If all has gone according to plan, Luna the Big Dog™ is currently on her cargo plane headed across the Pacific. I haven’t received a confirmation from HA, I assume because Luna left around 03:00 and she probably didn’t want to wake me — and I don’t want to wake her now by making inquiries.
I cannot imagine what it is like to be a dog with a loving and attentive family to suddenly find yourself alone in a crate on a noisy jet plane attended to by strangers for hours and hours. We did what we could: she’s been dining in her crate for months. I’m sure HA did her best to explain what was happening and that Grandpa would be waiting on the other end, but who knows how much she might understand.
We hired a professional pet moving service to help out. We tend to be DIY folks, but I think it was well worth the cost. There are a lot of arcane details and the service has been helpful in the months leading up to this (if you need to ship a big dog overseas, start the process six months in advance if you possibly can!) and then they’re going to meet her during her layover, process her paperwork, and get her on the next flight. I’ll be picking her up (I hope!) at 3pm today.
This morning I need to make a last check of the fencing and verify that the property is cleared of hazards. I need to get food (dog food, yes, but I also need to eat something myself). The cargo terminal is over an hour away and I need to get there pretty early, so I think my day is going to be pretty full.
—2p
addendum 2024-08-29
Luna the Big Dog™ is here! It took longer seemed reasonable (of course) but everyone was very nice. Other than being thirsty, she seems well and in good spirits, if a bit tired. She drank my entire 22 oz bottle of water and, after we got home, more bowls of water than I was able to keep track of.