Day 1

Moving past the travel trauma

So today was the day, and everything almost went according to plans.. almost. The final flight was slightly delayed, causing the pickup to be closer to 7 PM rather than 6, but thats

alright, Mark was there and waiting regardless. I got my first encounter finally when he arrived at my workplace, to which my coworkers eyeballed his size and queried, "How old is he..?" He wasn't terribly thrilled at being there, having only just arrived after a very long and unpleasant voyage, but we got home in one piece. He was much better on the second car ride, being sang to and whatnot :P I'm never more confident than when I'm singing, and it transmitted to him, and he calmed right down and napped for the 20mins home.

My cats.. were not pleased. They themselves haven't been with me too too long, and had only recently adjusted to Jinx--but Jasper calmed down within a few minutes (Milo disappeared for an hour..). I wish I had a picture of them fuzzed, its hilarious.

He was led in, of his own volition, into the house and to his area - his crate, essentially, though the whole kitchen is puppy proofed and will be our staging grounds for the next couple of months. Spent about 30mins-1hr getting him comfortable with his crate, which

worked very well. Not long after he was carrying his favorite toy items into the crate for storage - I'm thrilled! He calmed down enough to eat, which led to his outdoor adventures..

Jinx was with us at this time, and she loves her outdoor time, and was particularly hyper since Dad didn't come home on time today! Comet was confused, but eventually settled down to eliminate (after being harassed by an excited Aussie). No accidents tonight :) That was only the first of two successful potty times, he'll be a pro in no time at all.

All the pictures of Day 1 are in my Picasa webaccount linked on the right (6/24).

Waiting Impatiently

Tuesday - Final confirmations & unsuspecting Bengals

So after a few hectic phone calls and email relays with Ma (Tina Barber), the soon-to-be shiloh member of my household is schedule to be en-route to Melbourne Airport two days from now. Its a tad unfortunate that I have unavoidable work until 7, and need to send my better half to pick the fluffball up. Delta was surprisingly easy to handle and didn't fuss about my adding his name to the pickup list.. but then again, they're all backwards about animal transport anyways. Who ever heard of Pit Bulls expiring in 70 degree weather? If you're confused.. Mark had done a little background research on how airlines regulate dog shipping, and brachycephalic animals have special conditions. That in itself isn't surprising, except that they have an idea that flat-faced pugs and bulldogs will somehow immediately expire in "hot" weather.. which is.. apparently, 70 degrees. Maybe he read it wrong, or maybe the airline companies are complete whack jobs. Probably both. I'll add on here that they included AmStaffs and Pit bulls on that list, I guess jowls=flat face, who knew?!

Anyways, Messire Comet has a crate, a room, and plenty of chews waiting for him upon his arrival. I have my whole gameplan of easing his transition in mind, and my lists/charts are updated and awaiting data input.