Pugs Who Crossed the Pacific | Sailing Some Tuesday

Mr. Pickles and Colonel Mustard side by side at an open hatch aboard Some Tuesday, blue sky behind them

They were supposed to be dinner.

I don’t say that for shock value. I say it because it’s true, and because every time I look at their squishy little faces I think about how close I came to never knowing them. In parts of South Korea, pugs are still eaten. Mr. Pickles and Colonel Mustard were headed for that fate when Korean Pug Rescue pulled them out. Two small dogs, one rescue, and a second chance that somehow ended up on a catamaran in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

If you have ever loved a dog, you already know how this story goes. I thought I was rescuing them. They rescued me.

They rescued me

Mr. Pickles came into my life at a time when I needed something to need me. There is nothing like a pug snoring on your feet to remind you that you are somebody’s whole world — and that getting out of bed is not optional, because somebody wants breakfast.

Meghan, smiling, hugging a pug tight to her chest — The day I adopted Mr. Pickles — my love bug, long before any of us had ever set foot on a sailboat.

From that day on, he was by my side for almost every moment. He came to work with me every single day. He was my office pet, my muse, and the unofficial mascot of Meghan Fabulous. And yes — of course a fashion designer’s dogs have a wardrobe. Bow ties, wigs, bunny ears, a pineapple. They wear it all with more confidence than most models I’ve dressed.

A pug in a white collar and black bow tie

Then one day the rescue called. They had a surplus of dogs and needed foster parents — could I take one, just for a little while? That’s how Colonel Mustard came home. I was supposed to give him back. But the moment Mr. Pickles met Colonel Mustard, they were inseparable, and I simply couldn’t do it. Every foster parent reading this is nodding right now.

The two pugs in matching harnesses, pressed shoulder to shoulder on a cushion

Frick and Frack

Mr. Pickles is my wise, well-behaved, special love bug. Colonel Mustard is… naughty. He’s just happy to be nominated and part of the team. They’re like Frick and Frack — they fight like brothers and they love each other like brothers, and they follow me everywhere I go. Everywhere. I don’t walk from the cockpit to the galley; I travel with an entourage.

They are needy, and they shed. A lot. Those are their only flaws, and I wouldn’t trade a single hair — and trust me, there are millions of them on our upholstery.

Both pugs in orange life jackets, standing together aboard the boat — Safety first. Fashion a very close second.

Sea legs

They’ve been sailing with us for eight and a half years now, and they have better sea legs than some humans I know. When Steve and I decided to sail around the world, there was never a version of the plan where they stayed behind. I couldn’t leave them. I am so thankful Captain Steve said yes.

I also want to be honest, for anyone dreaming of doing this with their own dogs: it is very hard to sail with pets. Every country has its own rules and restrictions, and it is very expensive. Some days the logistics feel impossible. And every single time, they are worth it — all of the trouble and all of the hard work it takes to get them there.

Both pugs in red outfits on the catamaran’s trampoline, with green hills and a bay behind them

The scares

Mr. Pickles has come very close to leaving us twice. The first was a big scare in Mazatlán, Mexico. The second was when we reached the Tuamotus. He was so sick. He didn’t move for three days. We were giving him water through a syringe, a little at a time, and I truly thought we were losing him. We planned his burial.

I don’t know how to describe what that feels like, except that if you have ever held an old dog and told him it’s okay, you already know.

A pug wrapped in a colorful blanket, resting his chin on a red cushion

So I did the only thing I could do. I held him, I snuggled him, and we prayed very hard. The next morning he woke up licking my face. We went from planning his goodbye to watching him get his life back. God answered our prayers, and I will never stop being grateful for that morning.

A pug lying on a striped blanket in the cockpit beside a pillow that says “Beach Please” — Back from the brink, and back to supervising.

Record breakers

Mr. Pickles is seventeen now. Colonel Mustard is fourteen. In April they crossed the Pacific with us — 28 days at sea — and became the first pugs to cross the Pacific on a private sailing yacht. At our shellback ceremony they were knighted with a conch shell, and the charges of excessive shedding on the new upholstery were noted for the record and forgiven. By the time Some Tuesday reaches Fiji, they will have sailed over fifteen thousand nautical miles in their lives. The pet paperwork we carry for that next leg is listed in the float plan.

When the opportunity comes, I’m submitting them to the Guinness Book of World Records. Wish us luck!

Meghan on the bow of Some Tuesday with Mr. Pickles and Colonel Mustard in matching crochet sweaters, the sun low over the water — Matching outfits, obviously.

Living their best lives

They are both so old. I know that. I know every sunrise at anchor with them curled up beside me is a gift, and I don’t take a single one for granted. Out here they have warm trampolines, sea breezes and a new view every week, and they bring a special light to every passage.

And they have so many fans. People fall in love with them everywhere we go, and it means the world to me. Thank you for loving my boys.

Both pugs in pink bunny ears and costumes

A pug in a pineapple costume, lying down

A pug in a tiny hat, head tilted toward the camera

Both pugs dressed in costumes on a paved path

Come along with us

If your heart belongs to a dog — or two — I would love for you to follow along. Mr. Pickles and Colonel Mustard show up on our Instagram and YouTube all the time, napping through passages and inspecting every new anchorage, and you can see exactly where they are right now on our live map.

Follow on Instagram Watch on YouTube See where they are now

Love, Meghan & the boys

Mr. Pickles and Colonel Mustard: The Pugs Who Crossed the Pacific