Cruising Dogs Aboard (Friday 11/13/09)
Bailey is an older dog (12)... 84 years old she is, in human time. She has made the transition from house-dog to cruising-dog in the past year remarkably well. She has such a good disposition and outlook... as long as she’s with people (her people - that would be us), she’s happy. It never dawned on us to discuss NOT taking the dog with us cruising. She had gone everywhere with us in the past... out of the country, too. I remember when we were shopping for boats that Jim and I both agreed that many of the vessels had companionways which were too steep or steps too narrow for Bailey to go up and down easily.
The disadvantages of having Bailey along are many. Therefore, considering a pet while cruising should not be taken lightly. These are the top ten main drawbacks we’ve experienced by having Bailey on board:
- 10. Many locals are afraid of dogs and don’t have the same appreciation or admiration for dogs in town, out of town, on the beach or whatnot. (NOTE: Many times we leave Bailey in the cockpit when we’re away from the boat and we feel she is a good deterrent for anyone who might have ill intentions, though we have never felt like we ever met anyone like that)
- 9. Pet stuff is expensive and inconvenient abroad. Food - high cost and poor quality, flea remedies that really work and that aren’t harmful to people living in a small space - expensive, vaccines and paperwork, medical attention and drugs... and so on.
- 8. She’s either a large-medium dog or a small-large dog. Either way, she takes up space in a boat, in a car, etc...
- 7. We have to take her ashore several times to do her ‘business’ because she doesn’t like to do it on the deck AND
- 6. Some places dogs are forbidden ashore
- 5. We can’t take overnight trips inland to explore unless we have our own transportation and take her along, AND THEN
- 4. Where can we stay overnight on land with our dog?
- 3. Bugs... they jump on Bailey, they jump off on ‘Windfall’
- 2. She is demonstrating some light incontinence problems
- 1. The number one disadvantage to having Bailey is the...DOG HAIR!!! It’s everywhere! It’s in the cockpit, it’s on the sole, it’s in every crack and crevice, it’s on the upholstery, it’s even been found in the fridge! God forbid! If we ever really NEED the bilge pump one day it will probably be clogged with colossal amounts of dog hair!!!!
Overall, Bailey’s presence aboard Windfall is a positive experience. However, we make concessions for our dog and for our lifestyle based on having a dog. It really would be nice to venture inland and see some of the great ruins, museums, pueblos and people. That’s just not an option for Windfall unless we find a trustworthy doggy-sitter... yet another expense.
