As you already know (if you don’t, you can read about it here and here), the whole crew went camping not too long ago.  And by the whole crew, I mean THE WHOLE CREW!  I have to be honest, I had never considered taking the kitties camping with us, but then we got the Kritter Kondo and everything changed.  

Clockwise from top: The Kondo comes in a convenient carrying case; Included pins are the only item required for setup; Set up in progress

I received the Kondo a couple of weeks ago and set it up in my sitting room to see how everything worked.  Milo and Bella were instantly intrigued.  I left it up so they could get used to it but they didn’t hesitate to hop in and relax.  I found that Bella (my independent girl) suddenly began hanging out in there a lot, foregoing her usual post on her throne by the kitchen window.  Milo (my snuggle buddy at night) even abandoned me to sleep with Bella in the Kondo!  Even Hazel had a sniff around and it was plenty big enough for her 45 lb body. 

Once I knew all was well with our new toy, we packed up and headed off to Manatee Springs for our weekend camping trip.  It was very easy to transport and carry the Kondo, as it folds flat and comes in this nice carrying case with handles.  It fit very well (along with the rest of our gear) in the trunk of my little Honda.  The Kondo is super easy to set up and took only minutes to do so.  The instructions provided were adequate, although it is pretty self-explanatory.  The size was great for my two cats to spend the weekend in – they had a nice shady place for a bed under the canopy, while their litter box was located at the other end of the unit. 

This outdoor cat enclosure is perfect for a weekend getaway like ours.  Some of my favorite features are:

• Extremely easy to assemble.  The unit transports in one flat piece and only requires a few pins to lock the frame into position
• Shade canopy is a nice touch, allowing part of the cat run to be shaded for most (if not all) of the day
• A door on each end allows you to reach your kitty regardless of where he might be chilling out in his Kondo.  It also allows you to put water or food in or change litter easily.
• The Kondo is extremely lightweight, yet very stable and sturdy. 
• The high quality carrying case is included and has handles and a shoulder strap for easy transport, plus there are several nice pockets inside for food, treats, etc. 

There weren’t many negatives in my opinion, but I want to mention the following:

• There is a bit of sag in the netting and sometimes the net gets caught in the joints when the Kondo is folded/unfolded.  I did have to use a screwdriver to spread the joint a bit to get the netting out during my initial setup.  I definitely recommend setting this up at home before you travel with it, just to make sure you have everything you need for setup. 
• Along the same vein, I had some minor problems with fit during my setup.  The canopy frame fits very tightly and the posts were very difficult to line up just so.  There is no room for play – which is good for stability, but can be tricky for setup.  I think the painted coating added just enough thickness to the posts to make it pretty snug.   
• The netting used is a fairly open weave that doesn’t have much structure.  There is a bit of sagging along the top of the cat run and it’s a relatively loose draping of net that offers a bit of movement as I mentioned above.  The product instruction sheet clearly states that this material is not recommended for unsupervised use in an animal that chews.  I have to agree with this – although I will admit that I did leave my cats for brief periods unattended after I saw their reaction to the Kondo.  They were having so much fun watching everything that they had no desire to break out!  Having said this, I would have preferred a tighter, stronger weave that might be a bit more resistant to teeth and claws.

Overall, I have to say that this is an excellent product!  While there are a few minor, nitpicky things I might change about the design, the Kritter Kondo performs as expected and is a great product for the price.  I did a quick search for similar products and found that most outdoor cat enclosures were much more expensive than this one.  More importantly, I didn’t find any that were this mobile. 

If you’re like me, and had never even considered taking your cats on a trip before, another point to mention is this:  I have two pretty cool cats, but they are by no means “freak proof.”  Bella is the consummate hunter and takes every opportunity to run out the door and go on a walkabout.  Milo is a huge chicken and is afraid of everything unknown to him.  Point is, either of these guys could have made a case for escape and I wouldn’t have been surprised.  What did surprise me is that they were completely relaxed and comfortable in their Kondo the entire weekend.  There was no howling, scratching, or attempts to escape.  I believe that the design of this Kondo allowed Bella to experience her environment as much as she wanted, while offering Milo a feeling of more security with the shade canopy over him. 

I will definitely take Milo, Bella, and our Kritter Kondo road tripping again once it cools off down here!  In the meantime, it’s going into the backyard so they can enjoy their outdoor time here at home.   If you would like to win one of these Kondos, visit Lisa’s blog Kritters That Twitter and click on the Google Friends tab to follow her.  Even if you don’t camp or travel with your cats, I can think of a ton of reasons why you would still like this product.  And Bella and Milo agree.

Kitty tested; SlobberDog approved!

…Continued from Part One

We arose early on Saturday morning excited to begin our day.  At some point during the chilly night Hazel must have awoken me to get covered up, because she and Grady were snuggled together under a fluffy down comforter.  Another lack of planning on my part….I hadn’t stopped to consider that north central Florida is generally at least ten degrees cooler than Orlando, and it was definitely a brisk night!  I love camping in cooler weather, but I’m not sure Hazel agreed.  We eventually emerged from our tent and started our fire up so we could begin the process of exploring my lack of culinary skills.  (FYI, if you can’t do it in a kitchen, you probably can’t do it over a fire either.  Oh, and if you try to make omelets in a zip loc bag in boiling water..don’t hang the bag over the pot.  Plastic melts, OK?  Right now, I’m remembering a comment someone once made about scientists and engineers lacking common sense…Hmmmm…..) 

After our lengthy (and large) breakfast, we hung around camp for awhile soaking in the sights.  The wildlife at Manatee Springs is unbelievable; we had bold deer coming right up to our site to check us out, a very determined woodpecker tapping away on a post nearby, and screech owls facing off in the night.  It was so much fun to be immersed in the wild and have them take no notice of any of us! 

While we were all enjoying the sites, SlobberDog used his time for an after breakfast nap.  With the exception of a particularly feisty armadillo, he showed zero interest in the wildlife surrounding us.

Eventually, we made our way to the springs to cool off and play in the water.  Both Grady and Hazel have been exposed to water bodies before, but neither of them do more than wade in and drink.  True to form SlobberDog padded his way in up to his belly, then proceeded to scarf up big, loud swallows of the clear spring water.  He waited until he had attracted the attention of the nearest park-goers before following that up with a huge belch.  Classy, dude!

This time, Hazel braved the deeper waters and practiced her swimming technique.  Once she got the hang of it, she quite enjoyed paddling around!

Since WordPress is being tempermental and won’t let me embed the video, click here to see Hazel in action.

Grady was not amused and could not be convinced to let his feet leave the solid ground.

Um, how about NO?!?! I am a Mastiff. I drool, I fart, I snore. I do NOT swim.

Despite SlobberDog’s protests, we spent the remainder of the weekend swimming in the spring run and hiking the trails sprinkled throughout the park.  Grady’s vote was to stay at camp to nap.  Unfortunately for him, this is not a democracy.  He was appeased a bit as we progressed through the park and attracted a large following of admirers.   We packed up on Sunday afternoon and headed home exhausted, elated, and lulled by the sound of Grady’s snoring rumbling in the backseat.  In the end, we had a great time on our first camping trip together and we’re already looking forward to our next destination. 

Make sure you stop back to hear all about Milo and Bella’s experiences with the Kritter Kondo at Manatee Springs!

Not long ago, I was contacted by Lisa from Kritter Kommunity, LLC to do a product review for the Kritter Kondo Deluxe.  Thus began a whirlwind of preparations for a camping trip with two dogs, two cats, and me (plus our token bodyguard).  Over the next few posts, I’ll tell you about our adventures and about our experiences with the Kritter Kondo.  But be warned – camping with this crew is not for the faint of heart!

Most people know me as an outdoorsy kind of girl.  I spend a lot of time outside with my animals enjoying nature and I thought a camping trip would be lots of fun!  I’d been considering planning one anyway, it just never seemed to make it to the top of my To Do list, so this seemed like a great opportunity.  Plus, I thought, camping with two cats (and HazelNut) should provide endless opportunity for me to mock myself on my blog! 

Shortly after the planning commenced, I realized I was out of my league.  After all, going on a camping trip, is not the same as planning a camping trip.  And going on a camping trip with four animals is a whole other ball of wax!  After more than a few hiccups, I sorted things out and the preparations began.  I selected Manatee Springs State Park as our destination. 

Clockwise from top: The headsprings boasts crystal clear cool water; leashed dogs can swim and play in the canoe launch area; a shallow wade in area is available for those who like to venture slowly into the cool water

Like all Florida State Parks it is pet friendly, and its location in Chiefland was a perfect 2.5 hour drive from our house.  I chose this park because of the varied options for pet friendly fun, like swimming in the canoe launch and hiking on the 8+ miles of trails.  Unfortunately (here comes that planning thing again), what I failed to consider was the time it would take to load my car after work, drive the nearly 3 hours in Friday rush hour traffic, and set up camp in the dark!  Good thing I have four very patient and understanding animals who didn’t get dinner until nearly 10 pm!  Oops. 

I gave her my most dazzling dangling goobers and yet she still didn't feed us until after my bedtime!! What gives?!

The campsites were organized around a loop, with the bathrooms in the center.  Each site had running water, electricity, a picnic table, and a fire pit/grill.  Within minutes of our arrival we were greeted by the welcoming committee:  a fearless armadillo and a hungry raccoon.  Good thing the gang was waiting in the car until our setup was complete!  My bodyguard/camping buddy Z and I had camp set up in no time, almost like we were camping professionals.  We bedded down for the night to the sound of crickets chirping and….. HazelNut barking fervishly at some unidentified creature thrashing through the brush outside our tent!  Uh oh….way to start off our camping trip!  Eventually everyone settled down and we slumbered for the remainder of the night.

What? Am I just supposed to LIE there as those creatures are preparing to eat us?!

After our long and playful Saturday, Sunday dawned slowly.  We slept in a bit and went for a walk in the field behind Z’s house as he made us breakfast.  It was a lazy start to the day, but not for long!  This day we decided to go for a drive to one of our favorite places – the Beach!  There are actually a few nice, dog-friendly-ish beaches in the area.  This time we opted to visit Keaton Beach, which is about 17 miles north of Steinhatchee.  This is a pretty nice beach that juts out into the water with lots of private space so the dogs can play without disturbing anyone.  There are also several pavilions for grilling out, a playground, and a long pier for fishing.  We opted to head to the far end where there were fewer people, hoping to avoid a repeat of Saturday’s Slobber Fest.   The dogs had a blast, splashing in the water and exploring the sea grasses.  It’s amazing how quickly Hazel is overcoming her fear of the surf.

Hazel spent most of her time hunting for crabs (left) and seagulls (right)

Grady played for a while, then in typical Grady fashion decided to rest for a bit.  It’s funny, but Steinhatchee is quite a bit cooler than Orlando and Grady loves the weather here.  We can actually do outdoor activities that he can participate in, at least for a little while longer.

Ahhh....this is the good life!

 It wasn’t long before Grady realized that Z was munching on some sunflower seeds.  He thought if he did his very best sit with a super cute begging face, he might get a few.  He didn’t have any luck but Grady is persistent….he begged.  And begged.  And begged.  He followed Z up the beach, sitting cutely with each pause.  He followed Z down the beach, blinking sweetly with his funky eyes.  And he finally followed Z into the surf, where he did his extra special sit-plop in the water (followed by a bit of wiggling tail spray just in case Z was hot from traveling all over the beach to avoid the begging SlobberDog).  Eventually, guess who won?

Who do ya think won?!

 Once the SlobberDog starts, he can’t be stopped.  He soon lost interest in the sunflower seeds – well, he lost interest after they were all gone.  Which didn’t take long once Grady was on the scene.  He headed for me as I was sitting on the beach, full of slimy, salty slobbers he was just waiting to share….and then -

Uh oh...do you know this face yet?

 Yep!  You guessed it.  Our neighbors just down the beach had arrived with a cooler.  Before I knew what happened, Grady had alerted Hazel to our visitors and they were off!  They are stealthy and operate under the guise of play, but I knew better!  Sure enough, as soon as they were out of my reach they headed striaght for that cooler and there was SlobberDog trying like heck to open it.  I fought my urge to crawl into the sea oats and disappear as the visitors began to shout obscenities in Spanish.  Out came the leashes and we packed up to head home, heads hung in shame once again.  But one more surprise awaited us before our departure!  Just as we were leaving the beach area, Z spotted the tiniest sea turtle I have ever seen, just hanging out on the beach.  Of course, being the marine biologist that I am (meaning I love to play with creatures of the sea) we had to stop for a photo session.  SlobberDog was still too worried about the cooler down the way to bother with some hard, inedible thing  but HazelNut obliged with a photo.

Hey whaddya do with this thing? If you throw it, I can fetch!

I’m still a bit perplexed by this one.  I haven’t identified it yet, but based on its size it’s fairly newly hatched.  The timing is all wrong so I don’t know why it was there, but it was still the coolest experience I’ve had in a long time!  Good eye, Z!

Since we could never top the turtle fest experience, we decided to head home.  The bad dogs and I had to head back to Orlando and we were hot and tired from our day on the beach.  We packed up our gear, got in the Goober Buggy and called it a day.

Hey wait a minute! Just a few more minutes of this charming face and I would have convinced that man to share his fish with me!

I attempted to upload some video of the kids playing at Steinhatchee Falls.  However, as usual, my lack of technical expertise has gotten the best of me.  We’ll conquer the beast of video some other day.  For now, we’ll end Saturday’s adventures with this charming image: 

After a long day of driving and playing, the three of us settle in to watch some movies and cuddle.

The past Saturday found me and the heathens hittin’ the highway to go visit a friend in North Florida.  We were heading to a little town called Steinhatchee, Fl.  Steinhatchee is an interesting place.  Talk about rural…I guess it’s quite the place to go if you like hunting or fishing but if you’re coming to this part of the state, you better love the outdoors because there’s nothing else to do!  We like it because it is uber dog friendly.  We always have a great time when we go there and this visit was no exception! 

Grady and Hazel are packed and ready to roll

We headed out and the two of them promptly fell asleep in the backseat.  They sure aren’t much company on the road!  After about 3 hours, we arrived in Steinhatchee. 

The weather was perfect and there was plenty of time left in the day to enjoy some fun…and wreak some havoc on North Florida.  We picked up my friend Z and headed to Steinhatchee Falls.  The dogs love this spot, as do I.  There is a small park area with picnic benches and toilet facilities (well, a Port-O-Let, does that count?).  Down the stairs is the river and the teeny little waterfalls.  There are trails to hike – although I have developed tick phobia since this town is a neverending tick fest, and for some reason they seem to love me far more than any dog or man ever to set foot in that place.  Anyway, the park is generally empty and we let the dogs run and stretch their legs after the long ride.  Today was no different and I headed down to the water to take some photos as the dogs played.

Hazel takes a break from chasing squirrels

Grady enjoys cruising the river bank

We paused the fun for the obligatory photo op:

We'd rather be chasing squirrels right now...

All was fun and games until Grady’s evil alter ego SlobberDog emerged!  And now he’s got backup – the newly christened HazelNut was right there to join him.  As Z and I played down by the water, taking photos of bugs, we heard shouts and barking from above.  Oh no!  Park visitors….and as I climbed the hill to investigate I saw that these visitors brought…..

Is that a barbeque I smell?

…FOOD!  So our peace was shattered as HazelNut circled the pavilion barking like a madwoman (Men!  MEN!  OMG!  WhatdoIdo? Holy crap!   MEENNNNN!!) and SlobberDog stalked them with his seemingly menacing glare (really he just can’t see anything and is 100%  focused on sniffing out the source of those heavenly smells).  So…..needless to say that shortly after the new visitors arrived, we leashed up and made our exit.  Not to worry, though!  Plenty more adventures awaited us on our trip.  Stay tuned tomorrow for more of SlobberDog (and HazelNut)’s misadventures!

Are you really taking me away from that food? Are you kidding me?