Contrary to what Asa led you to believe on April 1st, our out of town guests did not travel here from outer space. He was, however, correct when he said we had relatives visiting from far away. In fact, as opposed to Asa’s “World Tour of Maine” where he never actually left the state, our canine cousin really is a world traveler. Mushu, a Lhasa Apso, came all the way from the Netherlands to visit us!
Before embarking on his world tour, Mushu visited his veterinarian to get a physical. There he received a letter written in multiple languages saying that he is healthy and fit for travel. Along with this letter, his vet also updated his passport with his current vaccination records. That’s right, our cousin has his very own passport! No wonder Asa never left Maine on his world tour. Who knew there was a difference between our car called a “Passport” and an actual paper passport? Mushu knew, that’s who! Once all his health clearances were in order, the next step was to find a comfortable travel carrier, that would fit under the seat on the plane. A few more pre-flight preparations, and Mushu was on his way to visit us!
Thankfully Mushu is a good travel companion, so his long flight was uneventful. However, I’m sure he was relieved to finally reach our Great Uncle’s home in the United States. There Mushu quickly made himself at home, resuming his daily routine. However, to avoid jet lag he made the wise decision to keep his meals on Dutch time. Would you believe Mushu’s dinner time is the same as mine? 5:00 PM! Well sort of the same. 5:00 PM in the Netherlands is 11:00 AM here, so he got to eat dinner hours early! I wonder if I can change my dinner to Dutch time?
We also share an appreciation for neighborhood patrol. Despite being a visitor here, Mushu got right to work taking his humans on daily walks. Every day he alerted them to a suspicious ball left unattended in a neighbor’s yard, and carried home the occasional discarded cup to keep the neighborhood clean. He even was involved in rescuing a lost glove! Although, I’m not sure the owner ever did come to retrieve it. There was one big difference though. Back home, he is frequently allowed in the neighbors’ homes and given treats. However despite his best efforts to go to the neighbors’ doors in search of treats, he was only welcomed inside a couple houses. But outside, he was always greeted his big smiles and friendly waves.
Now being a world traveler does come with its privileges. Would you believe rather than go through the drive thru at Dunkin’, Mushu was welcomed inside for daily visits! There he got VIP treatment with a whipped cream puppy latte, and a treat. Alright, there are weight limits for the plane, so he had to politely refuse some of those puppy lattes. But he sure appreciated the attention on his daily visits to Dunkin’.
As for us, well Mushu didn’t always make us feel welcomed. For you see Mushu’s life wasn’t always so carefree. He got attacked by a big dog once, breaking his jaw and losing several teeth. Therefore, ever since Mushu has been afraid of big dogs. And let’s face it, meeting goofy Asa and his unbridled enthusiasm at making new friends, is a bit much even for dog lovers! To respect Mushu’s feelings, and boy did he vocalize his feelings, we eased into meeting him. First we left him toys with our scent on them to welcome him when he arrived at the house, as well as a bag of our favorite treats. Then when we did come to visit, we brought our crate, as a safe zone.
