Getting Bunny behind the wheel

Happy Friday! Today we kick off an exciting new occasional series of deep critical thinking.

I call it, “Travels with Bunny,” because I couldn’t think of anything catchier.

The concept is simple. I like driving for hours in the car. Turns out, so does Bunny. And…that’s about it. We take a drive, and I blog about our adventure.

Let’s go back to how all this started.

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We moved from Just Wright Citrus World Headquarters on the shores of Big Lake Henderson to World Headquarters III in September. Bunny had been with me less than a year. We were still figuring out one another.

I’m told dogs love routine, and my routine is I have no routine. I come and go at all hours of the day. Bunny had to get used to that.

I also knew from my Buddy days of the crate’s significance to everyone’s peace of mind. Buddy was able to transition to a crate-free lifestyle. Bunny, not so much. It’s not that I'd arrive home to find the house destroyed, but I never knew what she might get into.

The clincher was one Sunday morning, I was headed to see some friends when I remembered that, not only was Bunny roaming free at home, I had left my Bible and program from Deb’s service on the bed. I raced home to find that Bunny had ripped the cover off the Bible, but everything else was intact.

That spelled the end of any post-crate talk. And that was actually a good thing.

Bunny took quickly to the crate. We start the day early, usually at dawn, for a few minutes outdoors. She then trots into the crate, anticipating my leaving. Sometimes, she waits there for me to close the gate.

OK, well, that seemed to set the table. I’m out of the house a lot, and Bunny is safe in the crate. I started off at a maximum of an hour, then gradually increased. I try not to leave her there for more than five hours, so I plan my excursions around that time frame.

It was after I started driving Deb’s car that I wondered how Bunny would be as a passenger. We started with short trips; at first, her tummy didn’t react well, if you catch my drift. Eventually, that went away, and she’s a pretty happy car dog.

She’s in the back seat, close enough for me to reach around and scratch her ears at traffic lights. Rarely utters a sound. I can be blasting music or talking to myself, doesn’t matter. We even drove through a rainstorm and didn't rattle her at all.

After a few weeks of quick one- and two-hour drives, I wanted to see just how far I could drive before she needed a break. For me, it’s about two and a half hours. We took a drive north up U.S. 41 to High Springs (on the outskirts of Mikesville), nearly three hours away. A brief stroll near a local boat ramp, and we were back on the road heading home.

Two conclusions of Bunny the passenger:

— Bunny likes hanging out with me. That’s pretty cool.

— She must consider the car like a big crate. We’re both sitting there for long periods of time. She doesn’t panic if I stop at a store for a few minutes. Bunny knows I’m coming back.

So, rather than leave Bunny in her crate at home, sandwiched around a time constraint so she’s not confined too long, we’re hitting the road together.

I write about Citrus County politics, but it’s a shell of the community. I gotta get out and see what’s happening. Happy that my best friend is along for the ride.

Enjoy this Citrus County weekend with your friends, friends.

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