Time for a Furry Family Member

As most of you know, we lost our dog Razzo last summer. We’ve always known that we would get another dog, but Razzo memories were still pretty fresh in our hearts and minds, and we were not ready yet.

Our sweet Razzo, Christmas 2017

Since we started this trip, we have been observing dogs that boaters have, watching how they manage the shore trips in their dinghy to “potty” their dogs, and talking about how much a dog on the boat would complicate the whole cruising experience. We had pretty much talked ourselves out of getting one any time soon and then we met some that were just wonderful animals and the longing came back. The final straw was when Mary Beth had a vivid dream of Razzo. She was holding him on her chest and he had his head wrapped around her neck (that was the way he hugged his people) and the warm snuggle was as real as if he were there. When she awoke she could still feel the warmth of his body where he had been and feel where he was wrapped part way around her neck.

This sounds crazy, but we feel like he was telling her that it was ok now to get another dog.

The other thing that is a bit weird is that we have randomly ending up meeting several people with various types of “doodle” breeds (breeds mixed with poodles). One in particular we really fell in love with and finally, a couple of days after the dream, we ran into them again at a new anchorage and learned more about how we could start the adoption process from a breeder they highly recommended. They have been a wealth of information.

We submitted an application to adopt either a golden-doodle or a labradoodle. We are both so excited about the prospect of getting a new puppy. Apparently the breeder is very picky about their adoptive families and only approve about 30 percent of the applications. We were thrilled when we received their acceptance email a few days later.

Part of us feels a bit bad about not adopting another rescue dog like Razzo. We also realize that because our plans include long term cruising, we really need to get a puppy and train it to do “its business” on the deck or a puppy pad. We will have times when we can’t get the dog to shore, like on longer passages or when the weather is too rough for the dinghy or there is no safe place to land. The people we have met who tried to teach their dogs to “go” on the boat were only successful when the dogs were introduced to the boats as puppies. We never were able to get Razzo to do it despite bringing an astro turf mat that was well scented by neighborhood dogs (from leaving it by our mailbox at home). MB even planted a small plant in a cup to see if he would lift his leg for that…nada!

A new dog will definitely impact how we cruise, but we know how much joy and love they bring to a family and can’t wait to find the next “perfect dog”! We won't actually have the puppy until some time this summer, but we cannot wait!!!!!

Thanks for Reading,

David & Mary Beth