After one of the busiest weeks we've had (yet mastered successfully), we loaded up the car and took off on an 11 hour car ride to upstate, NY. The trip usually takes about 10 hours, but with Ramsey some of our bathroom breaks took a little bit longer. He was amazing! We put his wire crate in the back seat, put a few blankets and some chewies in there and he napped, and napped, and chewed, and napped. He got a little restless and barked a few times around 7pm, which was after 10.5 hours in the car.
Ramsey spent the first few days at my house, with my parents sheltie, Sunny. Sunny wasn't too sure what to think! Ramsey was a bit too rambunctious for her liking. She seemd to serve as the most entertaining toy that never got boring to Rams. He enjoyed nipping her fur, her tail, and her feet. Sunny was less than impressed. She learned how to growl for the first time, but even her snaps didn't do enough damage to get the message across that she was NOT playing. After a day or so, the non stop chasing of Sunny turned into the occasional chase, much more manageable. hey even were caught napping together on the chair... My father and I participated in a Thanksgiving morning Turkey Trot (Dad ran the 5k in 5 minutes faster than last year! and I ran the 10k 5 minutes slower...oh well) and left the dogs to my mom for the morning. She was busy preparing Thanksgiving dinner but figured they had calmed down enough to handle. Apparently we were wrong, when we got home Sunny was shut in a bedroom by herself. Ramsey had difficulty settling down and dinner was NOT going to be finished. I had left her Ramseys Kong with a few bones in it to occupy him if necessary, but he manages to get them out in 2 minutes down from the original 10 it used to take him, figures!
Luckily, by the time our company came, Ramsey put on his charm. He decided to snuggle between my 80 year old grandparents on the couch, trading off to nap on my aunts lap after a few hours. I accused my mom of drugging the dog, maybe an Ambien? but she denied all charges! We were definitely Thankful for him being on his best behavior!
Ramsey also had the opportunity to meet Pokey! Pokey, is Greg's uncle's Springer Spaniel. She's about 2 years old and a tall 60 pounds. Ramsey was at first, very very timid. He hid under the car. He piddled himself. Pokey sprinter over the top of him leaving him flattened on the driveway. We decided to take the two inside where Pokey couldn't get as much speed on him. When we got inside, Ramsey barked and growled at her, enticing her to play. It didn't work, she was almost fearful of him. He then started lunging at her and nipping, which he does at Sunny that triggers a game of chase. However, this time it triggered Pokey to lunge back, and pin Ramsey by the throat to the ground. She didn't bite down, just told him the rules! After a few pins, he got the hang of it. They played for several hours, rolling around on the kitchen floor. It was great for Ramsey to learn how to play like a dog instead of obnoxiously barking at others!!
The last few days of our trip were spent at Greg's parents house, partially to give Sunny a break and partially a change for his parents to bond with their grand-doggie. Maybe I can get him to guest blog in some of their experiences?!
The ride home, Ramsey was equally, if not better, behaved. He napped and chewed without any barking incidents. Unfortunately.. he seemed to have quite the gas problem! He's normally able to clear a room, but the car is worse than imaginable. We stopped several times thinking it was a sign he had to poop but he preferred to wait until we got home with a potent toot approximately once every 5 minutes. Oi. We really need to figure out his digestive system. I have never smelled anything so horrid!
Upon return, Ramsey played with each toy we had left behind individually. We took a bit of a walk and he went to bed without struggle. He even slept until 7:30 this morning! All in all, the trip home was a success.
Thanks to everyone who tolerated (Sunny), and helped out with the Rams this week! And also thanks Sunny for the new Duck toy! (Hopefully more pictures to come!)
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