Day at the Beach

In preparation for a long trip coming up, we decided that it would be good to take Moonpi out for a day trip. Now this we faced with some trepidation since he doesn't deal well with riding in the car. In fact, except for really short excursions, a trip in the car usually led to barfing.

So a visit to the local branch of the Google University research library provided a possible way to help him out. Dramamine. Just like people. So we picked up a box of generics, checked dosages for his weight, and gave him a tiny test dose. And he ran around like nothing was different. So no adverse reaction. Though without driving around there was no way to be sure if it was helping.

So the next day we loaded up the car, gave Moonpi a full dose and headed to Ventura Harbor. As far as we knew Moonpi had never been to the beach, though there are several months of his life before he came to live with us that we don't really know much about. And he won't talk about it. But it seems unlikely that he'd gone to the beach before.

And the trip out was fine. Moonpi would certainly have rather been in the front seat, but didn't have trouble with the ride. Even the twists and turns of the mountain roads, not even the stop and go traffic when we left the freeways. He seemed to be getting a bit uncomfortable just before we reached the harbor, but not too bad.

And he seemed to have fun at the harbor. He wasn't terribly impressed with the ocean. (Or maybe he was impressed terribly with it.) But he's never much cared for getting wet. Even trying to avoid sidewalks where the sprinklers were running we we go out for strolls. So even my wading out into the waves and trying to coax him in failed completely. He sat on the beach and stared at me like I was crazy. Since the tide was coming in and a wave or two soaked my shorts, he might not have been far wrong.

But after we left the beach and wandered about the harbor, he enjoyed smelling the new smells, urinating on new things, smiling at new people, and having a few french fries at the burger joint. By the time we got back to the car he was tired and hot and just kept looking for shade to lay in. After a nice drink of water and a little push he was back in the car and we were homeward bound.

The trip back was tougher on him. But he found a way to lay his head on the armrest between the front seats and coped the best he could. Even though there was no barfing, he wasn't happy on the way back, so it seems that he'll need another dose of Dramamine after about six hours. Which is reasonable, that's what the box indicates for people.

And very shortly after getting home, Moonpi was up and bouncing around wanting to play. Me? I was worn out and trying hard not to fall asleep in front of the TV.