Well, it only took 6 months to get him from Texas to Zurich, but he finally made it.

To say I’m an expert at Pet Export/Import between the United States and Switzerland is an understatement. And to say I underestimated the amount of time, money and effort it would take to work the process is also an understatement.

If you’ve ever owned a dog, you probably would have done the same thing. There’s something about pets, horses included, that no matter how alone you feel, or how rotten your day has gone, they will always have a smile in their heart that transcends all gloom and ickiness.

Uncle Henry has so far travelled farther than most of my family – let’s hope they’ll come visit him 🙂 And, here in Switzerland, he’s been treated like royalty. The restaurants bring dog bowls to the tables and offer food. They don’t believe in cropping tails and ears and don’t allow dogs with that into the country as they believe it’s cruel and hinders their natural communications (with their tails). Since Uncle Henry technically “moved with me”, he’s an exception. And boy is he. It’s almost like Hollywood came to Zurich. Everyone wants to touch him and pet him. If I had given him a pen, he would have been signing autographs all day long. I could have paid for his airfare with all the kiddos that wanted to love on him today. He was in heaven for sure.

And then there’s the office. I took him both days after his arrival. I must say, our meetings are much “calmer” with a dog in the room. It’s like no one wants to be mean in front of the dog – LOVE IT! Everyone loves having him there and it forces me not to sit at a deck all day, but get out and get fresh air. As you recall, my office is on the side of the hills with cow pastures directly behind us, so he’s feeling right at home.

It’s been a while since I’ve had an apartment dog. And certainly never one that used to be a ranch dog. But the effort, 5 days in, is well worth it. Kind of like managing two horses from 5,380 miles away. Difficult, but wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.

Psalm 23:1,2 The Lord…He lets me rest in fields of green grass and leads me to quiet pools of fresh water.