The Saga of the Carseat

 The first leg of our trip was uneventful. Well, except for carsickness. Me, not Bo! As soon as we began the trip through the mountains, I was hit. Bo looked on smugly as I fought nausea while we twisted and turned. I suppose he considers himself a seasoned traveler now.

I found a car seat for Toni on marketplace for a mere $25. Big enough for two dogs and looked barely used. Since she has decided she has to be in the front seat near her master, I thought it would be a welcome addition and a lot better than the pillow on the passenger seat that kept slipping off with her on it. It did seem to faze her when she found herself in the floor, she just climbed back up into the seat. We installed the new seat, and I thought she would really appreciate the comfort of not falling to the floor.

She hates it. She refuses to sit in it and was so disturbed she became disoriented and upset that she tried to climb into her master's lap. This was not a good idea. Toni is somewhat gangly. Not a big dog, she has long legs and big hair. If she stands, she blocks your view. I pulled the new seat out and put it in the floor and she settled into her old routine.

I was thinking about this new dilemma. I had not clipped the strap to her choke chain; afraid it would literally choke her if she jumped down. I hunted around and found a harness that fit her. I intended to clip her in today for the second leg of the trip. But I got to thinking that maybe the seat still held the scent of the previous owner. I got up out of bed last night and brought the seat into the main part of the RV and put it on the floor hoping that Bo would get in it and sleep, leaving a familiar scent for her to detect.

As far as I can tell, it remained empty all night. Both Toni and Bo opted to sleep on the floor rather than take advantage of the cushiony car seat. Toni always sleeps on the floor next to her master's side of the bed. Bo can easily jump up and down in our bed at home. He started the night in the bed and once down he couldn't jump into it again, so he took the little rug next to my side and slept on it.

Bo is a funny little guy. If Toni happens to remove the rug at the foot of our bed at home, he can't get the necessary traction to jump and will try over and over until I hear him and get up and put him in bed. It has become a ritual now. At bedtime I will put Eddie in bed and then go to the foot of the bed and ask Bo if he is ready for bed. He will bark once and then turn his back to me and I will say "jump". Then he jumps into my hands to be put in bed.

The little stinker can get there by himself. As soon as the skies darken, he will slip away and get in our bed and work his way under the covers and go to sleep. We will find him there when we go to bed. He will tunnel his way up to the pillows and stick his little head out with the one stray curl atop his head and watch us through bleary eyes. He looks like the grandpa on The Munsters. When Eddie is put in bed, he acts like it is a long-awaited reunion and starts jumping and licking Eddie in the face.

Eddie, being the sweet boy that he is tolerates this affection, until he doesn't. Nightly routine. While this is happening, Toni is following her master as he locks up the house and turns off Dora's heat lamp. Then as we settle in, both dogs burrow into my neck to sniff the spot that one of the kittens had been asleep on. 

The kittens are still nursing! Poor Gray Lady is always so hungry. I give her extra little treats, like leftovers from our plates. I even give her a bowl of milk from time to time. She has become so used to us that she runs to me the minute she hears me open the door to the deck. I made her and the kittens a makeshift home that she apparently loves. She still disdains the cat dominium. She toured the entire 6 cubicles and decided not to stay in it.

I appear to be rambling, and it is now time to wake Toni's master and hit the road again. We will arrive at our destination this afternoon and I have pies to make. My daughter will have to peel all the apples. My peeling hand has that ganglion cyst that becomes irate with all the movements my hand will have to negotiate to get that job done!