Yesterday's Transport

Yesterday I started out at 7:45 a.m. and returned home at 3:45 p.m. I drove from my home to Emporia (which is 1.25 hours) and then from Emporia to Springfield (2.5 hours) and then back home again.

Here's a pic, admittedly not a very good one, of 4 of my charges at the Emporia stop. (I wished I had taken more pics). Last weekend I was at my Dad/SM's and I spied a collapsible cage. These cages are indispensable for dumping puppies into them while you clean out their cages. What is even more valuable is that they once they are removed from a cage an placed down they will pee and poop. They will then proceed to step all in it and worse. One has to be vigilant in getting it up.

All of these gals are siblings, so they can be together. As you can see, I have paper covering every square inch of ground to protect them from bio-hazards from other dogs who may have defecated there. (It's our regular stop and travelers and the Cracker B also relieve their dogs. Parvo lives in the ground and does not die, so these pups can get it easily from the ground as they've no immunity).

As you can see, they've drunk their water and turned it over. As short time later they did their number 2's and then squished between their toes. I cleaned them before returning them to their crate--two to a crate. I also had another fellow, "Bear", who was unbelievably cute, in addition to a mama cat and two kits, and and older cat, Morris.

As I was driving straight through, I was going to arrive early to the Springfield. The cats were getting off there, so that rescue came early. The other half of the originating transport (which stopped in Fredericksburg) was about 45 minutes to 1 hour behind me. The traffic between Fredericksburg and Springfield is horrible. As I was in the traffic, I imagined with not a little bit of trepidation, what would happen if my car were to overheat in high 80's with these babies in my car. With the exception of some intermittent mewing by the kit, the mom and Morris, my other charges slept like drunken sailors sans snoring. I reached back and put my fingers through Morris's cage and let him rub his face against them. He'd ask for my hand a few times, and I gave it too him when I could. It comforted him, and he would quiet down.

I made it to Springfield and handed the cats off. Our drop off is in a strip office park wI set up the pen, first for Bear. He relieved himself. I put him back in his crate--an act which he protested. I cleaned up the paper and then put fresh paper down for the 4 girls. They were happy to get out of their cage. Business was taken care of, fresh paper put down, and they romped and played. I took Bear out of his crate and put him on a large beach towel with me. It was a nice respite from the drive being on a grassy spot in the shade in the company of puppies!

Bear was an eager player, but he started getting overly excited and surprisingly aggressive and bit me rather painfully. He was so rough (though I could grab him by the scruff of his neck!), I had to put him back in his cage. Little Kudjo! He then went to sleep.

This Momma, her 11 new babies and her 1 year old son, JJ (see one of the pups snuggling on him?), were found by animal control in a house. They were left behind by the owners. JJ was very scared. They were traveling in the other 1/2 of the transport. In Springfield, JJ became scared by the male transporter for the next leg and backed out of his collar. You cannot imagine how quickly they can do that.

He then proceeded to find a hole in the fence--the other side of which is 395 (after a grassy buffer). It was a TERRIFYING moment. Luckily, he saw the traffic and was scared of it, and turned back to find the comfort of his mother. Had he bolted into the traffic and been hit. . . I perish the thought of it. I've been at that stop several times, and I did not know there was a hole in the fence (it is obscured by some trees/brush).

Everyone arrived safely. It was a long, but fulfilling day.

Today is my daughter's 20th birthday. It's hard to believe that she is no longer a teenager!


I'll complete the weekly sector spreadsheet tomorrow morning.