Boykins Arrives!

Cozying up in the frisbee


In Kalamazoo

July 1: THE BIG DIAY! After flying from Boston to Detroit, I was at Encore French Bulldogs by about 10:45am. I knew I was in the right place when I heard the greetings of many of the dogs living there. After meeting Martha and Shirley, I was introduced to Boykins! She had two playmates with her: Zoom and Caesar. The three of them headed right out onto the big deck behind the house, where they ran around and played. It was great to watch Boykins interact with the other dogs. I could tell right away that she's a spirited, funny pup.

Shirley and Martha were terrific! They had all sorts of great advice and sent us on our way feeling really prepared and ready to go. From Encore, Boykins and I drove to Kalamazoo, where I introduced her to my brother, sister-in-law, two nephews and niece. We hung out for a little while, but I think the she was a bit overwhelmed by things. After all, she'd just been taken from her family! My parents met up with us, then it was off to West Olive, on Lake Michigan, for some bonding and settling in.

I can't tell if Boykins likes being in the car, but she was really good during her rides that day. In fact, she slept almost the whole way from Kalamazoo to West Olive, waking just before we arrived at the house. I took her for a little stroll around the house, and she did a little business before we went onto the back porch. Good dog!


At the beach


All told, we spent about three days at my parents' house, which was really great. Their screened-in porch was really ideal and we spent most of our time out there. We developed a bit of a rhythm with food and walks, but being a puppy, Boykins was due to have a couple of mistakes along the way! And being a new puppy owner, I made my own mistakes, I'm sure!


Finding shade beneath my dad - Boykins ain't no dummy


I was really nervous about the flight to Boston on Tuesday (July 4). In order to prep for the trip, I spent some time trying to get Boykins used to the carry-on she'd be traveling in. (It's designed to transport pets, not just a basic duffle as my dad imagined!) We had a few sessions, and she did really well. Whether this paid off in the long run, I'll never know. She did a great job on the drive to Detroit (about 3 hours), sleeping most of the way. It seems she also slept most of the way on our flight to Boston. I didn't hear her, anyway. (She was probably just terrified the whole time and went into shutdown mode.)


Catching a nap on the porch

We arrived in Boston, coordinated pickup with Quan, then headed home. Quan was really excited to meet Boykins. After all, he'd only heard my reports since I picked her up. Now he really got to meet her! She took to him really well, but was still clearly very stressed from such a crazy day.

We were able to introduce Boykins to lots of friends on Tuesday since one group was gathered for a BBQ and another was watching World Cup soccer together. She even got to meet Twiggy, the pug owned by our friends Ivan and Sarah. The girls got along great, and it looked a lot like Boykins was wearing Twiggy out. Even after the stress of the day's travels, she had a little left over for some play.

Enjoying her keys

The first week at home has been a blur, really. Vet visit...first stabs at crate training...trying our best to ignore her cries and reward, reward, reward for all the good things she does. She's getting really good at the house-training thing, and by the end of the weekend, we no longer had to go on long walks in order to get her poos and pees done. We just drop her in the front yard, and she finds her place to go. Fortunately, it's mostly dirt and shrubs, so I don't see her doing any long-term damage! Most important: she seems to be getting it. It's really clear at this point that any mistakes are our own, not hers!