Moving to Maui (AMAL Tales) II

Part 2.

We had to arrive on Maui in time to meet the Pet Doctor there who decides if you can enter the island or have to go to jail. If you get there too late, you have to go to jail. Sunday, ditto. So my FP didn’t just say, “oh, okay then” to the counter girl, Casey, but asked to speak to her alpha. Linda called her alpha, who sent us to American. American had a great connection via LAX (sounds runny) straight to Kahului which could accommodate my crate and got in in plenty of time. Much jubilation. Then the American alpha came out and said that sadly, American has a policy that all pets must fly into Honolulu. FP pointed out our Neighbor Island Permit that we worked so hard for. I said WOOOOOO. The 50th person mentioned that I sound just like Chewbacca. The alpha said, yes, everything lines up just perfectly and she would be delighted to fly FP to Kahului, and personally she would be delighted to fly ME, but the airline has this ironclad policy. Don’t they like Malamutes over at American?? Only United could fly me to Maui. So back to the United counter we went.

And there stood the United alpha with a teeny, tiny little crate, about the size for a Pit Bull. Long story short, I was downsized (like FP). We were put on another flight and FP shed a tear or two to see me so squished. They put me in a smelly place with a lot of suitcases. Then someone who drives a lot better than FP drove for a long time. It did strange things to my ears, but I drank my ice when it melted and wooooed but nobody came. I even had to pee, it was gross.

At a place called Denver, some large men and ladies came and took me off the plane. Finally! No, it was not the end. They put my crate in the sunshine for a while – FP told me later that she was watching from the terminal like a hawk, which doesn’t sound very friendly. Then they put my crate on a huge crate dolly and closed curtains around it and moved us into a deafening place with hundreds of crate dollies all full of suitcases and even some other dogs and cats in crates. The large humans brought my own, Malamute-sized house and stood around talking a lot, then one of them brought my FP! I thought, Finally, but no. They just put together my house and moved me into it and took apart the PB crate and gave me some more water and everybody got to pet me and tell me how beautiful I am (duh) and how much I sound like Chewbacca, and they moved all the stickers from the tiny crate to my house, and I thought, “Uh oh.” And in fact, FP did have the gall to leave me there in what she called the railroad yard and made everyone promise to take good care of me and see that I got on the plane. And I did, together with an Appetizer dog and two Minor Snack dogs.

I will not sully your ears, dear Aunt Shel, with an account of the ensuing day. Again I found myself on the move, hoping desperately that a better driver than FP was at the wheel. This proved to be the case, since we arrived, long after I had given up all hope of the trip’s ever ending, at a cool and fragrant place.

The large people here delivered me into the hands of a lady with a lovely smile and twinkling eyes. I immediately recognized her for another Doctor, and so she proved to be – Dr Kim, from the Maui Humane Society, who had kindly come in on her day off to welcome me to Maui. She was very kind and gentle with me, and with FP, who was a shameful wreck by this time. She must have been in an even smaller crate than mine, the way she was creeping along, moaning at every step, bleary-eyed and brain-dead.

Fortunately, I was able to ignore her completely and turn my attentions to the vision of loveliness, the clean, fresh, beautiful and cheerful friend to all Malamutes, my new best friend, rescuer and benefactor, my dear Aunt Shel.

I think I will like it here.

Wooooooos, Miss Congeniality