Cruising with a Dog

I'm hardly an expert on this subject since we've only had Luna aboard Storyville for about 3 months, but I thought I would give my perspective on what it's like to cruise with a puppy. We've been cruising for over 2 years now (wow, time does fly when you're having fun!). Our last dog, Harley was already 12 or 13 when we started dreaming about going cruising on our boat. By the time we actually cut the dock lines, he had already gone to live with my daughter because he was over 15 and the boat life was just too difficult for him.

We decided that, even though we are both dog lovers, it would be difficult to cruise with a pet so, sadly, we made the decision to leave without a canine companion. I'm sure it was the right choice for us at the time. We already had so much to learn - a whole new way of life. One that we pictured to be carefree, with even less responsibilities. A pet just didn't fit into that scenario. We did learn a lot in those 2 years and while the cruising life is sometimes a carefree one, we quickly learned that there are still many responsibilities, just different ones than we faced while living on land.

About the time we hit our 2 year cruising anniversary, I started planning and dreaming about having a puppy on board to share our adventures. Maybe scheming would be the better word since I still had to convince Troy that this was a good idea and I knew that it would take some pretty smooth talking! I strategically waited until one night after happy hour and a few rum and cokes to bring up the subject. I was pleasantly surprised when he didn't just dismiss the idea outright. We actually had a great discussion that first night about the pros and cons of having a dog. It went something like this:

Deana - "I've been thinking that maybe we should consider getting a puppy"

Troy - "A dog is so much responsibility"

Deana - "Yes, but what else do we have to spend our time on?"

Troy - "A dog has to be exercised and taken for walks every day, even if it's raining"

Deana - "Yes, but more exercise would be good for all of us"

Troy - "But dogs are messy and they shed"

Deana - "But they’re fun, remember Sampson (a Border Terrier that belongs to our friends on s/v Virtue and Vice), he doesn't shed and he's a really cool dog"

Troy - "I only want a dog if it's a really cool one"

Deana - "Of course our dog will be really cool!"

After that, I knew that I had my foot in the door. We spent many hours that first night talking about the pros and cons of having a dog and we finally agreed that it might not be so bad to have a puppy to love. Before he could change his mind I started doing research to find us a puppy that would be the best fit for us.

I brought Luna home to Storyville in early December. She’s a Border Terrier, she is a great size for a boat dog (she should be somewhere between 11 and 15 pounds), she doesn’t shed and, of course, she’s a really cool and adorable dog with a great big personality!

We’ve had loads of fun taking her to the beach, hiking trails or even just walking her through town. Yes, having a dog on board definitely adds another level of responsibility to our lives but I can tell you that it’s so worth it. We’re looking forward to enjoying many years with her.

We long for an affection altogether ignorant of our faults. Heaven has accorded this to us in the uncritical canine attachment. ~George Eliot

I think dogs are the most amazing creatures; they give unconditional love. For me they are the role model for being alive. ~Gilda Radner

Merry Christmas from The Islands Mon!

Storyville at the end of the rainbow!

We will celebrate Christmas this year in St. Thomas.  We sailed over from Puerto Rico on an overnight crossing without any problems.  It was Luna’s first sail and she is a great sailor, if we could just get her to stand her watch instead of sleeping all night!

We are currently in Charlotte Amalie which is a very busy harbor.  I counted 6 cruise ships here yesterday!  We spent the last several days anchored in Brewers Bay which is a beautiful bay near the airport. We shared it with just a few other boats, the beach is beautiful, the water is clear and fish are jumping everywhere.  We decided yesterday after sailing into Charlotte Amalie that we would much rather spend Christmas in Brewers Bay so we will head back there tomorrow morning.  We just wanted to get a little Internet and some laundry and shopping done before hightailing it out of this busy harbor. 

I’m looking forward to my first beach Christmas.  I will definitely miss my family, but at least I got a get in a recent visit and got to celebrate Sismas with my girls.

 We are also happy that we finally met up with Steve on Alternate Latitude.  I’m not sure that we will be with them for Christmas but we have plans to meet up with them in the British Virgin Islands for a full moon party and to ring in the New Year.  We are really looking forward to spending some time with Steve and Deb and exploring some of the BVIs.

Life is good on Storyville, it will be a simple Christmas this year but one that I hope will remind us both of the real reason for the season!

Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger. Luke 2:11-12

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests. Luke 2:14

Luna won't wake up to take her watch

Luna

Storyville has a new crew member.  Her name is Luna and she's just adorable.  She is a bundle of energy and I've been trying for two days to get some good pictures of her.  She's just too fast! Either she's sleeping or she's moving at the speed of light.  I tried all morning to get a good picture of her, but she's just too fast for the camera. I hope Troy and I can keep up with this little ball of energy once I get her back to Storyville.  I see lots of trips to the beach in our future, but that's a good thing. 

She's smart too.  She's just 9 weeks old and she already has the puppy pad figured out, mostly anyway.  As long as she's in the same room with it she will use it, let it out of her sight and she forgets that it exists. 

We thought long and hard about the responsibilities of having a dog on the boat and we finally decided that the pros outweigh the cons.  Every cruising family that we spoke to that has pets (dogs or cats) say the wouldn't do it any other way. We are looking forward to welcoming Luna into the family and sharing some salty adventures with her! She has no idea what adventures await.

How can you not love this face?

 

Dinner time

Nap time

Meet the cat

I think she will make a good guard dog.  Look at those teeth! 

Happiness is a warm puppy. ~Charles M. Schulz

My little dog - a heartbeat at my feet. ~Edith Wharton

Time to Start Packing

I am flying back to Texas in a few days to spend Thanksgiving with my family and to pick up our newest crew member, Luna.  Troy will stay here on Storyville in Salinas, Puerto Rico.  I sure will miss him but he will be left in good hands with Stacy and Rene and our other cruising friends. Stacy promises to feed him Thanksgiving dinner!  He has some boat projects planned for the time while I'm away, so hopefully he will stay busy and he won't miss me too much.

I can't wait to see my family, my daughters and sister and aunts and nieces and grand kids and mom and mother in law and sister in law.  I have such a wonderful, large family and it really feels good to get to spend a little time with them all.  I'm also looking forward to fitting in some time with friends.  I feel truly blessed to have so many wonderful people in my life.  Definitely a lot to be thankful for.

Troy and I also feel so blessed and thankful to be living our dream of sailing in the Caribbean.  What a life we have!  We are really looking forward to exploring the French islands on the way down to Grenada in the next several months.  And I'm looking forward to blogging all about it.  Thanks to our new Wirie AP, we have been able to pick up Internet in almost every anchorage. Even some of the more remote ones.  Hopefully we will continue to have luck with that as we head down island.

This is Luna, she's a Border Terrier and she's gonna be the best little sailor dog ever!

Happiness is a warm puppy. ~Charles M. Schulz

One ship sails east and another sails west
With the self-same winds that blow.
Tis the set of the sail and not the gale
Which determines the way they go.
As the winds of the sea are the ways of fate
As we voyage along through life,
Tis the act of the soul that determines the goal,
And not the calm or the strife.
-Ella Wheeler Wilcox