Many of us wish we could hop on a plane and travel the world with an unlimited budget and an endless sky of possibilities. But, for the most part, reality and the doldrums of everyday life prevent that from happening. But that’s not the case for Skipper, a globetrotting Jack Russel Terrier. Hailing from Shropshire in England, Skipper spends his days touring Europe or sailing tropical seas with his owner, Jon. Skipper has been to more countries than your annoying college roommate with rich, absent parents, and he doesn’t take all his experiences for granted, because he’s a cute little dog.

A real-life Wishbone (maybe not in the book sense, but definitely in the adventure sense), Skipper has traveled throughout Europe, the Caribbean and other places simple humans dream about visiting. Skipper’s experiences range from sailing a 54 foot yacht with his human to the Caribbean to paddle boarding on a canal in Wheaton Aston, England to his most recent nine week European tour that had him visiting well-known landmarks in France, Switzerland, Italy, Spain and Andorra (ruff life for sure!) in a decked out VW Camper van. Don’t we all wish we could be Skipper, traveling around the world with his only care in the world being when and where his next dog treat will come from.

It may seem like traveling with your pet might be easy, but Jon admits, while Skipper is one of the best traveling companions around, the logistics of bringing a dog around the world with you can be cumbersome. He has to research all the places he wants to go to understand the laws that govern whether or not pets can come into the country and if they have to be quarantined once there. Skipper has his own personal dog passport, and when flying is required for their journey Jon has to put Skipper in the plane’s hold, which can cost anywhere between $1100 to over $1500. Also, some of the countries they travel to won’t allow Skipper in (Morocco required Skipper to go into quarantine if he had come into the country), so planning for those moments is also of importance for Jon.

Skipper’s racked up a travel itinerary that could be envied by some of the most seasoned travelers. With trips to St. Lucia, the Canary Islands, Morocco, Italy, Switzerland, a five-month sailing trip around the coast of Portugal and many other destinations, Skipper lives a life the majority of citizens can only dream about. Jon, who is a property developer, knows he can trust Skipper to be a good travel companion because of Skipper’s fondness for traveling and his ability to get along with almost everyone, although Skipper has been banned from the Mont Blanc boules (a European game that consists of throwing or rolling heavy balls) tournament because he disturbed the balls. But despite that, Jon and Skipper will continue to travel the world and rack up a list of destinations only dreams could make a reality.


Would you travel with your pet if you could? Do you wish you were Skipper?


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Brittany Valli
Brittany Valli
Crafting stories from a young age, Brittany was destined to be a writer (well, she thinks so). When she's not working on various novels, short stories or screenplays, she can be found exploring Oregon's many landscapes with her husband, tasting some of the best wine, beer and food Oregon has to offer, relaxin' in a hammock, walking her dogs, or laughing at jokes only she thinks are funny. You can find more about Brittany here: brittanyrvalli.weebly.com (it's a work in progress)