A new chapter begins for us today. I wrote last year of the devastating loss of our two shepherds Hannah and Kendra. They were the best campers you could ask for. It was incredibly hard to lose them and then having them pass so close together was something we never imagined would happen.

Four months after Hannah passed we brought home Eva, our Sable Shepherd puppy. That was March 23rd, and she really doesn’t look like a puppy anymore. However, she still has her puppy energy and stubborn puppy attitude most of the time. A new chapter begins today with Eva taking her first camping trip. That trip will be about two hours down the road at Tyler State Park. If you haven’t visited this park, I highly recommend it. You can find our previous review of Tyler by clicking here.

Well, let me preface all of this by saying we have been camping with dogs non-stop since 1993. Shana, our first white shepherd was a consummate camper. The minute we loaded up her food dishes in the travel trailer, she made a beeline for the Van. She loved camping and we loved having her with us. She was such a great camper that we never thought twice about taking her and including her in just about everything we did.

Kaela and Hannah camping…Hannah is 18 months old.

Over the years as other puppies joined the Patterson household they went camping with us and their older four legged sisters. I don’t think there was ever a time where we wondered how a new addition would like camping; because the older dogs would be there to set an example.

Hannah and Kendra 2018

Times change, and now we have a six month old puppy that has not been raised with another dog. Complicating matters is that with the other dogs, we both worked; so they were a little more independent. Eva has been around us pretty much full time. We do go out and crate her occasionally and she does fine with some protest barking to begin.

I am a little nervous on how she will take to the occasional crating in the trailer, but time will tell. This first time camping will only be a two night excursion to test the water. We have a much longer trip coming in just a few weeks. As far as her familiarity with the trailer, that is not an issue. She has been inside a number of times and likes it. In fact she will run to the travel trailer and stand on the lower steps.

I think we will have to introduce her to the nuances of camping slowly so that she doesn’t get overwhelmed. So that means no excursions on this trip, just staying around the trailer with perhaps one time crating as we take a short walk around the campground, then reward with a treat on our return. Eva will also need to get used to being tethered outside the trailer with us. That might be a bit of an adjustment.

I’ll blog each day to say how things are going. The other girls set the bar pretty high, hopefully things will go well.

To follow along on this trip click here.