Good NewsMan walking his dogs from Canada to Mexico for canine cancer
On May 10, 43-year-old Luke Robinson set off on a 2,000-mile trek along the West Coast from the Canadian border to the Mexican border.
He's making the six-month journey on foot with his two dogs, Great Pyrenees Hudson and Indiana, to raise awareness about canine cancer.
Hudson and Indiana are outfitted with Tagg GPS tracker collars so their travels can be followed online.
Track their journey here.
"We hope to encourage people to come out and walk a mile, walk a day, or walk a week with us since all of us have been touched by cancer," Robinson said.
In 2006, Robinson lost his dog Malcolm to cancer. Malcolm's death inspired him to start the Puppy Up Foundation, a national canine cancer charity.
"We know dogs get the same types of cancer that we do. The question is why? That is what our foundation strives for," Robinson said in a news release.
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Canine cancers affect between 4 and 8 million pet dogs a year.
This isn't Robinson's first big walk for canine cancer. In 2008, Robinson and his dogs Hudson and Murphy walked the East Coast, from Austin, Texas, to Boston, Massachusetts. Murphy was diagnosed with nasal cancer shortly after. He died in June of 2011.
"After the loss of Murphy, we just felt like we needed to get back on the road to continue our mission of education and awareness," Robinson told People magazine.
The trio are hoping to walk 12 to 14 miles a day, with the goal of reaching San Diego, California, by November 1st.
"Hudson is already road tested," Robinson said, referring to the East Coast walk in 2008. "Indy our newer one, he's a road warrior. Indy will have no problem. He'll tire me out at the end of the day. My job is to get my boys from point A to point B safely and securely."
Anyone who purchases a Tagg GPS collar during Robinson's six-month walk can use the coupon code "2dogs" to get 10 per cent off. When Robinson reaches his destination, Tagg will donate $25 from each of the "2dogs" purchases to the Puppy Up Foundation.
