Zeus Update

We got some not-so-good news yesterday... I spoke with the guy who has been helping us arrange for Zeus to travel as in-flight oversized cargo on September 7th, one-way to Pico Island in Portugal and he said it may not happen as we had hoped. The European Union placed new rules/reporting regulations on all international customs and these changes were officially implemented and enforced on July 1 of this year. As of yesterday's date, August 18th, SATA Airlines has not completed their part in the changes and even though my cargo guy has submitted (more than once) for an exception in our case, he has not recieved a positive answer. I'm not giving up yet but I am definitely scared. I told John (our cargo guy) that IF its only a matter of days or even weeks, we can change our flight; postponing when we leave so we can take Zeus with us. John said he does not know how to answer that question at this time. Another idea would be that Zeus stays behind (😭) and we come back for him when he is allowed to travel - whenever that may be. I did ask John whether this was a permenant situation or not and confidently he said 'no, this is temporary'. John also told me a sad story of another client wanting to ship their loved one's body back to Portugal to be buried and they were told no because of the current customs cargo situation 😢.

I have said this often and I mean it; Zeus has been and is our greatest stress with this move.

We made a decision (mostly me) to get a dog roughly 10 years ago and since then, we pledged our love and loyalty to this affectionate goofball. The thought of being seperated, literally leaving him for any amount of time, is devastaing. We did it when we moved to the U.S. - he stayed with friends for approximately 5 months and I was not this emotional. Maybe it's because he was 5 years old at that time, or maybe its because of the distance, or maybe its my attachment because he has been by my side everyday while we were self-employed.

Since we've been back in Canada, visiting friends and family, we take Zeus with us as often as we can and one of the places he enjoys visiting is my dad at his nursing home. I made the mistake of telling my dad about the Zeus situation when we spoke last night and my dad's reaction was so unexpected - he said if he could take Juice he would 😔 (he can't say Zeus's name so he calls him Juice). Places for Zeus to stay are not a worry for me - we are so lucky to have friends and family that would gladly love our furball. My heart aches at the possibility that he won't be with us.

I wish this was a happier post - something more uplifting and exciting but instead, it's another test of our patience. As soon as I have ANY update - I will share it. The next expected phone call on this particular issue is August 24th; exactly two weeks from our flight date 🤞

Prayers and positive thoughts are greatly appreciated 💕