Doggy Saturdays

Every Saturday at 11.00, I fetch Meggie and Badger and take them for a lovely walk.  It is one of the highlights of my week after spending hours sitting in front of a computer.  They don’t care where we go or how long we are out.  They don’t even care about the weather.  They just want a bit of time to run around and express their personalities.

There’s a fabulous walk we often do, from their house to the park, and then on to the river valley where they can jump in and out of the water to keep cool, and we can all enjoy the shade of the trees.

Come on!

Dogwalkers are very sociable people and we’ve met lots of regular walkers and made lots of doggy friends over the summer.  Bonbon the chocolate labrador and Stanley the spaniel have a really cool blue toy which they are happy to share.

Meggie leaping for the blue toy

Sometimes I fancy going somewhere different, just for a bit of variety.  But I’ve avoided taking the dogs further afield because they don’t like the car very much.  Badger won’t settle; he jumps from the back seat to the front and then onto my lap.  Basically he wants to drive the car.  And Meggie, typical neurotic collie, is stressed by Badger not sitting still, and freezes on the back seat.   I have recently solved this by installing a new seat cover on the back seat.  It attaches to the headrests front and back to create a sort of hammock.  There’s now enough of a barrier between front and back to stop Badger jumping forwards, and they can’t fall off the back seat into the footwells.  So they feel much more secure travelling in the car and we’ve had a couple of lovely walks checking out new footpaths on the edge of town.

Badger in his element up on the moors

On the way back, they are tired and happy and relaxed and they lie down on the back seat for a snooze till we get home.

At home the routine is, treats, fill up water bowls, and chat about our adventures whilst I give them both a lovely brush.  My goodness they are much easier to brush than cats!  They both love it.  Meggie sits still like a princess having her hair done.  She even gives me her paw if she thinks I’m stopping.  Badger rolls over on his back and offers me each side to make sure I don’t miss a bit.

Meggie in her element on an open field

Then I say goodbye and I miss them like mad until the next Saturday.

Volunteer dogwalking and pet care is arranged for free by The Cinnamon Trust.

 

 

 

Premium service, thank you

They love being outside at night time, the cats.  They’ve dozed all day in the heat, and they come alive in the cool of the evening.  Sometimes they refuse to come in at bedtime, and stay out on patrol all night.  Uncle Herbert howls outside the kitchen when he wants to come in.  Sometimes as early as 5am.  But last night the howling started a lot earlier than that…at 12.15 am!  Yes, I had been asleep for all of 40 minutes.

Uncle Herbert

I went downstairs to the kitchen and opened the door.  Herbert was sitting on the path, but instead of darting inside, he just stared at me and howled again.

Animals are very intelligent and they do their best to communicate with us.  So what was he trying to tell me?  A shape appeared at the gate.  It was Monty!  Then I understood – Herbert did not want Monty to be left outside on his own.  He would not come in without Monty!

Monty

Now, there are 2 routes into our garden when the gate is shut.  Over the low wall at the back, or over the high wall via the tree platforms at the front.  But Monty was sitting outside the gate, saying ‘Meeeh!’  Despite his considerable size, he sounds like a little mouse.  After 8 years, I still find it slightly surprising.

‘Meeeeh!’  he said again.  I have learned what this means, when he sits outside the gate.  It means ‘I would like Premium service, human.  I do not wish to navigate the wheelie bin, the high wall, and the tree platforms, in order to get into the garden, on this occasion, thank you’.

So, in pyjamas and bare feet, I went down the steps, opened the gate, picked up all 8kgs of Monty, and carried him into the house, with Uncle Herbert trotting after us.

And where was Larry, when all this was going on?  He was asleep in bed with the OH, being a good boy, for once.

Larry