What to do with Sadie

When Cliff and I go on day trips on the motorcycle, we never worry about our dog, Sadie. She must have a bladder the size of a basketball, because I've known her to go as long as sixteen hours without needing to potty. Any inside dogs I've had previously were desperate to be let out as soon as they awoke in the morning. Not Sadie; I've given up trying to force her outside as soon as I wake up, because she simply won't get her mind on her business until she decides she's ready, often three hours later.

If we're on a weekend overnight trip, my daughter often fills in, driving over here and turning Sadie out for a bit; that's how we handled the situation the whole time Cliff was in the hospital for open heart surgery. Recently, the grandson who's staying at our house tends to Sadie just fine when we're gone.

Now, though, the grandson is working two almost-full-time jobs, and this is the daughter's busy season. And we're going to be gone a few days.

So today I'll try to find a satisfactory place to board Sadie. We've boarded her before, but I always feel guilty. She's so hyperactive, and of course she has woven herself into the fabric of our lives in such a way that it's hard to imagine her alone in a cage with a small run. Without us. Then there's the fact that those kennels are never open on weekends, so if you get home on Saturday, you can't get your dog until Monday.

Cliff and I are not the type to travel with a dog. We'd neither one be happy in such a situation, least of all with our particular dog. She's just too, too active to be confined in a pet taxi for hundreds of miles. The only place we take her is to the vet on occasion, or to her "Unkie Phil's"; that's Cliff's brother, who has acres and acres of room for a dog to run free. The "Unkie" part is something I made up to taunt Phil, who, quite honestly, doesn't like dogs much. But Sadie sure knows what I'm saying when I ask her if she wants to go there. We leave her outside when we visit, so I don't think Phil minds too much.

Anyhow, wish me luck in my quest for boarding facilities. Sadie will be fine. And it doesn't hurt me to go on a little guilt trip once in awhile.

Edited: I made reservations for Sadie, so she's taken care of for $15 per day. If the grandson can pick her up Saturday before noon, it'll only cost us $60. Not bad! And she's worth it.