Friday, February 15, 2008

Truman Tours the U.S.S. Midway

February 8, 2008 -- With a title like that, how could I not have him wear his American flag collar?

A day-long outing in unfamiliar territory is an excellent test of a dog's ability to tolerate stress. I'm happy to report that Truman did well on today's adventure! Our first trip by rail went smoothly; Truman settled nicely onto the Amtrak train for the ride down to San Diego, home of the U.S.S. Midway museum. I guess he figured that after being folded up in the back of a Kia Sorrento on the way to and from Mammoth, this was luxurious travel.

Then came our tour of the Midway, and Truman's first brush with military accommodations. I think he's decided enlisted life is not for him. His closet at home is bigger than these measly lockers....



He does, however, want to steer. This is nothing new.



The ship was full of interesting smells and noises, and we even managed to find some unusual surfaces to walk on. Not too bad for a floor you can see through:



And here, Truman hopes the "remain very still until it goes away" snake avoidance principle also holds true for bombs:



Truman and me, all squinty on the flight deck at the end of the day:



We exited the ship a couple times during the day so Truman could relieve and have a bit of out-of-jacket time, which he seemed to appreciate. He's a confident dog, seemingly unafraid of anything, but he still has a tendency to get overwhelmed with excitement in new places, and it was nice to let him have a little on-leash shuffle time on the grassy area adjacent to the dock, to let off some steam.

After our tour, we had a quick bite to eat at a nearby deli, then boarded the train at about sunset for the enjoyable trip back home. He was more than happy to sleep the whole way.

8 comments:

emily said...

I'm loving the pink Converse... Looks like you guys had fun!

JuliaR said...

What a great (grate?) opportunity for a variety of new things for him to experience. Some dogs don't do at all well with open floors and open stairs so I am pleased for him.
For more of our San Diego pix, have a tour through Peter's collection (larger than mine) at his Flickr site. There are several nice pix of the Midway (and the other ships) from the hotel and from the dock:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bikeriders/sets/72157594306079257/

Lisa and pups said...

WOW - what a neat trip! Love the pic of Truman being wary of the bomb.

Natalie said...

Awesome pics! Truman is SO handsome and his smiley face is ADORABLE!

Emily said...

Glad he was good. Great pictures, Truman is so handsome :)

Trish ~ ♥ ~ said...

Ok, so if guiding doesn't work out for Truman and he seems to have his sea legs, perhaps he can enlist in the Navy. Although, I would rather see him in the Marines. He just seems more like a "Devil Dog" than a "Bubble Head". Oorah!

cube said...

Truman is such a good boy. My dogs would've been yelping at all the excitement.

Kimberly and Rufus said...

Sounds like a fun day!