“Happiness is a warm puppy.” – Charles Schultz

You see this cutie? Her name is ZuZu, and this is her first RV trip. (Spoiler alert: She loves life on the road!)

ZuZu is a 7-month old Shih Tzu. We brought her home when she was just an itty-bitty pup of 8 weeks, and she is now the great joy in my life. She’s my buddy, my pal, and she’s currently softly snoring at my feet.

Bill and I have been RV’ing for a few years now, and our two cats (Henry & Emily) have been with us from the start. They are “reluctant” RV Venturers at best. (See our article: Traveling with Cats.) However, with ZuZu – well, she’s up for anything! And that is what makes RV’ing with dogs so much fun.

But ZuZu’s not a dog. At least, not yet. She’s a p-u-p-p-y! And puppies are notorious for chewing and tinkling and all-around mess-making. So I was a bit worried before we hit the road and headed south for a couple months in the coach. How would she do with her potty training? (She’s “trained” to go indoors on a Piddle Place.) What about getting her spayed while we are hundreds of miles away from the only vet’s office that she’s known? Will she bark and be yappy when she’s left alone in the coach? I had a lot of thoughts, a lot of concerns. But by and large, all that worrying was for naught. She has adapted so wonderfully! She does not bark excessively, she’s only had two “accidents” in the coach (one was this morning!), and through the recommendation of a fellow RV’er, we found a wonderful veterinarian here in Orlando who took good care of ZuZu when it was time for her to be spayed.

If you have been RV’ing for awhile, you know that there are a lot of folks traveling with their dogs. And having a dog now myself is just one more bond I have with my fellow RV’ers. ZuZu wants attention from everyone we pass as we walk around the RV park. So because of her, I get to meet more people than my shy self would have otherwise. Unfortunately she tinkles with excitement every time someone pets her, but I’m hoping she grows out of that. Please tell me she’ll grow out of that! But if she doesn’t, then just be aware should you run across me and ZuZu out for a walk. (Meaning, you won’t want to pick her up! She’ll tinkle away in puppy bliss as if she just drank from the well!)

To end this post with some major cuteness, here are a few more pics of ZuZu so you can get to know her better…

 This is ZuZu on the mend after her spay. Cute even in a cone!

Here she is before we got her hair cut short.

And this is her, banished from the bedroom after this morning’s “tinkle” accident.