DOGGONE: Roving with Rover

Today's new arrival in the newsstand is no puppy: DogGone just completed its 13th year with the November/December issue. DogGone is a 16-page bimonthly newsletter from Estes Park, CO that offers information crucial to anyone traveling with a dog. It tells you where you can stay, pet-friendly outings to plan, and endearing sidenotes, such as suggestions as to what booties would be perfect when Fido goes skiing with you―or what protective lotions are available should Fido be boot-resistant. The cover article in this issue discusses cross-country skiing and snowshoe expeditions in the Western states (California, Wyoming, Idaho, Colorado, Arizona and Oregon), and specifies what ski areas permit dogs to accompany you. It's often for an additional fee, apparently—at the Kirkwood Cross-County Ski Center in Colorado, according to the newsletter, "doggie passes are hefty." The one irritation I have with DogGone is that specific prices for lodging or for such things as dog ski passes are never offered. But DogGone does go out of its way to warn readers that any information about the dog-friendliness of a hotel, restaurant or park from a book, a friend or a Web site should be checked out before you arrive with your pooch, since policies can change. Publisher Robyn Peters writes in this issue, "The keyword is Check, Check, Check, regardless of the source (even DogGone), and even if you've stayed somewhere in the past. And confirm, with the name of the person you spoke with and get it in writing. I do." The newsletter does a good job in covering the country, and in this issue alone are articles about lodgings in Colorado, Florida, New York State, Oregon, New Jersey, California and New Hampshire, as well as Quebec, Alberta and New Brunswick in Canada. I was intrigued by the doggie-friendliness of the Loews Hotel Vogue in Montreal, a five-star boutique hotel that reserves two of its nine floors for guests with pets (no carpets on those floors). DogGone writes that "the pet room service menu at every Loews Hotel is prepared and approved by licensed vets and includes gourmet dinner options such as Beef Tenderloin and vegetarian entrees… Your pet's meal will be hand-delivered on a silver platter complete with two large stainless steel dog dishes, one for the entrée and the other for your pooch's bottled Evian spring water." Just don't try to tip the waiter with dog biscuits. An annual subscription (six issues) to DogGone is $25.00 from the publisher; you can get a sample copy from us for $2.59.