I suspect, that no matter how much time you think you have, those last hours before you leave for months, just fly by. I got my 2 large suitcases to Fed Ex and now that is off my list of things to do. I've changed my purse
several time. I need my hands and shoulders free to hold Dixie or her crate , so I don't want to be fiddling with anything, or any extra weight on my shoulders. I started with a back pack, but I don't have
much to put in it . A small purse is too small for my iPad. A fanny pack ,the same. I settled on a purse I hadn't planned to take. It made the cut. Following my Vet's suggestion that really worked for Dixie
when we traveled here, I gave her a first dose of her sedative . 1/3 of a pill. That knocked her out, totally, all day and into the night. She still wags her tail and is breathing, but that is as active as she is. I took her out to pee and
she laid down. For the trip, she will get 1/4 dose. I wish that she were a better traveler. Poor baby.