Visit to my daughter's new house was a disaster!!!

[Pat and Traveler]

I took Trav to my daughter’s new house this afternoon, and it’s a good thing there wasn’t a video of this train wreck. First, this daughter is on Trav’s list of Most Beloved People, which means the best way for them to meet would include her wearing a suit of armour and holding a chair and whip to keep him at bay while he does the doggie equivalent of joyful back flips, somersaults and flying-Wallenda-like stunts involving available furniture. There are sound effects too–tiny whining expressions of extraordinary delight.

Oh yes–we’ve worked on appropriate at-the-door greeting, but obviously there haven’t been enough meetings done enough times for a calm routine to have been established. Just to complicate matters, Trav has whole repertoire of greetings for different people. For my other daughter, son-in-law and me, greeting is friendly but calm. We are on his list of Most Beloved But Basically Boring people. The third major list is a simple one: Strangers. Strangers are greeted calmly and from a safe distance, and are assessed with an unwavering and sometimes unnerving stare. Many strangers are quickly elevated to the Most Beloved category, especially if they are delivering pizza, others will apparently always be strangers, like a previous next-door neighbor.

The first pitfall at my daughter’s house was the pregnant stray cat that has adopted her. It was quite comfy on the doorstep, not at all inclined to give up this spot for a mere dog. Trav was taken aback by this behavior and after a moment of shocked hesitation, he started barking. As it happens, my daughter had gone off to do an errand and her new boyfriend was the only person at home. We hadn’t met, and were trying to say hello as the cat sighed, heaved herself to her feet and strolled away and Trav upped the decibel level of his barking and tried to follow her, any leash training but a distant memory. Boyfriend, dog and I somehow managed to get inside the front door. I could almost see him thinking ‘...so this is what will become of the beautiful woman I’ve so recently added to my life...’

Once inside the door, I made one of those inexplicable bad decisions that just happen sometimes. I took Trav off leash. He was already thrilled about the cat, the new environment, and a Beloved Person’s scent, and instantly launched into a version of the zoomies. The new house is small and crammed with packing boxes, stacked furniture, all the debris of a recent move. Trav leaped onto the nearest couch, jumped from there to another couch, or maybe a chair or stack of boxes–things mercifully became a blur there for a while. Of course, my daughter showed up then, so along with the zoomies there were the ecstatic greeting routines reserved for Beloved People, generously expanded this time to include some contact sport with boyfriend.

Trav and I were pretty tired when we got home, and had to take a nap.

[Lauria Orr]

You have a great way of story telling about your Dear Traveler!  What a character!  I love it!

[Cheryl and Finnegan]

This is hysterical!! I'm waiting for the book!

[Pat and Traveler]

I didn't really get a chance to ask the boyfriend those important questions mothers need to ask.  Such as:  Would you still love her if her head were the size of an orange?  Do you have a copy of your most recent tax return with  you?  You say you don't have a dog RIGHT NOW.  Where is this missing dog?  Did it live in the house?  Did it sleep on the bed?   If you can think of other questions I should ask, let me know. 

[Jennifer,Chloe & Myla]

At least he wasn't trying to be someone he's not for the new boyfriend!! Very funny!

[Carol and Banjo]

Pat - Your blog made my day!  I'm laughing out loud and Banjo AND DH are giving me "that look"...LOL.

I love ... "I made one of those inexplicable bad decisions".....I can SO relate to that!   Thanks for the laugh!

[Linda and Murphy]

Love this!

[Sue, Lola, Pongo & Hubby]

Great story! Our doodles always pick the worst times to act nuts. There's never a bad moment for zoomies though, in my opinion :)

[Kaytlin and Cooper]

oh such a funny story! Nice to know Cooper isnt the only crazy bouncing dog! What a way to meet the family!!!

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

Love this blog....I can just picture the scene.  I agree that you need to see what this boyfriend is "made of", and it sounds like Trav knew just how to do that!

[Penny, Comiskey & Beemer]

That's the same greeting my DH gets when he returns from a trip to the bathroom....(now remember it is times 2 dogs)!