a two dog walk

Two dogs and three friends have begun taking  early morning walks. Pixie and I joined this   group of women about a month ago. We meet on week days and generally walk about 3 miles. It is really a pleasure to walk with  friends. This morning we met and I was the last to get to the park. Natalie,  Heidi and her dog Tipper were already there and waiting for us. As soon as Pixie exited the car, Tipper began making these sounds of utter joy and welcome. You could hear the excitement in her barking 

As has happened during other walks, Pixie has been  willing to walk a little faster and go a little longer when there is another dog or  human  present. She has limited her  distance walking since her surgery for the removal of her mast cell tumor last fall. Today she found a new reason to walk more quickly . Pixie kept up a very fast pace  for a good mile . The rest of us really had to move quickly to catch up to her. After a mile, she just stopped and refused to move another inch. I think that she had overestimated how far  she could go  and was feeling some  discomfort.
We turned around and  we went back to the car.  It was refreshing to see Pixie so  caught up in the moment that she temporarily forgot her pain .Today,  we  all experienced moments  of  pure joy   as we walked in the park. Thank you Pixie and Tipper.