Australian adventurer proving dog can be man's best (travelling) friend
Nearly seven years old, Maya has seen more of North America than many adults ever will.
Photos show her racing down a snow-covered mountain in the Rockies, jogging along the seawall in Vancouver, and eyeing up a herd of bison in Elk Island National Park, east of Edmonton.
The eye-catching photographs carry a message: dogs can travel, too.
Maya, a white shepherd, is touring this continent with her Australian owner, Mark.
"Having her with me has made me change things up," said Mark, speaking on CBC's Radio Active on Tuesday. His last name is being withheld due to safety concerns associated with his previous job in law enforcement.
"I want to include her in what I'm doing as much as I can; so things like going snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, kayaking, mountain biking ... things I probably wouldn't have previously done whilst travelling, I'm now doing all the time, because it gets to include her in it."
And he has the pictures to prove it. The duo's Facebook page, with pictures of glowing sunsets and magnificent vistas, is eye candy for those with a bit of wanderlust in their hearts.
But the social media stream also aims to inspire people to travel with their pets, and share information about pet-friendly locations in Canada and the United States.
While Mark and Maya have slept in the car a few times, they've also found plenty of pet-friendly accommodations. Mark has been impressed that Canada's national parks allow pets, which is less common in Australia, he said.
"Travelling around Canada has been quite easy in that regard. The thing that's been difficult is there's a lot of inconsistencies in rules when it comes to different provinces," he said.
"Every time you change province or state, you have to learn the new rules. And there's not a lot of easy information out there, which is why we're doing what we're doing."
The pair's North American tour was inspired by a family tragedy. Two years ago, Mark's father died of a heart attack while celebrating his son's 30th birthday.
"One minute we were talking and the next minute he was gone," Mark said. His father had been planning a cross-country tour of Australia for 15 years, but never had the chance to do it.
"It taught me that you can't just hold off and wait for these things to happen."
Mark had wanted to visit Canada since he was a child. He started researching the possibility of bringing Maya along. He has owned her since she was an eight-week-old puppy.
"For me, I chose to bring her into my family. I look at that as my responsibility and I do not want to be leaving her behind with a friend of family member back home for what could turn out to be a lot longer than 12 months," he said.
He had initially planned to spend 12 months in North America but man and dog have already extended their stay for six months. The plan now is to return to Australia next spring, with tentative plans to travel to New Zealand or Japan in the future.
"She doesn't care what I do, where we go, all she wants to do is be with us," Mark said. "And that's because we're that family to her."
