We took Kaiju to Paul’s parents home for the long weekend. It was Kaiju’s first looong drive (4.5 hours). The longest so far was in February before the injury, and it was supposed to be about 2 hours drive, which ended up taking a lot longer because of the total puke fest. We had to make frequent stops to clean up and comfort the sickly puppy.

We were better prepared this time. We gave him Cerenia, and had purchased a Kurgo Wander Hammock so cleanup will be easier just in case. He did very well for most of the way. Then, as soon as Paul said “we are almost there! 15 more minutes!”, he threw up.

Next morning, we took Kaiju out to the backyard, which is quite large. He was very nervous and scared in the house with all the unfamiliar pieces of furniture and rooms, but as soon as he was outside in this big open space, he seemed happy (but a little confused).

Too bad we couldn’t let him run free. The backyard was pretty much fully enclosed, but his left knee was still injured after all and it had been recommended to us that we restrict his activities.

Paul’s brother quickly became his favorite play buddy in the backyard. Every time Kaiju saw him, he’d get up, wag his tail, and go into a play bow. Luckly, we brought a long leash (30 feet), so we were able to let him have fun and stop him whenever it went on for too long.

On the 4th, Paul’s family and relatives gathered in the backyard for a nice grilling party that lasted for hours. It was a hot day, so we kept Kaiju mostly inside, but when he was outside, he got a plenty of attention. First came the kids who, with Paul’s guidance, managed to get Kaiju to grab little pieces of hotdog from their little hands.

Kaiju even got a little present from the girl who happily brought a flower to him after learning that he liked sniffing plants.

Throughout the day, Kaiju stayed cautious and nervous with anyone new approaching, with his tail down, but he remained a good sport. And for that, we are very thankful. He even let Paul’s aunt hold him, even though he didn’t look too thrilled about it…

Oh, and we were very happy to find out that, at least for now, he was not affected by the fireworks. The next-door neighbor was going crazy with their backyard fireworks (I heard they blew 2000 dollars in 45 minutes) and it was really loud. We went to check on him several times while it was going on, and found him back in his travel crate and resting quietly, every time.

Overall, the weekend was very successful. A week before going into another knee surgery, Kaiju had a really good time playing happily with Paul’s brother and with another dog, and got a lot of socialization with new people, a new environment, and car rides. It is a bit troubling to know that Kaiju would throw up even with the help of Cerenia, but oh well. I guess we’ll always have to have towels ready in the car.