WHO RESCUED WHOM??
Hope you enjoy the Billy Chronicles. He's a very smart dog .... and such a good writer!
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Bringing "Hill" Billy down to the boat was a momentous occasion .... for us. Not so sure for Billy. As soon as we returned from WNC and stored our motorhome, we got Billy down to Spindrift, our 36' Catalina, to introduce him to his "other" forever home. He was already getting used to the house where he could run from room to room chasing his toys and barking at the wildlife in the estuary. He was just getting his "house legs" together - taking corners on his feet rather than his hip! So, the trip to Spindrift was going to be a totally different experience.....smaller than the motorhome, smaller than the house, it moves under your feet.
The first visit Billy didn't want to go down the dock.....didn't want to jump to the boat....didn't like the feel of the deck under his paws....had to be led to the bow (where he laid down in the sun content never to move again).....led back to the cockpit where he refused to jump down onto the bench.....and handed down into the salon where there was no hope of his getting down on his own. Lifting him up the ladder out of the salon, his legs were stiff and splayed, he refused to his paws on the rung of the ladder and pretty much was a frozen solid dog being lifted out from a hole.
Billy is now 17" high and 17" long (shoulder to tail) having grown 3 inches in one month. He weighs in approximately 35 lbs and is still a baby at six months old. We have high hopes!
First weekend in November the Yacht Club held a "Staycation" and members with RV's brought them in and boat owners stayed on their boats and everyone enjoyed a vacation at the Club. We opted for the boat ... as if there was a choice! This was going to be Billy's first test weekend.
GETTING READY FOR THE NIGHT
Billy does not travel light. He sleeps in a crate, which by the way, had to be replaced by a MUCH LARGER crate that friends of ours had. He could hardly lay down in the original crate we bought - but of course - he was only going to be a 10 lb dog!
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| SETTING UP A CRATE TO GIVE HIM "AT HOME" SECURITY. |
Billy has three blankets, one towel and one dog bed that makes up his "sleeping area". He takes these items very seriously. As he winds down for the night, he starts to drag the pieces out of the crate to the living room and scrunches them up to lay on them until we are all ready for bed.
He also has many chewies, pull toys and plush toys to choose from in addition to the bedroom slipper of mine that he snatched out of the closet as soon as we got home and proceeded to destroy it ....so it's his.
What to bring to the boat for the weekend! Well, two plush, two chewies, all bedding, denta-sticks, treats, bedtime treats (special from every day treats), food & bowls. Retractable leash and a training leash to use as a tether in the cockpit. His life jacket was already on the boat. No, he does not travel lightly!
He ended up sleeping on the settee :pit" leaving the little crate to just sit there. The second night we just put the crate away and he slept on all his bedding.
BILLY'S STORY
I don't know what's going on. One minute I'm doing figure eights in a long, narrow tube called a Motorhome, then I'm running my butt off around a big house where I can't keep my feet under my body and slide into everything. Now my Forever Parents have taken me to a narrow, floating thing with pointy-front called "The Bow". This thing either sits high up on the dock or low on the dock and moves under my feet. Besides I don't know if I like the feel of the deck on my paws and when I look over the side there is something shinny down there that looks wet and it's a long ways down.
However, there are BIG fish behind the "thing" that spouts air and then disappears under water. I heard it called "Dolphin" whatever that is. You can hear it snort then just disappear into the silvery stuff. Also the same white birds that drive me crazy at home are flying over the "floaty thing" and smaller "floaty things" come buy. I get to practice my barking - after all .... this is another Forever Home and I need to protect my Forever People.
So, there is no relaxing when I have to be on alert as to what may be coming towards us.
I need to figure out what these other "floaty things" are and make sure they are OK too. After all, they are my new neighbors.
A good dog is always on watch. You never know when the spitting thing is going to come by. Did you know they jump out of the water. Like to scare you to death! Will I ever survive this new place!
My Forever Mom is down that hole. They actually expect me to go down there! Hah! They have to catch me first. I can see perfectly what's going on everywhere in this "floaty thing" from just sitting here.
The first night I stayed on the FLOATIE THING my Forever Parents carried me down a ladder to the place they call "down below". Boy was that scarey. Forever Mom let me explore all over the boat but that only took 5 seconds. The bed my Forever Parents sleep in is way too high for me to jump so I guess I won't be sleeping with them.
Forever Mom lifted me up on cushions and I saw all my nighty nights there for me. That made me happy. All my favorite chewies were there too and a new chewy called Angry Birds. Boy is that fun to grab in the middle and shake my head back and forth - those Angry Birds fly! There definitely is no running room down here so I guess I'll just stretch out and enjoy my extra large bed.
Forever Mom lifted me up on cushions and I saw all my nighty nights there for me. That made me happy. All my favorite chewies were there too and a new chewy called Angry Birds. Boy is that fun to grab in the middle and shake my head back and forth - those Angry Birds fly! There definitely is no running room down here so I guess I'll just stretch out and enjoy my extra large bed.
BUT......they left me down here and left the boat! Oh no! I barked, cried and whimpered but no one came. Couldn't begin to think about going up the ladder so figuring no one was coming back soon, I jumped off the cushions and laid on the floor. You can actually get under the cushions and it's a cozy place to lay. Pretty soon I fell asleep. Such a big day!
Forever Mom came back and lifted me up the ladder to the cockpit. This time I put my back paws on the ladder rung and Forever Mom boosted me up the ladder. Once in the cockpit I jumped up to the bench and we jumped off the boat. Now that wasn't so bad!
One of the good things about sleeping on the big pit, when Forever Mom comes down and reads, she sits on the pit with me ..... so I get to snuggle all I want. Yes, that's a good thing!
Still takes some getting used to, jumping off these cushions to the cockpit floor. I slept all night on my cushions and woke Forever Dad up in the morning to go for my morning walk. It was all OK.....for now!
I keep hearing the word "Boat" so I guess this Floaty Thing is a "Boat". So much to learn. Anyway, laying around the Boat in the sun isn't such a bad thing after all. Forever Mom and Dad put me on a long leash tethered to the wheel (they said so I wouldn't jump off the boat and fall in!). I laid around the cockpit snoozing all afternoon. Forever Mom was so pleased with me, said I was a wonderful Boat Dog and I was happy. This isn't so bad, after all.
I can keep my eye on everything going on without moving a muscle.
"WHAT A HANDSOME BOAT DOG!" - so everyone says when they pass the boat. I guess I'm pretty cute!
Getting Ready to jump down the three feet takes some preparation. I'm not a jumping dog!
I'll just sit here and see what's going on. Never know what's going to happen next in my life!
Yeah it's me ... I haven't gone anywhere .....just waiting for you to come back! Can we go for a walk now?
All in all, it was an OK weekend. Forever Mom and Dad have since taken me to the boat during the days so I can get used to sleeping in the cockpit. The good news is I have a new places to sniff and walk when they take me off the boat.
I see a trip coming up in my future!
