Rusty and the Orca

Cruising with a pet companion is a delight, and from our own experience, boating and adventure wouldn't be the same without our furry family member. But you outta be prepared if you want the best outcome from a lovable pet on your boat. Here's a few tips you might want to consider if you're going to have a pupper residing on your boat (or more specifically, a tug):

• If you have any breed of dog that is considered a "sport" or "hunting" dog, prepare to get wet. Especially when you're on anchor and have to beach a dinghy on shore, there's no avoiding your pup going for a swim. Always have towels and a brush handy!
• Have a nice place on your boat for your pet to lie down and recover from the If you get too hot from the heat, your pet will most likely get too hot as well.
• Lastly, there's no time when your dog won't love a good adventure. Take them everywhere, all the time, trust me, they won't mind. If you're with them, at sea or on land, they're happy!

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One of my favorite moments from having Rusty aboard was around a year ago, when our family was adventuring the Broughtons, BC. We had encountered a pod of killer whales (or "orcas"), breaking the waves, surrounding us with their overwhelming magnificence. There was a brief moment when one of the whales submerged near our boat, and we had lost sight of it. And boy, did we have a scare. Suddenly, Rusty started barking, perhaps frightened or curious, on the back deck of our Ranger 29. There, feet away from the golden retriever, the orca broke the surface with an intimidating spout of air.

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The whole family scrambled to the back deck, squealing like seagulls, catching a last glimpse of the astonishing marine mammal vanishing below the surface, right next to our boat. Our dog had just barked at a 6 ton cetacean. Even after the whale was gone, Rusty’s ears were perked up, his haunches stretched all the way out, leaning over the side of the boat. We held onto him like he was going to fly away after the pod.

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Who knows what was going through his head, but one thing's for sure; Rusty was just as exhilarated by the whole encounter as we were!