Thursday, April 26, 2007

memories of bringing Ash home



I was on the fence about flying a puppy, but many breeders whom I had spoken with seemed to have no reservations against it at all. But this was my first purebred dog and I was learning alot about the trade. It turned out that many airlines have great pet - flying programs where they hire staff just to watch over the animals. They will not fly an animal if it's over a certain temp or below a certain temp. If the flight is delayed overnight the airlines will put them in a boarding facility, or if an animal gets sick they will bring them to a vet. This was alot higher standards than I had previously believed. So I figured I would try it. Poor Ash did end up having a rough day. He got a late start in Florida, which really upset Cathy. All in all it was a 12 hour day for him, not to mention that then I had to throw him in my car until we could get a few hours up the coast. He was so tiny!! He was 11 weeks old already but only weighed 10 lbs. He was so happy to see me, but dismayed when we had to go for another small trip. He cried the entire time. It was painful to hear, I was hoping I didn't traumatize him from the whole experience. We finally got to the hotel in Willits, CA. I couldn't make him stay in that crate any longer, he slept in bed with me. Needless to say neither one of us slept well that night. But in the long run if I had to fly an animal again, I would. It may have been a hard day for Ash but it definately didn't scar him. He loves car rides now, and he's really not afraid of anything. Very bold and outgoing and cute!

2 comments:

Kate said...

He looks like he enjoys his collar and leash. :)

Kim said...

Same exact first collar for the Guppy!