i just glanced over and Maddy is stretched out on the floor in front of the air conditioning unit. it’s a little too tall for her to be directly in the path of it’s air flow, but she knows a cool spot when she finds one. her fur has been coming out in large matted tufts and she has a new microchip implanted near her left shoulder, but she’s the same dog i shipped to Saskatchewan six weeks ago.

as noted in the post below, i drove 20 hours to my mom’s house this week to pick her up. the option of flying her back to Vancouver was obviously available, but my mom had just moved to a new acreage and i wanted to see her and the house and (again, as noted) the drive in mid-summer is positively irresistible. my mom did an excellent job of looking after her and (for me, emotionally) it was surprisingly hard to remove Maddy from such a wonderfully outdoorsy and loving environment.

i hugged my mom. cried. hugged her again. watched her hug Maddy. cried a little more. and drove down the lane feeling positively selfish. how on earth could i provide a better life for my dog than the wide open spaces and smells of such a beautifully safe acreage?

we turned from the gravel lane onto the highway. i looked in the rearview mirror and saw Maddy curled up in her kennel. she slept straight through to Calgary. i found myself wishing dogs had some sort of concept of past and future, so she could say “goodbye” and reflect. then i realized how ridiculous i was being. it was me who needed to learn a lesson from her.

i was busy feeling sorry for myself. i had some regrets about setting up a life and choosing paths off the beaten track that required me to constantly say “goodbye” to people i loved. i wanted to turn around and sit on my mom’s acreage for a month. for a year. forever. i wanted to move toward people i loved instead of away from them. i just desperately wanted to stop leaving people behind. no matter how open the invitation to join me in Africa or on Nevis or any other place i have been and will be going to, everyone i know and love has commitments and responsibilities and careers and a life of their own. i wanted my gravitational force to pull them permanently into my galaxy and take them with me like planets to whatever universe i needed to go to. but you can’t do that with people. and maybe that’s why people get pets.

i guess what i’m saying is that while it feels selfish to subject a dog (a creature preferring and prospering in routine) to my ups and downs and whims and wobbles, Maddy is one being in my life that i don’t have to say “goodbye” to just yet. the opportunity to bring her to Nevis has opened and i have jumped at it. while i think i am a very attentive and damn good dog owner, i don’t harbour any sentimental delusions that Maddy needs to be with me. or that i can do a better job of taking care of her than my mom. i’m bringing her with me because i need her. because she is my dog. i signed up for all the responsibilities that job description entails, so i want to reap the benefits it implies as well! : ))

so here we are. back home and already preparing for the next adventure. after posting about the house on Nevis, there were a couple of comments and emails asking about quarantine and Maddy. we have yet another vet appointment on Monday and i thought i would bring you all up to speed with what’s going on.

things to do before we leave:
- get certificates for rabies vaccinations (done)
- microchip implant (done)
- send import permit application to St. Kitts (done)
- two official rabies titre tests (in process)
- health certificate from Canada’s Veterinary Authority (after July 23rd)
- health certificate from our vet (after August 20th)
- internal/external parasite treatment (on the day we leave)

our appointment on Monday is for the second “official” (RFFIT or FAVN) rabies titre test. blood is drawn at the vet and then sent to the USA for analysis. since the tests need to be done 30 days before arrival and 4 weeks apart, my mom had the first one started in Saskatchewan while i was in Africa. ideally, i should have done all of the tests before i left, but i hadn’t even fully decided to bring Maddy until that house became available.

our departure date is August 23rd, so the dates noted in the list above are based on the fact that some things have to be done within 30 days or 72/48 hours of arrival.

things to do after we arrive:
- keep Maddy in the fenced yard for 30 days
- have the premises inspected/monitored 4 times

and that’s it.* being stuck in the yard for a month will totally suck, but is at least possible and not totally unreasonable. unlike rumours of the 6-month quarantine i heard when first looking into the whole process.

and having Maddy with me confines me to the island for the full 5 semesters that i’ll be in school. no flying back on my 3-week break between semesters. again, not totally unreasonable. whatever extra i’m spending on rent for the house will be saved by not flying home.

besides, i’m definitely expecting a rotating roster of visitors!

please feel free to drop me a line if you are considering importing your pet into the Caribbean and i’ll do my best to pass along any resources that i know of. i owe huge HUGE thanks to a vet student on St. Kitts that read a previous post on my reservations about exporting Maddy and offered her help. she imported her two dogs two years ago and it was very helpful to know someone else that has successfully done this before. thank you so very much, Candace. i really appreciate your support, both factual and emotional.

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*detailed description can be found here (PDF download).

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