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Since Dylan’s Thundershirt arrived, we haven’t had a single thunderstorm… until this afternoon.  Mom heard it coming so quickly put the shirt on Dylan before it arrived. So does it work?

It seems to help. Dylan is definitely calmer. He paced a bit and looked worried after the first thunderclap, and ran to snuggle with his mom. But then so did Dee Dee. Only Dora ignored the storm – she’s the bit of black sleeping behind Dee Dee.

It’s a great improvement. The storm wasn’t as extreme as past ones. We’ll need one more test with a real doozy of a storm. Overall, his mom is pleased. If Dylan is happy, everyone is happy.  Sweet boy.

Yesterday, the crew’s dad spent several hours under the engine room floorboards cleaning and pepping the bottom in preparation for painting.  It’s dirty. It’s greasy. It’s hot. And it’s uncomfortable. Given all those things, Mom still ended up with the short straw. She bathed, cleaned ears, and trimmed nails on all three dogs. It was exhausting.

Dylan, Dee Dee, and Dora hate all three events, ears being the worst. It’s no spa treatment for them. Although they do get their favorite treat when it’s over. The only time Mom breaks out this prize.

But the results were, almost, worth it. For Dee Dee it’s hard to tell anything was done. She looks the same before and after. Pretty girl.

With Dylan there’s no doubt as his beautiful back curls come into all their glory. Handsome boy.

Dora is a bit more subtle. Her white fur brightens considerably.

For now the Red Head crew is clean and sweet smelling. Of course, that will probably change once they head out to the dog park. Sigh….

Dylan, Dee Dee, and Dora had a great run after leaving Key West. Eight days of great to practically perfect weather. Well, almost. Unfortunately, there were several brief but rambunctious thunderstorms in the evenings. Red Head and her crew were safe but poor Dylan was very unhappy.

Dylan appears to be following in the footsteps of his grandma Dyna. She went through a period of about a year where thunderstorms sent her into a panic. The time coincided with her hearing declining. We surmised that the sounds became strange to her. At any rate, she stopped when her hearing was pretty much gone.

We’ve noticed lately that Dylan seems to be having trouble hearing. Not really surprising, he’ll be 13 soon. Now he has also started to become distressed in a storm. When the thunder starts, he becomes inconsolable. He often “escapes” to the tub or shower, clawing at the tile. It’s heartbreaking to watch and frustrating as we are unable to settle him down.

We know several dog owners who swear by the Thundershirt, so we decided to get one for Dylan. It arrived today and we think old Dylan looks rather distinguished. We’ll give it a try the next time the thunder rolls in. Keeping fingers crossed.

After a day of high winds and rain, the sky cleared in the early evening and gave us a beautiful double rainbow. (The second rainbow is barely visible on the right side.) Django’s dad snapped a picture of it over Red Head. Hopefully another good omen.

There’s an additional surprise in the picture.  Can you spot it?

Dora heard Jason on the dock and had to have a peek.

According to legend, a bird on your boat is good luck. We have had several over the years. This afternoon a beautiful tiny black bird with gold markings was flying around the salon. It landed near the window in the mezzanine. Jeff opened the window and the little guy eventually flew out unharmed. What about the kids you ask. They didn’t bat an eye.

We are leaving soon to head north out of the hurricane zone. We’ll take this as a good omen.

The kids have been making good use of their time in quarantine.

Today is Dee Dee’s seventh birthday.

Dee Dee joined the crew on aCappella under the tutelage of First Mate Dylan. Life has never been the same.

After weeks of brutal heat and humidity, there is a break in the weather. The crew is enjoying sitting out on the back deck again and the sisters even played some bitey face at the dog park.

Happy Birthday, Dee Dee! We all love you, even Dora…

Django often comes to the dog park on the weekend. Dora featured her friend on the blog just last week.

Dora and Django always have a good time.

Today Dad decided we should let Dee Dee join in too. We’re not sure if it was the training we’ve been working on or just the fact Django is twice her size, but Dee Dee was the perfect dog park buddy. What a good girl.