It's that time of year again... As the leaf-peepers wend their way from the big cities into the bumpy country roads in our part of New Hampshire, and kids cavort among local apple orchards and pumpkin fields, the dog-loving population of Northern New England (and beyond) will be packing up their cars and trucks and heading North. That's right, Dogfest is this Sunday in St. Johnsbury, Vermont!

As I wrote here after our first trip to this free annual event hosted by internationally renowned artist Stephen Huneck, "few events can match the unadulterated dogginess of Dogfest." Last year, temperatures were in the low 60s the day of the event, and autumn's scarlet and gold could still be seen even as far north as St. Johnsbury. The setting--the Huneck's 400-acre mountain-top farm called Dog Mountain--affords a bird's eye view of the Northeast Kingdom's rolling hills for the several hundred (human) guests, and untold numbers of canine counterparts.

As regular readers know, ours is a two-dog household: Between 15-month-old Brontë, the bouncy yellow lab, and 15-year-old Chaucer, the famous fox terrier, we strike a daily balance between chaos and quiet. Brontë is up for a hike, a run, or swim anytime, anywhere, making her a great traveling companion for our more active adventures. But after a year's worth of day trips and cross-country treks with both of them, I've come to the conclusion that senior dogs truly make the best road-trip companions!

#1

Older dogs turn a deaf ear--literally, in many cases--to your choice of road-trip music and the sound of you singing (perhaps tonelessly) at the top of your voice.

#2

Older dogs are not ready for their next 45-minute break running around a park two minutes after their last romp. (They do require regular breaks to stretch their legs and relieve themselves, but a cozy patch of grass is all that's necessary--not an extensive walking area or leash-free dog park.)

#3

Older dogs let you drive in peace and quiet when you want to. Chaucer now uses his favorite car toy as a pillow rather than for incessant squeaking.

I will write another time about the packing list for the dogs that we've developed over the years. For today, I'd like to address the one item which tops that list: canine sedatives! I'm devoting an entire post to the subject of Chaucer's "happy pills" not because they're a daily essential for Chaucer--anymore--but to give hope to everyone else out there whose dogs suffer severe anxiety in hotel rooms.

There was a time when charming little Chaus turned into something of a demon the minute we locked ourselves into a hotel room for the night. Frenetically pacing, hyperventilating, his heart pounding so hard I thought he'd keel over, the poor dog was literally possessed by fear. Oblivious to any form of comfort, he heard nothing, saw nothing--even a hot, juicy hamburger waved under his nose couldn't break the fiendish spell. (Alas, no, I had not crate-trained him as a puppy. We have not made the same mistake with Brontë.)

Upon arrival, one of us would distract him while the other camouflaged his exit to freedom, constructing a garage-sale jumble of chairs, suitcases, and bicycles in front of the door. Even when he figured this out (which, of course, he did), far better to have him maniacally raking an old piece of luggage than the doorframe.

We take it for granted--our freedom to move about these United States at will, barred only temporarily by the occasional traffic jam or displeased police officer with a radar gun. I remember a girl in my fifth-grade class, whose family had just returned from several years in the Middle East, telling her incredulous school chums about how women were not allowed to drive in the country she had been living in.

As you prepare to head off on your holiday weekend adventures, keep in mind our nation's military traveling around the world to protect our lives, our liberty, and our freedoms.

At our book publishing company--thanks to the generosity of our star author "Chaucer the Dog"--we're celebrating America's birthday all month long, with a special campaign to benefit the children of our military men and women.