Summer's Trip to New Zealand

At nine years old, the Border Terrier had settled into a life she understood: her people, her home in Seattle, her familiar walks. She was loving and sweet, but very reserved. New places made her uneasy. New situations made her anxious. So when her family decided to move halfway around the world to New Zealand, the question hung heavy over every conversation: Could Summer really make this journey?

She was not, by anyone's estimate, the sort of dog who would shrug off international air travel and quarantine.

That's where Sage at Starwood came in.

From the very first conversation in May, Sage understood that this move had two parts. The first was getting Summer safely to New Zealand. The second, just as important, was helping her family believe she'd be okay along the way.

Step by step, Sage guided them through New Zealand's import requirements. She helped them choose the right travel kennel and shared practical ways to help Summer grow comfortable with it long before departure day. And she took special care with something that mattered enormously for Summer: her anxiety medication. Sage worked with the family to make sure it was approved for import and could be given properly throughout the journey and quarantine, everywhere except the flight itself, where medication wasn't permitted.

The months of preparation added up. On September 11, Summer arrived safely in Napier, delivered all the way to her family's door.

Then came the surprise no one expected.

The kennel that once made Summer nervous had quietly become her safe little den. Now, as her family explores their new country, Summer rides along in a kennel in the car, settling in easily, calm and content, ready for wherever the road goes next.

These days, Summer is fully installed in her new life in Hawke's Bay. She supervises her people, investigates every new corner of her world, and carries herself as though moving across the Pacific was entirely their problem.

And the biggest twist of all? The journey her family feared might overwhelm her seems to have done the opposite. Summer is more confident now, more curious, more open to the world than ever before.

Her bucket list is simple: keep exploring.

Her family couldn't be more grateful to Sage and Starwood for helping them arrive in their new home together.