Pirate Explorer

It's extremely difficult to write a blog when there is nothing interesting happening.

 

Lulu is settling in. She got her sea legs immediately and did not seem sea sick or anything. But as soon as we started closing hatches and putting instruments on she would dash to the starboard front cabin, climb up on the bed and hide behind a large bag we have there. Then lying with her back against the front bulkhead, she would lie there the entire journey and once we had anchored I had to go tell her we had stopped now and she could come out. Then, with much trepidation she would creep up into the saloon and once she had established I was telling the truth she would relax. Usually jumping up onto her blanket on the saloon table. 

Our first over-night sail was planned and we were not sure how she would react. It was pretty bumpy and slammy and she hates that the most. The first night Andre was on watch, there were 20 plus knot winds and a rough sea. Next minute he feels something brush past his leg as he sat at the helm. Glancing down he notices Lulu heading up to the front. He nearly had heart failure. I think he was wondering how he could explain to me that my child had gone overboard when he was on watch. :) He picked her up and sat her next to him on the helm seat. He says she sat there watching for a good ten minutes. She then decided it looked far more interesting up front with the sea slamming through the trampoline and over the deck and tried to go up again.

I was shaken awake! "Your cat won't stay inside". I went up fetched her and took her to bed with me and we closed the saloon door. There she lay happily until it was my watch. Once Andre had gone to bed I took her and put her in with him and there she slept till the next watch change.

It's amazing as during the day she is still not keen to go on deck; only at sunrise and sunset and after dark. On a calm anchorage with minimum wind it's fine but when it's jumping and rolling we have to keep an eye on her.

Progress has been made! The first sign was when she started only going to her hiding place when we worked the windlass lifting or dropping anchor. As soon as we were underway, she comes out and lies either on my bed or under the saloon table or in the passage to our bed. 

Recently she doesn't even hide when we work the windlass, if something scares her and she disappears to her hiding place I just have to call her and she comes back out. Recently she even comes into the cockpit when we sailing and sits at Andre's feet peeping round the bulkhead to see where we going.

We finally decided time had come to take her ashore. She was relaxed enough and after five months of  walking just from niece bed to another, she has got fat! I had to make her harness a good two inches longer to get it to fit again.

 We dinghy-ed over to shore. I took her out of her carrier and all she wanted to do was get back in. When I picked it up and walked with it she followed. But after just a short way she looked for a shade patch and lay there gasping. I thought she was over heated and we headed back to the boat.

Today we found a small island with short stubby plants. Perfect to take her to. This time we went at 0700 before it was too hot!

On shore she was lifted out of her carrier and I removed her lead. She had great fun walking in the bushes sniffing everything. We walked the length and breadth of the island twice. Then she started panting and lying in the shade. I realized then it was not heat but the exertion of walking so 'far' after so long that had exhausted her. 

We decided to try something. So we walked over to the dinghy, called her and told her to get on! She did! She jumped up, sniffed everything, found her carrier and climbed in with a mew as if to say "come on its home time". 

Great success! 

What's stressing me is she has finally settled and in one month she will be flying off with us to Canada. We have to start all over again. I am sure she will just be settled there and we will be on our way back! The trials and tribulations of a Princess turned pirate!

She has made me proud. the first time at the dock with her aboard i had her in her harness and on a ead and she tried to jump off. We are now in a marina, besides smelling so much i thought she would wriggle her nose off she has not tried to leave the boat. just lies gazing out at the lights.

Princess Lulu turns Pirate!

So the decision was made! There was no way I could leave our precious princess with someone else, she was coming with us!

From Princess of the African Bush to sailor on the seas!

The year waiting to leave was training time. She had us well trained and we needed to un-train her in some of her habits!

Firstly she only drank water from the tap in the bidet. She climbs in and mews and one of us puts the tap on to drip and that's her water supply! On a boat that would just not work! So it was encouraging her to drink from her bowl! It worked and she eventually chose a specific bowl which she consented to drink from.

The next thing that would be a big change is she was free to come and go from the house as she pleased and would wander off into the nature sanctuary behind the house to explore, chase and catch mice and birds as presents for her mom! Me! I always got a vey hurt mew and look when I saved them and let them go! Disgusted after all her hard work!

From the end of the year her new 'garden' would be the deck and inside of a 40 foot boat on the ocean! 

Her journey was planned and her travel agent: yes she got her own travel agent, being Riekie Fourie of Animal Travel Services. What an absolute star she is and her staff were fantastic with both Lulu and her paranoid mom!

Lulu's carrier ready to fly!

Not too sure about this!

You call this a Hotel??? !!

I had hoped she could fly in cabin with me but South Africa does not allow any in cabin pet travel unless they are guide dogs! So that was out! We looked at other options but none worked out. The final plan was she would be collected from me the day I flew, she would spend the day at her travel agents pet hotel, then fly out KLM to Amsterdam that night. She then spent the night in Amsterdam, we have not even seen Amsterdam yet and she is not telling what she saw there! Then she flew on to St Maarten, Netherlands Antilles in the Caribbean. 

It worked perfectly as I would have arrived the day before and would be there to fetch her.

I expected a timid scared quivering kitty to be off loaded! Was I wrong, she was obviously glad to see us but not phased at all. Allowed me to scratch her head through the bars of her carrier. I offered her water but she was too interested in peeping out at the scenery!

Lulu flies into St Maarten on KLM.

Her personal delivery man from plane to Mom!

Got her!! 2 Hours later than expected but safe and sound!

Dad and Lulu at the airport!

Not too sure

She took the whole setup quite in her stride. In the taxi to the dinghy dock she peered out at the other occupants curiously!

We were sure she would be freaked by the starting of the dinghy engine and the bouncy trip across to Rat Catcher! She didn't batt an eyelid!

At the boat I opened her carrier on our bed and expected her to hide there for a while getting orientated! Not a chance she leapt off and started exploring the boat immediately!

I was sure she would be thirsty but she refused water, but when I offered her her pellets she gulped them down two at a time! She was starved! She was finding the movement of the boat strange and would walk one or two steps then lie down again. She even ate lying down. She looked for the highest point in the room, found the saloon table and claimed her space!

Eating lying down!

I chose my command station!

The first night she slept and used her litter box but still had not had one sip of water! I was getting worried. Then we saw she had had an accident and peddled on the couch! So out of character we knew there was something wrong, but being her first night we figured something scared her in the night and she had an accident. All covers washed and cleaned and sprayed with lavender smellies. 

She ate again but NO water she refused to drink, we tried Boat water, rain water and bottled water! She was not having any of it! I finally wet my hands and wiped her legs and face so she had to wash it off to get water! She was always a fussy water drinker but this was too much. Then two days later she again used the couch to weewee! I had to speak to a vet! I found a wonderful one when I followed a sign in the street that offered animals for adoption. 

I met Dr Glen Romney, explained my concern and asked his advise! He suggested being an old lady and with the stress and traveling maybe she had and inflection and suggested I brought her in on I see him the next day! I liked and trusted him  and was impressed so we made an appointment! 

Lulu to the vet involves a dinghy ride of about 10 minutes, then a walk of about 15 minute walk with her in her soft carrier over my shoulder. I try to keep myself between her and the traffic and she stays on the side of the carrier closest to me and puts her face towards me. 

I was not comfortable with leaving her with anyone, but when Dr Glan tried to draw urine her bladder was empty so we had to leave her for 2 hours! Need I say more than I trusted him to do so, miracle I know. He was very nice said I could sit with her and assist when he worked on her but I was happy with him so left her there. He also said she was very dehydrated and he suggested he give her a bolus of water injected under her skin to be absorbed. I agreed! He also suggested he do blood work to test all her other organs and was surprised her home vet hadn't suggested it for her before she traveled seeing she is old and was heading for huge stress! 

So he tested her blood and she is fine just dehydrated and had a bladder infection. Probably from knyping on the journey. Poor baby. So 3 days of anti-inflammatories and 10 days of anti-biotics and she is right as rain, but still not drinking water. She has cottoned onto the soup idea and wakes me at ungodly hours to make her some when she is thirsty! Spoiled brat!

I had found a way to make her drink the night before we visited Dr Glen: I take her wet food and mince it very very finely into a bowl of water! We call it her soup and she drinks bowls full. Dr Glen was satisfied with that as long as she was taking water who cares if it had bits of meat in as soup!

So to date no more couch accidents and Princess Lulu has settled well. 

In the beginning I would wait till dark and she would finally be brave enough to peep out of the saloon. Then I would call her to 'walk around the block'. With much coaxing and calling I would climb out of the cockpit onto the port hull and walk a few steps then call and call till she followed. Almost creeping along, then I would move again and we would go forward to the trampoline and round and back in on the starboard side! As we got back into the cockpit she would dart for the saloon again! We did that a few times and then she went first!

Climbed out then stood and called till I followed her and we did a 'round the block' with her leading. You could see she was very pleased with herself. A couple more days of that and she finally goes 'round the block' on her own. She even climbed onto the coach roof and the Bimini!

Now she does a round the block onto the coach roof, mews at us to say hi through the spray dodger and then round to the starboard side and in.

Her favorite after dark place is on the floor under the helm. Basically if we were at the helm,  it would be at our feet.

When we in the saloon she lies on the table and during the day when we busy and around or away she has claimed Rob's room! We lie a mattress section up on its side against the wall and it makes a tent and that's where she sleeps all day,  under it! 

Nothing much has changed there. Sleeps all day and eats all night...:)