The equinox was still three days away. The forecast said nine degrees and overcast. Nothing about it screamed spring.
And yet.
He was at the door before you’d finished your coffee. Not his usual gentle reminder — the soft nudge, the expectant look. Something different. Restless. Circling. The lead in his mouth before you’d even thought about shoes.
He knew.
Dogs know. They always know. The light shifts a degree or two, the air carries something you can’t quite name, the earth starts doing what it does this time of year — and something in them wakes up. Before the daffodils are out. Before the clocks change. Before you’ve even processed it yourself.
The spring walk is different
There’s a walk. And then there’s a spring walk.
The spring walk is the one where he needs twice as long at every lamp post, because everything that happened over winter is suddenly readable again. Where he finds a patch of mud with the look of someone who’s found buried treasure, and you know — you already know — what’s about to happen.
Where he runs. Properly runs. In a way that makes you realise he’s been a little cooped up without either of you quite acknowledging it.
You walk further than usual. You don’t mean to. But the light is doing something soft and golden and it seems wasteful to turn back.
This is the walk where you remember why you got him. Not that you ever forget — but there are moments where it becomes vivid again. Where you feel it clearly rather than just knowing it. The spring walk is one of those moments.
What he notices that you don’t
There’s something particular about the way dogs mark the seasons that keeps you honest.
He doesn’t count down to spring. He doesn’t make resolutions or tell himself this year will be different. He just responds. He feels the shift, he moves toward it, he meets it at the door before you’ve thought to open it.
There’s something almost embarrassing about how often he notices things first. The moods you think you’re hiding. The person at the gate before they ring the bell. The change in the air. The thing that matters, quietly, right now.
He’s not philosophising. He’s just paying attention.
And if you’re lucky, he’ll keep dragging you outside until you start doing the same.
Spring kit
If you’ve been thinking about updating the walking kit — there’s no better time than the first few weeks of spring, when the walks get longer and the light is actually worth photographing.
The Heart Collar is the one we’d reach for. Red Italian leather, gold heart studs, handmade. The kind of thing that looks as good on a muddy spring walk as it does anywhere. Pair it with the Timeless City Lead — available in Baby Pink, Royal Blue, and Caramel — and you’ve got a combination that lasts properly.
If this season’s the one where you finally get him the jumper — the Artesana Alpaca is the starting point. Peruvian alpaca wool, handmade by Alqo Wasi. Warm enough for the cold spring mornings that are still hanging around, beautiful enough to keep through April.
Spring is a good reason. Not that you need one.
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