Dogs Aboard

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wetpaint

Active Member
Nov 2, 2007
2,370
Cape Cod/Caribbean
Boat Info
41 Lipari Catamaran
Engines
2 x Volvo 30hp
Okay I have been getting hammered on Face Book and I know I can get some good opinions/advice here:

I have an 8 year old lab that is the world to me. I travel now about 4 months a year so she stays with some friends over those times and she is always happy and does not want to leave. Hallie has never liked the boat and shakes so I never pushed her to come on the boat. Last summer I have the catamaran and tried again, but she just was not comfortable. She will be nine in August. Again I will be using friends to watch Hallie for about 2 months over a 4 month period during the summer, then I am heading south with up to 10 days at sea without touching land. I would love to take her with me, but I really do not think it is fair for her….She loves being on the beach, fields, car rides, being around other dogs, etc. I have come to the conclusion that I should find a good home for her to live out the rest of her life with a great family….Why do I feel so awful, guilty and sick to my stomach? What I am doing is wrong and I should wait until she passes then live my life in a perfect world. God!!!
 
Why do I feel so awful, guilty and sick to my stomach?
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John, Its like giving up your own child. You just can't do it.

If you do then theres heartbreak. tough call for ya my friend.
 
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I'm not gonna jump you over this but I have two dogs, my oldest is 14 and she hates the water. I can't tell you what to do but I wouldn't find a new home just because she hates the water. If you have a sitter that doesn't mind the long stays then why not keep that up?
 
dwna1a said:
I'm not gonna jump you over this but I have two dogs, my oldest is 14 and she hates the water. I can't tell you what to do but I wouldn't find a new home just because she hates the water. If you have a sitter that doesn't mind the long stays then why not keep that up?
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What dwna1a said exactly:)
 
I just think dogs are more 'in the moment'. If they are happy where they are, then they are happy. Sounds like a decent arrangement for that many years you have together. They don't forget and are always happy to be back with you. I have 2 in our family of the same breed. One goes to sleep the minute the engines start, the other is a nervous wreck til we get to our destination.
 
I've had dogs forever. The problem is that you cannot reason with them. Sometimes its is a loud noise, sometimes it is motion, sometimes it is people with hats (honest, I had a boxer that would eat your ass up if you put on a hat), sometimes it is people of color...there isn't a way to ever know exactly what is going on in their minds. In this case she doesn't understand and cannot see why the ground she is standing on moves so, she gets anxious.

You might get a mild sedative from your vet to quieten her down. Our newest addition was deathly afraid of riding in the car until we found something called a "ThunderCoat". It is a tightly fitting coat that fits snuggly and gives the dog the feeling of being held by their master. I know, I thought it was B.S. too, but it absolutely worked on our pup. Now, about a year later, she doesn't use the ThunderCoat any more and she is the first one to hop in the car when I go somewhere.

Above all, you make a life long commitment to the dog when you get them. There is a reasonable solution here, you just have to find it.
 
I don't know what to tell you man but i can say that you will not be able to sleep knowing you sent her somewhere else to live, even if in your mind it was better for her. i'm sure she would vote differently.

when i was a little kid my parents got divorced and our dog had medical problems and we could not afford to take care of her. she was an award winning German shepherd and she meant the world to us but it was beyond my mother's capacity to care for her. we had to give her back to the breeder that we bought her from and the breeder took very good care of her for 12 more years even though she could not have puppies she was their house dog until she passed. this was over 25 years ago and i still miss that dog. never really got to say goodbye and honestly think about her about once a week. I have 2 dogs now and know they will both love the boat this season and i'm spending a ton of money to make it work for them. we even moved marina's because Hingham has a dog park right next door that i can take a dinghy to in the mornings for their play time if we spend most of the day just hanging out on the slip. this can't be an easy decision for you and I feel for you.
 
Our last lab went blind at about 6-7 years old. He then started getting separation anxiety, hated us not being home.

We always left him with my parents down the coast when we went on holidays, and he would go berserk when we turned up to pick him up, rushing out to the car.

When he was around 9 or 10 we had a camping holiday close by them with friends. The few times we called over to their home whilst we were there, he was pleased to see us, but made no attempt to want to leave with us, actually going and standing beside my dad.

This was a heart wrenching decision, as he was our daughters dog, and she was 12 or 13, so we had to carefully broach the subject and let her suggest it.

He lived his life out there, and was also excited to see us, but did not want to come away, he had company 24/7 and that was what he needed.

Your story sounds like your lab is telling you similar.

But it is not easy, it is heartbreaking, they are family.


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Thanks everyone…..All respected points. I could be at sea up to 10 days at a time heading south and back up and I will not be at marinas which is certainly a con to bringing her. I know people do it all the time, but this is not coastal cruising for 2 weeks and this is the toughest ingredient in the equation. I will also have charter guests aboard from time to time. I hear everyone of your points. Obviously this is specific to Hallie and who she is which is most important…Thanks guys.
 
Good luck man. All valid points, yours included, and it's a very tough decision. Best of luck with it & I hope you find an outcome beneficial to all parties!


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Todd
 
I've had dogs all my life, they can adapt to anything. I just adopted a rat dog 4 weeks ago, she freaked when i put her on the boat. So I put her on, took her off, put her on, took her off about 50 times. Now she loves it. Same thing with the subway, the truck etc... calm, collected repetition, they can and will adapt.

tiger.jpg
 
HA HA HA TB, Your rat turd looks stupider than mine. :smt043
 
Just adding to what I wrote before, and taking into account a couple of other points raised.

Yes they are our children, and yes we make a commitment to them when we take them in.

Children become teenagers, and adults and leave home. It doesn't change our love or commitment to them.

If you can rehome her with friends, it means you still get to see her, hear news about her, photos etc, the same as a child leaving home.



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Dogs make their strongest connection with humans during the first six months of their lives. I am assuming you have had the dog since a pup? I go along with most of the rest on here. Keep the dog and continue with the extended baby sitting when needed. Just think about how happy the dog is when you pick them up from the sitters. Now think about the dog waiting for you to return and you never do??? A tough decision my friend but I hope you will keep the dog around.
 
jrseitz said:
Dogs make their strongest connection with humans during the first six months of their lives. I am assuming you have had the dog since a pup? I go along with most of the rest on here. Keep the dog and continue with the extended baby sitting when needed. Just think about how happy the dog is when you pick them up from the sitters. Now think about the dog waiting for you to return and you never do??? A tough decision my friend but I hope you will keep the dog around.
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If you read the OP carefully, he makes the point that he leaves her with friends when he goes away, he knows she is happy, and she does not want to leave.

As I said this was how our lab told us he wanted to stay with my parents, and he needed the all day company........it is a heart wrenching choice.....but the dog is telling you that from their part they do not blame you. They understand and are helping you to Seperate.


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IanBat said:
Just adding to what I wrote before, and taking into account a couple of other points raised.

Yes they are our children, and yes we make a commitment to them when we take them in.

Children become teenagers, and adults and leave home. It doesn't change our love or commitment to them

If you can rehome her with friends, it means you still get to see her, hear news about her, photos etc, the same as a child leaving home.




Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
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Very true!
 
our dogs like the boatbut hate the water... wouldn't givethem up for anything..boat OR dogs.
 
John, Kathy and I leave our much loved Cooper with a couple that loves him as much as we do. He has two family's and loves both of us!!! Excited to see me pick him up and excited when I drop him off!!
 
I gave up my (best ever) dog of 5 years several years ago bcause we moved to an area with no fence. I couldn't put the dog inside, and refused to pen him or chain him up. I gave hime to a nice older lady, with a fenced yard, that had just lost her dog of the same breed.

Our present (inside) dog loves the boat. Bottom line for me is "do what's best for the dog." I can't stand to see dogs on open boats in the hot sun that are obviously suffering from the heat....I guess it's fun for their owners.

Don
 
Glad to hear that you enjoy your dogs and your boat. We have two Labs, father and daughter, and they are fantastic companions. Like your dog, Candi[the daughter], is a nervous wreck the minute we start the engines. We were considering a Thunder Coat for her, but it just seemed too weird that it would work. Now that someone has confirmed it's benefit, we will order one for this season. Thanks.
 
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