Last year, Ranger’s owner, John Crippen, published a book of photos of the bodacious canine

Chances are, you’ve seen Ranger the Bodacious Beach Dog around town, at the Atascadero Senior Center …. or at the beach. But did you know you can own a book full of photos of this righteous canine?

John Crippen, a now-retired photographer and Ranger’s owner, took photos professionally for seven years, but stated that Ranger is basically all he takes pictures of now. That and Ranger’s love for the beach gave Crippen the idea to put together a book of photographs that capture his best friend’s antics.

Ranger Beach Dog John Crippen 2 — Ranger at the beach. Photo by John Crippen

“In two years, because I literally go in the ocean with him, I went through five point-and-shoot [cameras],” Crippen added.

“Ranger the Bodacious Beach Dog: a Photo Collection of the Coolest Canine Ever” came out on April 10, 2021. Crippen released the book full of photos independently and even included a little over a page of Ranger’s beachgoing antics. Including body surfing, chasing seagulls, stealing balls and toys, snatching unwatched food, and even that one time when he peed on a surfer’s backpack.

“When we got him, he was from the Valley; he had never been to a beach before, so we took him to Cambria there at Moonstone, and he first stepped on the sand, heavily sunk in, backed up, and went ‘what’s this?’ About ten minutes into it, he’s body surfing and chasing seagulls and knew just what to do,” Crippen said. “So that’s where ‘Ranger the Bodacious Beach Dog’ came in. For the next two to three years, I followed him around with a camera and took tons of pictures of him.

“It’s just such a pleasure, such a joy. I get as excited as he does just to see him play with a huge smile on his face. So I decided, maybe a lot of other people would enjoy this, so I took a bunch of pictures of him and made the book and thought, you know, people really love this, he’s an inspiration to everybody.”

Ranger, who just turned six on April 1, was 2 when he came into the Crippen’s life.

“I had a service dog that passed away; his name was Flynn. He was a golden retriever as well,” Crippen said. “He passed away in the middle of 2018, and it was pretty hard, and a week later, my wife and my sister came home with Ranger in the back of the car. He was a rescue from out in the Valley, and it was love at first sight.

“My first service dog was professionally trained, but I’d handled him so long that I decided to train Ranger myself. He’s been amazing. He’s so sweet and loving and a quick learner.”

Ranger is a service dog for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and goes everywhere with Crippen. And after recovering from hip surgery due to hip dysplasia, Ranger is back to his old self and back to playing on the beach.