Low flying owls could explain the lost chihuahua 
How is everyone doing with the heat? In southern Cal, mid 80s, though getting up to the 90s next week. Issue walking the dogs during the day. Extended my early morning walk and took out a walk trying to accomodate. I know it was high 90s and into 100s midwest and east coast. Posted some of their sun umbrellas to make a path to the astroturf in the backyard. Astroturf gets brutally hot. The cement around the pool gets very hot also. My daughter keeps saying how lucky our dog was to live on the beach. Midday exercise was always swimming. Anyone else having issues walking dogs with the heat? The roadway is scortching by midday.
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@Huronbase - I’m sitting with 2 dogs (a 70 lb bernedoodle and a 40 lb brindle hound dog) in Tulsa, OK where the temps are 90s daytime, going down to 70s at night. They are not to be walked but have a large grassy back yard with lots of shade. But still keep yard time short unless it is early morning of after sunset. Getting afternoon t’storms most days - good thing about them is that I discovered the dogs aren’t bothered by loud noises so 4th of July fireworks should be okay.
AC in the house is great although there have been 2 water main breaks in the area that meant no water for about 6 hours each. I’ve seen a few 'buckled ’ streets so guessing that may be what is causing the water main breaks. Tulsa does have an ARC-GIS web site to find water disruption and monitor progress on repairs.
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I’m sitting for one of my regulars. Great cat, great house, wonderful homeowners. And a huge swimming pool to boot!
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Also in southern California, in a coastal canyon, we’ve been blessed with a breeze, but when it died down, we went to the beach
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I’m watching two adorable cats in a gorgeous home with pool at the edge of the desert in Scottsdale AZ. I had forgotten how easy cats are (even if they need meds) since I usually watch dogs. These guys are funny but so low maintenance. I just have to retrain my brain to stop trying to talk to them like they are dogs. “Come here boy” just isn’t ever going to get the response I expect.
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where is that dog beach? I am unfamiliar. When we were in Carlsbad, went to the beach but it was surfer’s beach. Very rough. And I doubt the tide goes out like that.
Hendry’s in Santa Barbara, it’s a nice spot; the adjacent hills are dog-friendly with off-leash trails and a creek. They even have dog washing stations with elevated tubs, hand showers,
and shampoo
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Thanks. I have a short sit in Shell Beach in Aug which is in that area, I believe.
Shell Beach is about an hour north of SB, but their beaches are pretty dog-friendly. Fisherman’s and maybe Dinosaur Cave Beach are off-leash beaches. Morow Bay is located a bit North of Shell Beach and offers dog-friendly trails, as well as swimming opportunities in the marina near the state park peninsula. The central coast, in general, is very dog-friendly and much less crowded than the southern beaches. I think you will enjoy your visit.
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I took the sit, very short, just to see the area. The dog is good on the beach, so checking it out.
@Edith I love the Isle of Skye, it’s one of my favourite places!
Have you visited Coral Beach near Dunvegan? It’s a stunning beach that you can walk to from the Claigan Coral Beach car park. The walk from the Claigan car park to the Coral Beach is just over a mile (2 km) on track and grassy pastures and can take between 25 – 45 minutes each way.
I highly recommend a visit.
Enjoy the rest of your time there. 
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I’ll share an honest post:
We had one of the hardest first days ever. Sitting 2 retired (working) huskies and they get walked with a weird harness and something that goes around my waist. Golly, are they strong! I tried it and they pulled me right off my feet, and I’m pretty sturdy and very strong. I ploughed face first into the forest path, banged up my wrist and knee, lay incapacitated for a good 2 minutes I was so shocked. Luckily we were just outside the house, so I could hop back home and nurse my wounds. We then had to figure out alternative walking solutions, and I was worried my injuries might prevent me from walking. To boot, the one husky is so nervous, she ducked under the porch and wouldn’t come into the house all night. Doesn’t matter how much we tried to coax her. So that caused lots of anxiety too.
Today was much better. The doggie was nervously waiting outside the door this morning. We’re all good now. My knee is less swollen, although the wrist still hurts. But I think by tomorrow or the weekend, I’ll be right as rain. And we’re in a good place with the one dog, and we’re getting there with the other. Luckily both hubby and I share the load.
The life of housesitters - mostly fantastic, but sometimes things go spectacularly wrong. Luckily I didn’t fracture anything.
These doggos - clearly living a very (re)tired lifestyle!
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What a tough start to this sit @botvot. I am so sorry you have suffered injuries from trying to walk the huskies. Thank goodness you have support where there are the two of you.
Having a nervous and shy dog go into hiding is very stressful. Thank goodness there have been improvements on all fronts today. Looks like you’ve gained the dogs’ trust so I just hope you have success where their walking is concerned and you feel safe too.
For how long is the sit?
Wishing you a speedy recovery. 
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@temba thanks Temba. It’s a 2-week sit, so at least we have time to build good trust. And experiencing the midnight sun for the first time. It’s midnight now, this is a live photo.
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We are in St Helier, Jersey taking care of very sweet, older lady for a few weeks 
fantastic weather & beautiful beaches 
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Hi @Sam_F and thanks for the tip. I haven’t done any exploring yet because the weather’s been dreadful, but I’m here for nearly three weeks, so I’m sure I’ll get some nice days. The beaches are definitely on my TTD list!
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