Home is where your dogs are.

 No, I didn't fall off the face of the earth.  Three different trips, a mix of business and pleasure, have kept me extremely busy in the last couple of weeks.  In fact, I have been away from home for 13 of the last 16 days.  The days in between, when I was home, were filled with unpacking, laundry, and repacking.  I kept meaning to post, but I just never got around to it.

The most recent trip was to Las Vegas, for a work conference.  This was my very first time leaving Jax at a boarding facility.  I was a nervous wreck to say the least.  We have worked so hard on him and he has come so far that my biggest fear is him having a set back.  I actually wrote an entire sheet entitled "About Jax,"  describing his special needs, for them to post on his suite door.   I know that it seems a little over board, but I have every reason to be paranoid.  I had an awful experience with a kennel a few years back that ended in a life-saving emergency surgery for Asia.   Dixie and Jax stayed at Arkansas Pet Resort, which is only a couple of blocks from my office.  I got them a 10x16 suite with a doggy door and outside run, a couch, and even a TV.  So what if my dogs' boarding costs more than a hotel room?  It gives me peace of mind to know that I have done my best for them while I'm away. 

Callie stayed at the vet because but we don't think she is quite ready for regular boarding yet.  Even though she loves the other two, and would likely be more happy with them, we were nervous about leaving her alone with them.  They are such rowdy players and she would have no where to lay low.  We were afraid she might get hurt.  It just seemed like the best thing for her.    

We got back yesterday afternoon and went to collect everyone as soon as we left the airport.  Callie was first and she was out-of-her-mind happy to see us!  She was literally shaking with excitement.  Sadly, six days in that environment proved too stressful for her and she lost over 3lbs.  I was a little nervous that she may not eat as well for them, but I didn't think she would do that badly.  They could barely get her to eat canned food.  She looks pretty bad again.  I feel awful and am now questioning if she may have been better off at the kennel.  Does the benefit of her being able to stay with her foster siblings outweigh the risk of her getting hurt?  It's a hard call to make.  Thankfully, she ate a ton when we got home, but those 3.5 lbs are a really big loss, considering how long it took her to gain them.  Poor skinny little thing.

We then went up to get the others.  I already knew they were doing fine, because of course I had called the kennel a few times while we were away.  Still, I couldn't wait to get there.  I was missing them like crazy.  They handled it pretty well overall and even made a new friend, a German Shepherd that goes there for daycare.  I was relieved that everything went well with Jax and happy to see my note posted clearly on the door of their suite;-) 

We spent the evening relaxing on the couch and catching up on our shows, surrounded by three very happy pooches.  We were all glad to be home.