Best boat pet/mascot?

[westsail374]

So many folks talk about the pet/companion they carry aboard with them.

Of course, if you have a pet you love to begin with, that pet is the one you will bring with you. We sailed with a great long haired little mutt named Burrito. A guy on Bequia offered to trade his car for the dog!

But, from a clean slate, what would you recommend?

DOGS are frequent choices. Which are best, and why?

Short haired breeds would seem good from a messiness and comfort (for the dog) in the tropics view.

They provide security. Barking can awaken sleeping sailors to danger from pirates or a shifting anchor.

Smaller ones have long been used as rat catchers.

No litter box odors.

CATS, as Zeehag and others will argue, have many advantages.

PARROTS are pirate favorites, but they have a tendency to **** on one's shoulder.

What animal companion do you prefer, and why?

Bill

[WingingIt]

I'd be interested to know how people go with bringing their pets into countries. I've heard even in the Caribbean there are a lot of quarantine rules. How do you pet owners get on with these?

[Hudson Force]

I've been on my boat for 11 years now. I bark at other boats in the fog that those at the helm can only see on radar. I sing (howl) each time we raise the anchor and get underway. I enjoy rides in the dinghy, but I stay on board long term, leaving all my product on the stern where the crew rinses it off. I sit in the cockpit day or night when the crew is off in the dinghy and keep a close eye on who comes near. I run along next to the bicycle during trips the grocery store or sometimes ride in the basket. If you'd like to hear more, let's do lunch,- I'm always ready for lunch!

[letsgetsailing3]

Labs are great boat dogs.

Well, apart from the hair cleanup.

[simonmd]

If going for a dog, think about the practicalities of getting them on and off the boat. I personaly have 'Harvey', a smallish Terrier breed, who can be relatively easily lifted on and off and more importantly, out of the water. A dog the size of a Lab can weigh almost as much as a small adult when wet and would be very hard to get back on if he fell overboard.

As for paperwork etc, here in Europe we have the 'pet passport' scheme which allows free travel between all European countries.

[ty.gregory]

Captforce, what kind of dog are you? You're a beauty!

[tropicalescape]

I have a fish that I put on a leash when I go sailing ...He loves getting out of his bowl and stretching his fins,his favorite thing to do is ride the bow wave and do somersaults..It makes me smile when I see him having so much fun...OK ,I know what you are thinking ,what a smart ass(or dumb ass,whichever you prefer)...I thought it was funny and so does my fish on a leash....

[Hudson Force]

Originally Posted by ty.gregory

Captforce, what kind of dog are you? You're a beauty!

Actually the dog is Zorro, my schipperke. I try to keep him off my computer, but he keeps hacking my password!

[rebel heart]

From a guy who used to have one dog then two onboard, my answer is squarely: none.

If I had to have a pet I'd make it a cat. My dog was a schipperke which are one of the few boat breeds, but canal barges don't spend weeks at sea. We get photos from the new owners seeing our dogs happy and healthy, sleeping on the couches wearing sweaters and running around in fields with horses.

[westsail374]

Hard to decide whether or not to have a pet aboard. Really rough weather would be very dangerous.....

[zeehag]

this is the perfect critter for my boats--my pinche gato feo--bubba...smart and helpful--if he could only steer some.....or bleed fuel systems..lol

he never gets shore leave. not ever.
i take him to vet in a sherpa backpack for pets to 20 pounds.

in rough weather and on passages bubba wears harness and leash...easily located and he is happy.

[SmartMove]

Hopefully I posted pics of our choice. Wahoo, I figured it out!!!

Seriously though, we like cats. We are teaching the younger one to use the toilet (and are lucky enough to have a head dedicated to the cats). Like Zee, we are seeing that the cats are on guard and alert us. However, if we are off the boat I'm not sure anyone would be truly intimidated by them. We have had no problem getting the cats into the BVIs, of course we had all of the paperwork in order -- we will see this summer how it goes with the rest of the islands on the way to Grenada.

The only thing we might have changed??? Cats with short hair and that chewed with their mouth closed, LOL -- the older one is a slob when she eats, but she is 17 so exceptions can be made!

[minaret]

My last salty dog is unfortunately no longer with us.

[minaret]

He was awesome.

[minaret]

There's always a next generation though!