with Tom, and he said she was very good at calling off from Katie. So, that’s good to hear. Otherwise, I present a photo and video contribution that show just want a difference a day can make around here. This is probably the most snow we’ve gotten in one day all winter (even though it’s technically spring.). So, we played a little FIND IT, which is our …

  • From Dusk ‘Til Dawn

    We went to a really neat farm/ranch sale up the road many years ago. I don’t remember all the rural do-dads that Tom bought, but I do recall getting this sign. We thought it was funny on the dog house because it doesn’t say exactly what the guard is armed with. In my mind, it’s usually a ferocious weapon like very bad gas. Considering Lilly’s recent, prolonged tummy upset, likely from hunting and eating voles, it seemed appropriate to show you this now. …

  • The Default Sit

    After the recent third dog adoption saga, I’ve been spending more time appreciating just how great our dog friends are. Ginko will be 9 soon. Lilly will be 5 soon, and I think it took having an 18-month-old pup around to make me appreciate just how well-behaved my current buddies are. I’m not saying that they don’t have issues because clearly they do, but I’m taking more time to notice and marvel at how all the house manners work we’ve done over the years has paid off. That said, here is Ginko showing off his beautiful default SIT. …

  • The Beauty of Being Deliberate

    Lilly and I spent the better part of the weekend hanging out together outside. Even a border collie as intense as Lilly, eventually loses her sense of self consciousness when we’re just bumming around for hours on end. You see, having one of us around outside can be a novelty at first, but as time goes by, Lilly resorts to her natural behavior. And, I LOVE watching her just be herself. Sometimes, it’s super sweet to see her poking around. Other times, I realize just how smart she really is. …

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    Weekly Training Update (March 20)

    Thursday went sideways on me after Lilly suffered tummy upset … all … over … the … house, while I was on the phone. After spot cleaning and later a total house disinfection, as well as baths for both dogs because while you’re soaked you might as well wash both of them, I found myself woefully behind on nearly everything. Today went a bit better in terms of productivity. Still, this dog-girl needs a weekend like you would NOT believe. BUT … I owe you an update. Here is goes. …

  • The History of Dog Toys

    Below is a link to another really neat piece I wrote for the American Kennel Club on the history of dog toys. In addition to interviewing toy designers, I talked at length with professors of American material culture, who study the everyday things we own as a way of understanding our lives and beliefs. It includes a timeline of when various dog toys were introduced. I was shocked, for example, that Nylabone launched in 1955 and Kong in 1976. …