The incredible story of Winston, part 2
A lot has happened in the last three months: Winston adapted to us and vice versa. His nervous peeing nearly vanished but not quite completely. Ron’s mom passed away in early November, following a brief battle with cancer and a long struggle with Parkinson's Disease. Winter arrived with lots of snow in December. We decided to deliver Winston to Hawaii personally. Winston’s furever homeonwners, Cris and Punky had graciously and generously offered to pay to fly us to The Islands, but we really didn’t want to accept. Finally, the deal was struck: They paid for one of us, and also generously offered accommodations in their home during Winston’s transition period. We decided to ask Ron’s dad to accompany us on the trip to get away from it all for a while, and after much cajoling, he agreed. So now it’s four of us invading Honolulu! We were concerned about such a long flight for Winston, so we decided to stop in California on the way there. On the way back we thought it might be nice to stop somewhere to visit, and San Francisco was selected for our return layover. Now we have to worry about the weather: American Airlines won’t fly a dog if the weather on the ground at any ground point in the itinerary is below 45° (F) unless you have a note from the Vet saying that the animal is conditioned to lower temperatures. Even with the letter, they won’t fly him at all if the temp is below 20°. After an hour or two of research on the ‘net to find the average daily temps for Boston, and the warmest part of the day in early January (2PM is the warmest point, on average) we alter our tentative plans from an early AM departure to a 2:30PM flight. [The whole week before we flew, there was snow in the forecast for departure day, then extreme cold the day after. The storm and cold held off for a few hours and we made our escape just in time. Right after we left, a tremendous record-shattering cold descended upon the country; we wouldn’t have been able to fly from Boston for weeks. In fact on our way back home, while in the San Francisco airport, we met with some very upset travelers who were trying to fly with their dog through the Midwest, and the airline wouldn’t allow it. (Note to self: Next time consider driving south before flying out in such situations.)] Tickets purchased, Joan begins her quest for accommodations and in a few weeks of intense searching and planning has the whole three week trip booked. We have a wonderful visit with Cris’ Massachusetts family on New Year’s Eve. Last minute trips to the groomer, and the vet, sprucing up of the crate, paperwork all set up, packing accomplished and we’re off! We had been preparing Winston for his trip by accustoming him to his crate. At first he didn’t want ANY part of this thing, but over the course of a couple of months he gradually accepted it. This was done by first leaving the top off and putting treats inside; This went well. Then the top on, without a door attached. This went well until we tried to gently move the crate an inch or two while he was in it… this set back traing by a good week or two. Eventually, he was so comfortable with the whole thing that he would go into the crate looking for a treat at the end of every walk. As the last week approached, we kept him in the crate for an hour, then 2, then 3. He wasn’t thrilled, but he was resigned. We even moved the crate a bit while he was in there, and it didn’t set us back again. At the airport, the crate was … never mind. I don’t want to talk about airline security procedures online. Suffice to say that inspections were sufficient to protect the flying public from danger. No delays on the ground, and at 2:30PM we were on our way to Los Angeles. This is the picture that we had on top of the crate, so that the airline employees could see who was inside: 
We arrive in LAX and wait about an hour for Winston to be delivered. They take the animals off last. Go figure. It was a very confusing time trying to deal with tons of luggage, a large scared dog, a crate too big to fit into the rental car and nerve rattled travelers, but we all survived none the worse for wear, except for the crate beddings which were completely urine soaked. On Tuesday, we all head out to spend a day sightseeing around LA: Rodeo Drive, Hollywood, the Walk of Fame, Mulholland Drive. Joan found a coin-op laundry in the evening and fixed the crate bedding problem. Winston with Joan and "Grampa" on Rodeo Drive 
Winston with a friend on the Walk of Fame 
After a long day of sightseeing, we’re all ready to head back to the hotel. We’re off to Hawaii in the morning! More to follow… Click here to go to Part 3 |
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| Hi ,
This story has kept me on the edge of my seat - I can't wait for the next continuation! The photo of Winston and Lassie's star - Priceless!!! Keep the stories coming as you've developed quite a fan club for Winston stories and thanks for doing so. You guys have such big hearts!! Marianne |
I really needed a smile today and this update with Winston's picts. did the job! You both are so gracious to do this for Winston and his new parents- (not to mention Ron's dad!) they are all lucky to know you  Continued safety on the rest of your journey-
Cindy and The Monsters  |
| I am glad Ron and Joan are taking the time for this story too. It brings back various memories and Winston looks a lot like Abbi did when we shipped her from Bahia Blanca to TX.
We had to worry about it being too hot on the Argentine side when we left. We took the whole family to Hawaii a couple of years ago, right after 911. Because of a rental car snafu we were well checked over at every stop we made. Wasn't too pleasant. Will not be going back to Hawaii. The Big Island was the best of the lot. I swam with the sea turtles there. Cannot wait to here the rest of the story! |
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