Maine Coon Madness at the Omni

Since they weren't stressed out enough with all of our April travels, Jerry scheduled a massive carpet cleaning and floor refinishing job the week after Crescent City.  After meeting with the technician and being told that the cats and I could remain in the house while this was being done, the night before they begin work, Jerry reads the instructions that clearly state pets and children cannot walk on the floors until the stain-proofing and stone sealant has been dry 8 hours.  Now, with every floor in every room being worked on, over a 48 hour period, I wasn't exactly sure where that left us.

Enter the Omni!  They were so nice to us - said they have lots of guests who live out remodeling projects with their pets at the hotel.  Now the boys are accustomed to getting in the car, but they know the pattern.  If only one cat goes and they're put in the small carrier, that means they're going to the vet ... SCARY.  If both cats go and they're put in the big car kennel - and both Jerry and I are in the car - they know they're going to Galveston.  So this morning, when I loaded them and some supplies into the car kennel - without Jerry - they KNEW something bad was going down.

This feeling was reinforced when we arrived at the Omni.  Jerry had walked over from his office to help get them in the room, but those "helpful valets" didn't seem to understand that it's different with cats checking into a hotel than it is with dogs!  I would have taken a photo of them riding on the luggage cart inside their kennel, but I was too focused on praying that Elvis would not break through the mesh and take out the bellman's legs.

For some time after we arrived in the room, Elvis was in the back of the kennel, UNDER his bed!  This was uncharted territory and he wasn't happy.

He's quick to "spark" and fairly quick to adjust ... within a short time, he was making himself at home.

Maybe a little TOO much at home!

By the next morning, they were feeling pretty confident - except when someone from the hotel knocked on the door or dared to enter the room with a room service order.

At one point, Denny appointed himself "door guard" and did a good job of keeping us safe.

I guess you know it's time to go when the cats get in their kennel - clearly wanting to go home.  We checked out the evening of the second day - thinking the carpets (cleaned first) should be safe for them that night.

It was not easy, moving half the contents of the house into the garage and hauling the cats to a hotel, but they did a good job and I won't have to deal with that again for a while!