Dogbnb

My husband used to periodically float the idea that we would manage some rental properties. It was something his parents do with great success. My answer was always an empathic No. I can barely, just barely, tolerate keeping our home in working order. The idea of increasing the amount of time I would have to spend on home maintenance, and at a distance too, was not something I relished.

Then he tried the idea of a home swap. Again, we have friends who have traveled extensively swapping their home for another family’s in some exotic locale. Let’s just say I wasn’t enthusiastic.

So, you can understand that it was with a bit of surprise that I realized I had started on the slippery slope of airbnbs.

My older son has a thriving pet sitting business and now that our beloved Pettigrew is busy barking at mail carriers in the sky, we have a dog-sized hole in our family.

When my son sits for the “right” dog, the dog moves in for the duration. OK, so far only one dog has met our high standards, but still….

This evening my son drove up with Zadie. He dropped her off at the house while he went back to the car to get her bin of food.

Zadie acted just like we do when entering an Airbnb. She first checked the essentials: was the water bowl full? With periodic checks on the window and door to monitor my son out at the car, she proceeded to explore her new living quarters.

Gate at the bottom of the stairs. Hmm, like the locked closets in a rental, she quickly figured out that space was not included in her home stay.

The dog bed with a stuffed sloth and monkey took some additional attention: careful sniffing of the sloth and ginger steps on the bed to gauge the firmness. Clearly, she was assessing the options and deciding where she intended to sleep: rug at the bottom of the stairs? Sofa? Dog bed? Rotate among them?

In our list of amenities, we offer curated walks through a lovely, green neighborhood featuring a variety of tactile and olfactory experiences. We also provide semi-supervised free time in a backyard boasting tennis ball tosses as well as ample sun and shade for her napping pleasure.

I’m pleased to report that Zadie is settling in nicely although she does require assistance with doors. Either she hasn’t figure out that she can push the screen door open or she just relishes the idea of getting us to do her bidding.

Update: After returning to her home, she has come back for a few visits and demonstrated with alacrity and assurance that under the right circumstances, she can open our screen door by herself, thank you very much!