We all survived Boo’s first vacation. It was a little stressful, very busy and a lot of fun.

We hit the road around 8:30 a.m. after a stop at Einstein’s for breakfast (they have puppy bagels!) Boo broke hers into several pieces and then tried to bury them in the blanket we had for her.   The dog that we (I) assumed would sit and even nap in the back after we got on the highway stood there for 3.5 hours. She eventually got so tired that she put her head on Brian’s arm but continued to stand and would not close her eyes. When she slammed herself into the door we decided maybe we should try a potty break. That, apparently, wasn’t the issue. I decided to try sitting in the back the rest of the way to get her to relax.

 

When we got to our room she made herself right at home and was already thoroughly exhausted from being up ALL day, something this pup does not do. We put the harness back on and headed to the Island Dog for lunch, unfortunately a few tables down from a standard poodle that Boo had a hard time keeping her eyes off of.

Boo is a great dog. She is sweet and fun and loving but she’s also high energy, and one thing we learned about Boo on vacation is that if she sees a dog that she can’t say “hello” too, she barks and causes a scene, and generally looks like a rabid maniac. This can startle people who are not used to her bizarre ways, which is everyone in Key West.

After a bacon-wrapped hot dog and a few Dark & Stormy’s we headed to the Smokin’ Tuna Saloon, another dog friendly bar. We grabbed a cocktail and she laid on the cool stones and watched the band set up. When they started playing she perked up, then started barking. Check please! Next stop Captain Tony’s.

Our intention was to take her to dinner that first night since it was a new place and we worried she would be nervous and bark at strange noises but it became very clear that she had no desire to go out, bed was calling her name. I dragged Brian out for a fancy dinner at Bagatelle while she crashed.

The change in schedule and environment left Boo barely eating or pooping, which was slightly concerning. I knew she’d eat if she was hungry, and of course I was giving her snacks along the way. We had breakfast at Schooner’s Wharf and I ordered her some scrambled eggs and the server accidentally dropped a basket of bacon on Boo’s head so she had a great breakfast! Who wants kibble? My biggest fear was that she would stop and take a dump in the middle of Duval. Every time we hit a patch of grass I would pace there asking her if she had to go. Nope.

We spent most of the weekend at places we knew she could go. Cocktails at Captain Tony’s, lunch at Smokin’ Tuna, more cocktails at Island Dog, happy hour at Schooner’s Wharf (where they gave her more bacon) and a relaxing lunch at the Hog’s Breath.

It was definitely a different trip than we usually take but it was really nice to have her there. She was so happy to be with us and she made a lot of friends. A lot of people were happy to see a pup out and about, including a bachelorette party in town on a cruise ship. There were so happy (and drunk) that they sat in the street with her while others were showing us pictures of there dogs on their phones. I wish I was able to get a pic of that.

I would take her again but for a shorter amount of time or place not as busy. We were ALL exhausted when we got home.