We had two dogs when we planned our sabbatical to Ecuador in 2009. Our older dog Pippi (the absolute best dog in the whole world!) was failing and died a few months before we left. Elmer, our puppy, moved in with our best friends, the Benichous, where he was loved and well cared for and gained 50 pounds.
When we returned, Elmer decided to stay with his new family, or the Benichous decided to keep him, or we chose to leave him where he was comfortable, and we visited him regularly in his new home. This has worked out well, except that we missed our dogs so much, we could not replace them, ergo we acquired two delightful cats. I am horribly allergic to the cats, but they are part of our lives now and are not going anywhere. Felix and Quinn are brothers, and seem to be more like dogs than cats, in that they are attentive and loving and miss us when we are gone.
The cats appear to be aware that something is going on in the household. Maya believes that Felix is depressed and needs psychotherapy/meds. Perhaps we are gone far too much lately, or more than usual, and our pets want us around more. Each weekend, we are scrambling to find someone to care for them. Eric bought an automatic kitty litter cleaner, so that the litter does not require cleaning daily. We would like to have an automatic feeder, but Quinn would eat all the food and Felix would get nothing. Our neighbour (and Eric's collaborator) Noah, has been feeding them each weekend, but is off to Australia today (he called to ask for a prescription of Ambien), so I was struggling with figuring out who to ask to care for them. Eric called Juan, who mows our lawn and sometimes cleans the house, who agreed to take care for them for the next few days.
Maya insists that we take our cats with us to Ecuador, and Eric has agreed. I am not sure how we will accomplish this. Do they come into the cabin with us or go in the cargo hold? Will they be quarantined when we arrive in Ecuador or when we come home? I think they are eminently transportable, and will be perfectly content as long as they are with us. They are part of our family now.
When we returned, Elmer decided to stay with his new family, or the Benichous decided to keep him, or we chose to leave him where he was comfortable, and we visited him regularly in his new home. This has worked out well, except that we missed our dogs so much, we could not replace them, ergo we acquired two delightful cats. I am horribly allergic to the cats, but they are part of our lives now and are not going anywhere. Felix and Quinn are brothers, and seem to be more like dogs than cats, in that they are attentive and loving and miss us when we are gone.
The cats appear to be aware that something is going on in the household. Maya believes that Felix is depressed and needs psychotherapy/meds. Perhaps we are gone far too much lately, or more than usual, and our pets want us around more. Each weekend, we are scrambling to find someone to care for them. Eric bought an automatic kitty litter cleaner, so that the litter does not require cleaning daily. We would like to have an automatic feeder, but Quinn would eat all the food and Felix would get nothing. Our neighbour (and Eric's collaborator) Noah, has been feeding them each weekend, but is off to Australia today (he called to ask for a prescription of Ambien), so I was struggling with figuring out who to ask to care for them. Eric called Juan, who mows our lawn and sometimes cleans the house, who agreed to take care for them for the next few days.
Maya insists that we take our cats with us to Ecuador, and Eric has agreed. I am not sure how we will accomplish this. Do they come into the cabin with us or go in the cargo hold? Will they be quarantined when we arrive in Ecuador or when we come home? I think they are eminently transportable, and will be perfectly content as long as they are with us. They are part of our family now.
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