TRAVELING WITHOUT YOUR DOGS

I don't take many trips without my dogs. It's not a vacation to me to be away from my family, but sometimes, dogs are not allowed. When this occurs, I make very detailed arrangements for the care of my dogs.

I prefer to have someone come to stay at my house so my dogs can be in a comfortable environment. If they can't be with me, wherever I am, then home is the next best place. I am lucky in that I have family and close friends who are willing to help me when I have to be away from My Pack. I work to make it as easy and as organized as possible.

I have a binder that is known as "The Tutorial" that includes feeding instructions, a daily routine, important phone numbers, directions to the nearest 24hr emergency vet, information on my dogs' typical behaviors, a list of some behaviors that would be considered unusual and/or concerning, and each dog's health history that provides all the information an emergency veterinarian visit would require.

Feeding: I make packets of food including their powders for each dog's AM feeding and PM feeding. All a person has to do is dump the Ziploc bag's contents into the dog's bowl, add water and voila, meal made! Within the feeding instructions, I list how many treats the dogs usually get in a day, but I also say, "Do what you want!" but don't feed them any of these - and there is a list of foods that are harmful to my dogs, dogs in general and foods my dogs don't like. I also have pill containers with their supplements, and include a schedule with the supplement instructions.

Daily Routine: I make a calendar table for each day to identify what usually happens when and who will be responsible for the task. For example, when my sister stays with my dogs, I have someone come to the house mid-day to let them out while she is at work. If my sister has a late meeting, or wants to go out after work, I have someone come to feed my dogs their dinners and take them out or for a walk. Scheduling their days hour by hour may seem extreme, but I believe it makes everyone feel more secure knowing what needs to happen when and who is going to do it.

Our daily routine says we have to go to sleep right now. We're worn out and I'm unsure if I'm even making sense. Hopefully, I'll make sense in the next post when I type about some of the lists included in "The Tutorial." Until then, let me know some of the things you do to prepare your dogs for a trip without you.