Take Morey Out to the Ball Game

Every year our church hosts an outing to a Round Rock Express baseball game. It is a fun event and I look forward to it each summer. In the past, I have left Morey at home but this year he got to attend because I didn't have time after work to take him home. There were a few unexpected things I hadn't anticipated, but as usual, Morey handled each new adventure like a pro.

I rode to the game with a couple from church. I sat in the front of their vehicle because it was easier for me to get into that seat, which left Morey and Beth to sit in the back. It's a good thing Beth likes Morey because he tried to take up way more than his fair share of the back seat. He graciously allowed her space to sit down and then laid his head in her lap. I think we may need to work on Morey's ability to share!

Morey was a little distracted by all of the hubbub at the stadium, but he easily redirected back to me and behaved himself quite well. Thankfully our seats were in the shade so we weren't too hot as we waited until the sun went down. One of the event staff kindly brought Morey a complimentary container of water to enjoy (I tried not to have my feelings hurt because no one offered me a free drink!).

 

Even the dog houses are bigger in Texas!

At some point during the game, we decided to take a stroll around the stadium and we stumbled upon the biggest dog house in Texas! Spike the bull dog is the Express' mascot and he has a dog house inside the stadium. Spike wasn't at home when we were there so Morey got to test out the dog house.

 

Are you a friend or foe?

Later as we continued our stroll, we ran into Spike. Morey wasn't quite sure about meeting such a strange looking "thing" and he stretched out his body to sniff Spike, then retreated back to me. He did this several times and although he was curious, he still wasn't too sure what to think.

 At the end of the game, there was a firework show. Morey hadn't been concerned about the fireworks in our neighborhood on the 4th of July at all so I hadn't really thought these fireworks would be an issue. However, fireworks set off at home are a little different than a professional show and Morey quickly decided that he does not like fireworks. As the first few went off, he became very concerned and I thought I might have to leave. I don't know how dogs see fireworks but Morey could obviously see something because he would stare at the sky as each one went off. However, after a few minutes he seemed to realize that the loud noises were nothing dangerous and although he was still tense, he wasn't as alert as he had been at first. He finally turned with his head facing away from the fireworks, trying his best to ignore what was happening until they were over. Morey has such good coping strategies!

We don't usually stay out so late and we were both tired by the time the game was over. Morey took a nap on the way home and then spent most of the next day catching up on his beauty sleep. I'm not sure if Morey really enjoyed his evening at the baseball game, but I was proud of his ability to handle several new and unusual experiences.