The Dog Lover's Companion to Washington, D.C. and Baltimore: The Inside Scoop on Where to Take Your Dog

by Ann Oldenburg and Don Oldenburg

Offering the inside scoop on where dogs are welcome, this special breed of guidebook is perfect for travelers and residents who don't want to leave their canine pals behind. Now in its second edition,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1566914728
• ISBN13: 9781566914727
• Release Date: October 2002
• Publisher: Rick Steves
• Length: 450 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.5" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

Great guide to D.C. and surrounding areas

I had traveled to Reston, VA with my dogs to go to the Pet Fiesta while there I picked this book up and used it to travel all over the Washington D.C. area with my dogs. I am so glad that I did because I was not sure what I was going to do after the Pet Fiesta was over and this book opened up lots of options and lots of ideas for future trips. I advise taking a pen with you so you can write in additional things that you find that may not be listed in the book. While at Old Town Alexandria today we ate at an Irish restaurant that had a doggie menu that was not listed in the book but was a must go to if you travel there. I loved this book and only wish that there was one for my area.

Can I Kiss the Authors?

This is one of my favorite books ever. Really. I moved to the D.C. area with my lab three years ago, and while we were used to having dozens of places to go for various reasons or times, I didn't know where to begin to find good places to take her around our new home. This book was a godsend for finding fun places to go, especially because I found the reviews to give a me a very accurate idea of what sort of place we were going, including what sort of "feel" it might have for dog-friendliness. Some of the features of the book I have found extremely helpful are: * Birds-eye maps showing where the reviewed locations are in the counties covered (perfect for finding a park near odd places that I might run errands) * How strict the leash law is followed (this is a biggie for me -- while the authors point out excellent reasons to use the leash, they very helpfully suggest where we can get away without it) * Rough idea how crowded the area in question might be, and how easy or difficult to get to (varies of course by time of day and season) * Whether there's a place for doggie swimmingIn my area (Sterling/Ashburn, VA) I've found the book to be amazingly comprehensive for my local and outlying areas, and find that the park descriptions have always given me a pretty accurate idea what to expect. The book covers a wide enough range (including some pseudo-local vacation destinations) that I've used it on countless occasions to find nice stopover while on short trips outside my "home turf". Highly recommended for anyone who enjoys finding varied places to visit with their pups.

Wonderfully practical guide for dog owners

I bought this book when it first came out for a friend of mine who was moving to Baltimore with her dog. Two years later, I borrowed it from her when I discovered I was moving to D.C. I found it enormously usefull for choosing a dog-friendly neighborhood with good access to parks. The authors understand the basic qualities of a good dog park: safety, space, a group of 'regular' neighborhood go-ers, and access to a good espresso bar for weekend dog walking. Overall, the writers do an excelent job.I have only a few complaints. One - due to the impossibility of visiting every park in this populous region more than once, I've found that the park's ratings can heavily reflect the day and time of the visit -- not necessarily what the park is like on a typical weekday at 6pm. Also, some park ratings reflect a nice place to go with a small dog on a leash, you won't necessarily have the same experience with your massive Great Dane tugging at every new smell. The writers also disapprove of dogs being off-leash, and rate more lowly some parks that are true jems for those of us with larger dogs that require more exercise.Overall, a great guide, and certainly unique. A must for all dog owners in this area, particularly if you moving to this region.

No longer have to wonder where to take your pooches

I highly recommend this book to dog owners who love to take their little four-legged friend(s) everywhere. It is well organized and the writing style used is perfect for dog lovers.It covers almost all the parks in the Washington D.C., Virginia and Baltimore. Have you ever looked up a park on a map and it looked huge and perfect for your dog, and when you got there, you and your dog were very disappointing with the park? Well, the review for each park is quite accurate. With this book on hand, you can look up a park and find out if it is suitable for your dog before driving there. It covers important information that a dog owner needs to know about the park/area - such as the poop scoop law and the leash law.It also contains information (ie. hotel, restaurant, pet stores, etc...) that is very useful for dog owners who like to take their pooches on vacation with them.Embedded into the book, you will find dog adoption information. The book encourages suggestions from readers. I've already written to the publisher suggesting to include information on various rescue organizations and local animal shelters - a way to help promote pet rescue/adoption.

Very helpful and informative guide to the local area.

A very helpful guide, pointing out places and events in the local area that would otherwise pass by unknown. I've found a few tiny errors in the placement of parks on their maps, but nothing major... All in all, a great book.