Now that you, like me, have developed a love for and interest in a dog breed that there aren't many of worldwide, it sounds extremely appealing to spend an extended weekend traveling abroad to attend a meeting for this particular breed - even if you actually HATE traveling.
Now, to please the family, so that they didn't just feel like they were being held hostage in the lives of their dog-crazy mother and wife, I sold the meeting at home as a week's summer vacation in beautiful Norway.
It takes something to take your dog abroad. It takes a whole lot more to take three dogs, especially when they're joined by two human teenagers who would actually rather have stayed home with their computers.
I'm the planner at our house. I started preparing for the summer vacation as early as February. My husband, as usual, packed fifteen minutes before we were supposed to leave. That's also why we always use the first day at our vacation spot to buy new shoes for him. Usually, he only has the flip-flops that he wears and more than once the strap has broken during the trip.
When traveling to Norway, dogs must have a valid rabies vaccination. In addition, a deworming treatment, given by a veterinarian, no earlier than five days before arrival in Norway, written into the dog's passport.
During the boat trip, the dogs had to stay in the car for at least five hours. It was important to me that they were as comfortable as possible during the trip. Mini Corgi has a tendency to stress and can be a bit of a bitch towards the two small dogs in such cases. She had also never tried sailing before. Therefore, I decided that all the dogs would have their own cage.
This is where I was really happy that my heaviest dog weighs 18 kg. Otherwise, I simply don't know how we would have found room for it all. I chose to pack the whole family together in our small camper, so that the dogs could have as large cages as possible for the five hours they had to sit in the car. It cost a lot more than taking a passenger car on the crossing, but it gave me peace of mind, and the dogs certainly didn't seem to be in any need. They had both water and snacks for the trip.
After a four-hour drive in Norway, of course with appropriate breaks for walks along the way, we finally reached our destination. 12 hours after we began our journey in Denmark.
It was a fantastic place with lakes, forests and views of the mountains. We went on some wonderful walks during the week.
And what had I chosen to take with me for the dogs for a week's stay in Norway?
3 dog cages, 9 blankets, a bucket of food, a cookie jar filled with snacks, a roll of dog bags, a tie-down hook, seasickness pills, painkillers, dog shampoo, brushes, a box of exhibition leashes etc. (we were going to exhibit at the meeting), 3 collars with dog tags, three regular leashes, 3 five-meter leashes, three 8-meter flexlines, toys, towels, a cooling blanket, 3 water bowls, sun foil, toys, fencing, strips and duct tape.
For me, the most important thing was my DogCoach vest and DogCoach hoodie. There are some absolutely fantastic pockets in the clothes that mean I never have to lug a bag around again. There is simply room for what I need without the clothes becoming cumbersome and heavy to wear. In addition, the treat pockets ensure that the jacket does not get dirty in the pockets. In the 40 years I have had dogs, I have always had a lot of equipment of different kinds. Nothing has come up the side of my DogCoach dog walking jacket – it was too warm to take on a summer holiday, though.
Maybe you skipped over the tape and duct tape on my list. It's always good to be prepared when going on vacation with Mini Corgi. This year, however, we needed a sander, white paint and a paintbrush. In his struggle to find some delicious food, Mini locked himself in the bathroom while we were out to eat. Mini never suffers in silence, but tries to find a solution himself - it cost a door and a door frame and extra money for the landlord.
The Schipperke meeting was really nice. It's great to be with other people who love the breed as much as I do.
I will hardly show my dog in such beautiful surroundings again, with a view of the mountains and lakes. 26 Schipperkes were registered. That is about twice as many Schipperkes as we usually have at a show with other breeds.
Little Audi showed his best side and got a really good description. The most important thing, however, was to see his behavior during the whole trip. He enjoyed being out on adventures and loved it all from the first second.
It was a really nice trip, but it's also really nice to be home again.
About this week's blogger:
Helene is on early retirement and spends a large part of her time with her animals. The animal team consists of 4 dogs, 1 cat, 15 free-range chickens, approx. 80 aviary birds, and her daughter has three axolotls. And now she and Cookie can also call themselves a reading dog team.
She loves writing short stories, poems and stories from her everyday life and enjoys reading a good Scandinavian crime novel.
In addition to Helene and all the animals, the family consists of Birger 55 years old, Thor 12 years old and Sigrid 10 years old.
Another trip to Norway
Now that you, like me, have developed a love for and interest in a dog breed that there aren't many of worldwide, it sounds extremely appealing to spend an extended weekend traveling abroad to attend a meeting for this particular breed - even if you actually HATE traveling.
Now, to please the family, so that they didn't just feel like they were being held hostage in the lives of their dog-crazy mother and wife, I sold the meeting at home as a week's summer vacation in beautiful Norway.
It takes something to take your dog abroad. It takes a whole lot more to take three dogs, especially when they're joined by two human teenagers who would actually rather have stayed home with their computers.
I'm the planner at our house. I started preparing for the summer vacation as early as February. My husband, as usual, packed fifteen minutes before we were supposed to leave. That's also why we always use the first day at our vacation spot to buy new shoes for him. Usually, he only has the flip-flops that he wears and more than once the strap has broken during the trip.
When traveling to Norway, dogs must have a valid rabies vaccination. In addition, a deworming treatment, given by a veterinarian, no earlier than five days before arrival in Norway, written into the dog's passport.
During the boat trip, the dogs had to stay in the car for at least five hours. It was important to me that they were as comfortable as possible during the trip. Mini Corgi has a tendency to stress and can be a bit of a bitch towards the two small dogs in such cases. She had also never tried sailing before. Therefore, I decided that all the dogs would have their own cage.
This is where I was really happy that my heaviest dog weighs 18 kg. Otherwise, I simply don't know how we would have found room for it all. I chose to pack the whole family together in our small camper, so that the dogs could have as large cages as possible for the five hours they had to sit in the car. It cost a lot more than taking a passenger car on the crossing, but it gave me peace of mind, and the dogs certainly didn't seem to be in any need. They had both water and snacks for the trip.
After a four-hour drive in Norway, of course with appropriate breaks for walks along the way, we finally reached our destination. 12 hours after we began our journey in Denmark.
It was a fantastic place with lakes, forests and views of the mountains. We went on some wonderful walks during the week.
And what had I chosen to take with me for the dogs for a week's stay in Norway?
3 dog cages, 9 blankets, a bucket of food, a cookie jar filled with snacks, a roll of dog bags, a tie-down hook, seasickness pills, painkillers, dog shampoo, brushes, a box of exhibition leashes etc. (we were going to exhibit at the meeting), 3 collars with dog tags, three regular leashes, 3 five-meter leashes, three 8-meter flexlines, toys, towels, a cooling blanket, 3 water bowls, sun foil, toys, fencing, strips and duct tape.
For me, the most important thing was my DogCoach vest and DogCoach hoodie. There are some absolutely fantastic pockets in the clothes that mean I never have to lug a bag around again. There is simply room for what I need without the clothes becoming cumbersome and heavy to wear. In addition, the treat pockets ensure that the jacket does not get dirty in the pockets. In the 40 years I have had dogs, I have always had a lot of equipment of different kinds. Nothing has come up the side of my DogCoach dog walking jacket – it was too warm to take on a summer holiday, though.
Maybe you skipped over the tape and duct tape on my list. It's always good to be prepared when going on vacation with Mini Corgi. This year, however, we needed a sander, white paint and a paintbrush. In his struggle to find some delicious food, Mini locked himself in the bathroom while we were out to eat. Mini never suffers in silence, but tries to find a solution himself - it cost a door and a door frame and extra money for the landlord.
The Schipperke meeting was really nice. It's great to be with other people who love the breed as much as I do.
I will hardly show my dog in such beautiful surroundings again, with a view of the mountains and lakes. 26 Schipperkes were registered. That is about twice as many Schipperkes as we usually have at a show with other breeds.
Little Audi showed his best side and got a really good description. The most important thing, however, was to see his behavior during the whole trip. He enjoyed being out on adventures and loved it all from the first second.
It was a really nice trip, but it's also really nice to be home again.
About this week's blogger:
Helene is on early retirement and spends a large part of her time with her animals. The animal team consists of 4 dogs, 1 cat, 15 free-range chickens, approx. 80 aviary birds, and her daughter has three axolotls. And now she and Cookie can also call themselves a reading dog team.
She loves writing short stories, poems and stories from her everyday life and enjoys reading a good Scandinavian crime novel.
In addition to Helene and all the animals, the family consists of Birger 55 years old, Thor 12 years old and Sigrid 10 years old.