Utah park boosts hearts by offering hikes with shelter dogs

While there are some people who prefer the comfort of their homes, most of us actually like staying in hotels and resorts. There&rsquo-s nothing quite like staying in a new place that&rsquo-s slightly different from your usual digs. It also helps that they are often an upgrade from our usual lives, depending where you stay. Many hotels and resorts have a number of amenities as well as various activities to do on property, which are often social activities. Now, one resort is offering a very unique but fulfilling experience, an amenity we feel that every resort offers. Lace up those shoes and make your way to Utah, as the Utah Red Mountain Resort along with nearby shelter Ivins Animal Shelter have teamed up and created the Pound Puppy Hike. It not only gives guest a great and one-of-a-kind experience, it also allows the shelter dogs to get out and have some fun, as well as spreads news and encourages others to adopt a dog who is in need of a loving forever home.

Each Red Mountain resort guest gets paired with a dog from Ivins, a no-kill animal shelter. The meet-up occurs two times a week, in which the canines and humans go on a three to four mile hike through the Mojave Desert&rsquo-s Red Mountain as well as the surrounding canyons in the area. While it sounds like a relatively new idea, it isn&rsquo-t: the program actually began nearly a decade ago and was founded by a Red Mountain Resort employee who was also a volunteer with Ivins. It&rsquo-s been a pretty successful idea so far too, as some dogs have been able to find their forever homes thanks to the program. About 70 puppies have been taken in and adopted all because they were proud puppy hikers. Now that&rsquo-s what I call having fun for a cause!

(Photo Source: Life With Dogs TV)