We would like you to meet Otter.
Otter is a six year old German Mutt Hound, at least that's what MJ likes to call her. They told us she was a German Shepard Hound Mix when we got her over a year and a half ago from the Indy Humane Society. We can see several breeds in her but can't bring ourselves to take the doggie DNA test to find out because we would love her just the same.
Everyone thinks they have the perfect dog but we're not lying when we say she's perfect. We are just as lucky to have her as she is to have us. It's amazing that you can bring something so positive into your life by spending $50 at the humane society.
It was extremely hard to leave her behind during the first three months of our adventure. Why didn't we bring her along, you ask? Most National Parks do not let you take your pets on the trails. After visiting 15 parks we completely understand why they have this rule in place, however, it caused us to leave our furry friend behind. Our goal was to knock out as many NP's as we could so that we could take her along on round 2.
We actually just dropped her off on the side of the road before we left and hoped she would be there when we got back...just kidding. She got to stay in a doggie penthouse. Erin's mom was kind enough to take her in for a few months. She got to hang out with Jack, the 13 year old beagle, as well as Kitty, the kitty. She had full access to a luxurious doggie door and a large back yard to run free and chase squirrels. Otter and Kitty have also become quite the bird hunting team. We know she was happy by the numerous photos and updates from Erin's mom, but we can't begin to express how happy we are to have her join us on the next leg of our trip!
We're thrilled to make her into a #VanDog, but we still have a lot to learn about traveling with a pet. So we're looking to any of you who have done it for guidance.
She's a whopping 80lbs so sharing a bed with her will be a challenge of it's own. She currently enjoys sleeping horizontally or diagonally in our full-sized bed to take up the maximum amount of space.
Even though there will be challenges and things we can't do because we have her we are so excited for the things she gets to experience with us. She loves going on walks and she turns into part mountain goat when we take her hiking.
If you thought our pictures of our van and our adventure were cool, just add a dog for even cooler photos!
PS. We know you are going to ask about her name...
Her name at the pound was Mocha and that just wasn't going to fly. Several months before adopting her we had a funny experience with the otters at the zoo so it just seemed fitting. And then when we brought her home she did this...
and we knew it was perfect.
It's safe to say Otter is ready to go on adventure round 2 just as much as we are!
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