Travellin’ with my dawg
The last couple of weeks, we’ve been roaming about, visiting family around the region. Gretel doesn’t like car trips, but she’ll get in the car and settle in anyway. Since puppyhood she’s been prone to car sickness, although it’s been awhile since we’ve had an upheaval, so to speak. I do try to drive extra gently, as I know what it’s like to be in the back seat (I get motion sickness easily too).
Visiting my mom in NY, we were pleased to see Mom’s cat Fibber was not afraid of Gretel, in fact he was curious and seemed to want to make friends. Gretel was very well behaved at her Grandma’s house, and on our second day we borrowed Mom’s bike and took a little ride around the neighborhood to blow off some steam. The setting is a little more urban there than our usual stomping grounds, and as a result we spent much of our time on the sidewalks.
The sidewalks are nice, and at each intersection there’s a ramp from the road, so that folks with wheelchairs, strollers, etc. can easily get on the sidewalk. On the ramp areas, they have a different surface texture, and a gray color as well. Gretel is a bit fussy about what surfaces she’s comfortable treading on, and I was reminded of this on our ride that morning, as she decided she would not be stepping on those strange looking surfaces. There was enough room so that she was able to avoid them either by veering to the side or by hurdling over the top. I think if we were to practice this on a daily basis for awhile, she’d gradually become more comfortable with this exotic surface, and be ok with it.
I wonder how many other folks have dogs who are extra sensitive about their surfaces…