Let’s name the thing: building your weekends around the dog is not a consolation prize for some other life. It’s a design choice, and a good one. Sleep in, long brunch on a patio, the big trail, a taproom where she falls asleep under the table by four — the dog isn’t keeping you from the good version of a weekend. The dog is the excuse for it.

Travel the same way. Pick the city for its dog infrastructure the way other travelers pick for museums — some cities are simply built for this and some are a $150 pet fee wearing a bandana. Read the fine print like it’s the itinerary, because it is: the fee, the size limit, and above all the can-they-be-left-unattended line, which quietly decides whether you two get a dinner reservation all trip. One stay that genuinely wants the dog beats three that tolerate her.

The honest caveats come in a pair. You will spend on this dog what other households spend on cleats and recitals — spend it on experiences over gadgets; she doesn’t want the $90 travel bowl, she wants the trail. And build the boring-weekday routine with the same care as the itinerary, because a dog whose whole life is adventure has no gear for a Tuesday. The regulars you’ll meet at the usual places, by the way, turn out to be your people. That part isn’t in any guidebook. It’s just true.