Most five-star reviews read like checklists: friendly staff, clean facility, would recommend. Gunner’s review reads like a diary entry from the best day of his life, and he says as much himself, ranking it as the greatest day he’s had, narrowly beating out the time he found half a chicken nugget in a parking lot. The reviewer in question is a four-year-old Black Labrador Retriever, and the day involved a climate-controlled bus, dozens of new smells, and a level of enthusiasm most brands can only hope to inspire in their customers.
Gunner’s person is Kristi Gacke, a Denver resident and director of sales and marketing for HHM Hotels. On the 16th of June, she introduced him to Hike Doggie, a franchised dog hiking service based in Golden, Colorado. What happened next was not something the company scripted or requested. Gunner came home and, in his own words, wrote about it.
A Review Written From the Dog’s Point of View
Originally posted to Yelp under Gunner’s own voice, the review opens with a disclaimer that he is a real dog and not a paid spokesdog, before diving into a detailed account of his day. He described feeling “already gone emotionally” almost as soon as he left Gacke’s side and boarded one of Hike Doggie’s “Big Blue Busses” for the trip into the Rockies.
From there, the details pile up with the specificity of someone who genuinely paid attention. Gunner reported discovering 17 sticks, cataloguing 43 different smells, and crossing paths with numerous squirrels across the trails he explored. By the time he made it home, he had, in his words, “collapsed face-first on the floor, slept for six hours, barked once in his sleep, dreamed about chasing a squirrel, and woke up with a leaf still stuck to his butt.” His only complaint was that the day eventually had to end.
Gacke was not entirely surprised by the reaction her dog’s post generated. “To say he’s still pretty amped up about the experience is an understatement,” she said. “But Gunner has always been a very expressive doggie, quite vocal, even back when he was just a puppy. Honestly, I’m really not all that surprised he’s gone and done something viral, he’s kind of been destined for greatness from the day we got him.”
When a Customer’s Words Do the Marketing
There’s a difference between a satisfied customer and a raving fan, and the difference usually shows up in the details a person chooses to share unprompted. A satisfied customer says the service was good. A raving fan counts the sticks. Gunner’s review works precisely because nobody asked him to write it, and nothing about it reads like it was written for anyone’s benefit but his own.
That’s the layer that makes this more than a cute story for Hike Doggie. Any brand can collect five-star ratings. Far fewer can point to a review so specific, so personal, and so clearly written from a place of genuine joy that it ends up doing more convincing than an ad campaign ever could. Gunner wasn’t trying to sell anyone on Hike Doggie. He was just telling the internet about his day, and that’s exactly why people believed him.
The Mission Behind the Wagging Tail
For Hike Doggie founder Kath Allen, Gunner’s review was not just a funny moment to share on social media. It was proof of concept. Hike Doggie’s stated mission is to “make dogs as happy as they make us,” and Allen sees Gunner’s unfiltered, dog’s-eye account as the clearest evidence yet that the brand is delivering on that promise.
“This first-person pup review on Yelp is definitely a first for us,” Allen said. “The moment we spotted the post, we just knew we had to share Gunner’s five-star review with as many people as possible. What he wrote in his awesome Yelp review perfectly encapsulates what makes our full-service hiking adventures so special for dogs, capturing the very essence of our brand’s mission statement to make dogs as happy as they make us.”
Ten Years on the Trail
Hike Doggie was founded in 2016 in Golden, Colorado, and the Gunner review arrived as the brand marks its 10th anniversary. The business model centers on round-trip excursions that take dogs from their front doors into the outdoors for a full day of hiking, social time, and adventure, capped off with a bath before they head home. Snacks, branded gear, and social media moments are built into the experience along the way.
In the Denver metro area alone, Hike Doggie now serves more than 800 dogs each month, and the company counts over 60,000 hikes completed to date. That volume, paired with a story like Gunner’s, points to a brand that has spent a decade refining an experience dogs and their owners keep coming back for.
Growing One Trail at a Time
Hike Doggie currently operates through 10 franchisees across six states, including Colorado, Idaho, New Mexico, Tennessee, Georgia, and Delaware. The brand’s franchise offering leans on the same appeal that shows up in Gunner’s review: a low barrier to entry paired with a service dogs and their owners form real loyalty to.
For a brand built entirely around canine happiness, there may be no better endorsement than the one that came straight from a dog. Gunner did not need marketing language to describe what Hike Doggie meant to him. He just needed a keyboard, a good memory of the day, and a review that made it clear exactly what kind of fan Hike Doggie had earned.
The Review From Gunner – This One From Google
OFFICIAL REVIEW FROM GUNNER. REAL DOG. NOT A PAID SPOKESDOG.
Hello. My name is Gunner.
I recently attended Hike Doggie and would like to report that it was the greatest day of my entire life, narrowly beating the day I found half a chicken nugget in a parking lot.
The Hike Doggie vehicle arrived and I immediately abandoned my family. No hesitation. No backward glance. Years of loyalty disappeared in approximately 0.3 seconds.
As we departed, I believe my human was saying, “Have fun, Gunner!”
I was already gone emotionally.
The staff were incredible. They understood my needs:
Run fast.
Sniff everything.
Investigate absolutely nothing of importance.
Repeat.During the hike, I discovered:
17 sticks.
43 smells.
A bush that may have been involved in organized crime.
Evidence that squirrels continue to operate without proper permits.At one point I found a smell so fascinating that I forgot my own name.
For approximately seven minutes, I was simply “Dog.”
The other dogs were wonderful. We discussed important topics including:
Why leaves move.
Whether rabbits are real.
Advanced techniques for obtaining cheese.
The government’s failure to address the squirrel problem.The hike leaders demonstrated extraordinary patience when I stopped every twelve feet to conduct what I can only describe as a full forensic investigation of a patch of grass.
I found nothing.
The investigation continues.
When I returned home, my human asked how my day was.
Rather than answering, I collapsed face-first onto the floor, slept for six hours, barked once in my sleep, kicked my legs like I was chasing a dream squirrel, and woke up with a leaf stuck to my butt.
That should tell you everything.
The only negative aspect of Hike Doggie is that they eventually brought me home.
Frankly, this seemed unnecessary.
I have since packed my tennis ball, one sock I stole three years ago, and several emotional support sticks. I am prepared to move into the Hike Doggie van permanently.
If you are a dog, book immediately.
If you are a squirrel, lawyer up.
10/10.
Five stars.
Two paws up.
One very tired dog.
Gunner
Founder & CEO of Barkshire Hathaway
Director of Sniff Operations
Lead Squirrel Intelligence Officer
Good Boy, First Class🐾 Post-review note from Gunner’s human: Since returning from Hike Doggie, Gunner has spent the evening smiling, sleeping, and occasionally running in his dreams as if he’s still chasing whatever national-security threat he discovered in that bush. 🐾
