Average Jane's Dog Goes on a Play Date

On Friday night, I was invited to a Pampered Chef party at Cagey's house. My husband had a gig that evening, so it occurred to me that it might be fun to take Toby with me for the two-fold purpose of giving him a chance to play with another dog and not leaving him at home alone longer than his bladder capacity would indicate.

It also gave me the chance to try out the dog restraint harness I'd bought for car rides.

I already knew Toby hated to ride in the car. It makes him very anxious, upset and whiny. He spends the entire ride lunging toward my lap, panting and crying. So basically, no fun for anyone.

This trip was no exception. I was kind of hoping he'd be better because I was considering taking him on a longer trip over the weekend, but it only took one leg of this trip to make me firmly rule that out.

We got to the party and Toby was a hit with both Team Chaos and Cagey's dog Lucy. He spent far more time sitting on my lap than he ever would at home, but he and Lucy did run around and play, which is exactly what I wanted to see.

I need to befriend someone in my neighborhood with a small dog so Toby can play more often but not have to be driven anywhere. (Do not even dream of suggesting that I get another dog. My house is overrun with small mammals as it is.)

In the meantime, I'm glad he had some fun, even if it was overridden by the stressful car trips. For the time being, Toby will have to be satisfied with Dr. Jones as a playmate. If he can ever catch him awake.

Comments

[cagey]

Maybe I can bring Lucy over sometime. She does fine in cars, but gets nervous in other people's houses. :-)

Lucy had a blast, BTW. So we should definitely get our puppies together more often.

[Faith]

Aw! I can relate to the stress in the car thing. Our oldest, Izzy, used to FREAK OUT in the car. Just the same way, with the whinning, and the crying, and the constant trying to get into my lap as I drove (which I'm firmly against, personally! Not safe!). Finally, we started keeping her in the back seat whenever we went anywhere. Whether we were traveling together as a couple or traveling as a single "parent" with her, she was in the back seat, and that was where she was to stay. I had a little bed for her in the back of my car that was soft and comfy, and I'd keep the middle arm rest up in order to block her path to the front passenger seat.

She calmed down pretty quickly.

And then we got the puppy, and they both learned how to ride in the back seat together. They have a tendency to bark at random people walking down the street at times, and sometimes at the people in the cars next to us at signals. But otherwise, they're way better off since we relegated them to the back seat only!

It gets better over time, just like everything else with new doggehs. Glad you guys got out together and had some playtime fun with other "friends"! :D

[Susan Getgood]

How did I miss that you got a dog? Do you crate him at night? If you do, putting him in the crate in the car would be an easier experience.