dibley dogs blog

Careful what we wish for!

Its been a hectic couple of weeks for my two leggeds so today with the sun out and a light breeze the idea of staying at home was not the most appealing option. So at lunchtime I made a sad face and insured it was seen and noticed and my two leggeds kindly took me for a short walk which ended up back at the hotel. One of the gret advantages of living near a hotel is that along with many friends and followers coming back each year so do some of the two leggeds

Then if I am lucky, wish very hard and look extremely appealing I can sometimes persuade others to offer to walk me. To be honest this is sometimes the advantage of having been joined by Mr Blue this spring as he seems to do hard done by and appealing faces far better than I have ever managed. So today was a day of looking appealing and not long after arriving at the hotel kennel-  Anne arrived and while she was going for a walk and missing her four leggeds, who are currently on holiday in Perthshire, there was a glint of hope that we could get out and go for a walk with her.

Clearly I have not lost all my appealing skills as soon we were off on ourway down to the water. After 15 minutes it was fantastic to be out in the fresh air running into the water and generally enjoying myself, after 30 minutes I was startiung to think of slowing down and after 45 minutes I was looking for a lift to get me home! We did however get all through the golf course and then headed to the heronry and the north side of the island. By now Mr Blue was starting to be a bit like Tigger and refusing to stop bouncing about-

With fields of Bluebells and spring definately in the air -who can blame him however he seemed intent onshowing Anne how much energy he had and making her continue walking. The only positive was that the more he ran the further in  front of us he was and the better it was for me being left on my own.

However it must be like this runninng a marathon and finding yourself detached form the rest of the pack --as soon the yard behind Anne became 10 and even without investigating or leaving the path I was really starting to slow up so it was time for some sympathy so i strated the slow methodical walk, head down, ears drooping and sad face!.

Well the good news is that it worked and Anne decided it was time to return back to the kennel and in truth it was incredibly appealing. Having wished to get out for a walk an hour ealier there was now certainly no such enthusiasm and I know I will sleep well tonight -- no doubt surrounded in a sea of blue bells in my dreams!

Short Election night!

Its been a busy week here as my two leggeds were away for a day and I moved out to stay with my sister. However when away i was a little led astray and had a day out wandering the island. It was proabably a pure misunderstanding as I thought in my two leggeds absence I was expected to monitor activity and my Sisters two legged seemed to think I was supposed to do this without dissappearing for 8 hours. Anyway no harm done except that my legs are sore and I ahve a bit of a hobble but this was not helped by a very short Thursday night!

 When my Two leggeds who had retruned from there trip away they did so in time fo rthe election, however I must have misunderstood their role in the election as not only did it involve the relatively simple task of going to the polling station and casting their vote but it also appeared to involve them sitting up for all hours of the night to monitior the results. I am not sure if they were expecting a call to ask their opinion or even form a government but it did disrupt my much needed sleep pattern so I was really pleased when last night everything semed to return to normal. Lets keep all paws crossed now that a long term solution for governement can be found as I am not ready to go through another sleepless night in the near future!

Holier than Though Image!!

This week I have been away on holiday but returned to Eriska and whilst it is always nice to have a break and change of scene returning to the smells and scents that you grow used to always makes a welcome retunr and especially here at eriska at tis time of the year with the birds parading on the lawn and the rabbits and deer in full force keeping me out of mischief!

Anyway I returned to my two legged talking in glowing terms about a recent visitor to the hotel.Vencice was agolden labrador who was in training to become a fully fledged guide dog. She came from a litter of "v's"  hence her name and her mother had been a breeding bitch for the guide dogs for the blind so she had been born into the service.  Obviuosly I would have liked to have followed this type pf career path but my two leggeds assumed they had better things for me to dio so who would argue!

Whilst I am sure she had many hidden talents I was pleased to see from the attached photograph that she was still a Labrador at heart- spot the nose for a biscuit in the pocket. We are all the same !!

Dogs Duties never done

Today I had the privilege of meeting one of my favourite visitors. Karen has known me since I was wee and indeed it is thanks to her that I have changed my diet and now have less pain in my joints. She met my two legged a couple of years ago and managed to offer a remote prognosis to my condition and by changing my main meal to JD food I have been able to move more easily and have been less stiff in the mornings especially after a cold night and fresh dawn.

Anyway today she offered to take me out for a walk, a very generous gesture but it also gave me a chance to meet her new two legged friend. I was not aware when we set off but her idea had been a long walk collecting my sister and her four legged friend from Lymphoy and then exploring the island. I took quite a shine to Karen's two legged friend -helped by his secret supply of biscuits- not part of the new diet regime but you are only young once! and we set off.

Karen soon picked up the pace and with the other dogs ranging out in front we soon became detached. Not wishing to cause a problem and feeling the length of walk taking its toll I decided to help guide Karen's friend and closed ranks in close to him. From my side it was the best way to keep an eye on his progress and from his point of view it was an easy way to lighten his load by slipping me the odd biscuit. Anyway we all made it back to the hotel unscathed and well exercised and Karen was especially impressed that I had performed my duties as a guiding dog to such a high standard.

Providing his pockets are full tomorrow I am sure I can be available for another hike!!

Early morning surprise visitor!

I am not the best in the morning and often find the dawn comes sooner than I would expect! The best mornings happen when my two legged goes out running allowng me to come too slowly and be ready for his return and consequent constitutional round the garden and the grounds. However this morning I was awoken with a shock and made to go out for a walk earlier than wished for.

As I set off  combination of unwillingness to go and having not yet become accustomed to having my eyes open is my excuse for not quite understanding what I saw. a black nd white blur ran passed and disappeared into te undergrowth. before I could identify it it had shot passed again in the opposite direction. Whether it was an - outlate- badger or an errant zebra i could not be sure but by the third crossing i was ready and could make out the features.

It was Jenny a dog staying at the hotel taking her two leggeds for a walk before breakfast. Although she was described as an elderly dog she seemed far from it and full of the joys of spring. Next time i will be ready and she may not get such a quiet approach!!

Its a dogs Life

After a period of freezing ground conditions it was quite nice this afternoon to feel the rain on my back. Whilst all two leggeds seem to enjoy the ice and snow I find it cold on my paws and despite having a winter coat have found the continual change of scenery from inside and warm to outside and freezing to be a bit much this winter. Hopefully given the new grass growth and snow drops and daffodils in the garden the sunshine and warm summer is just round the corner.

My two leggeds have a thing about me swimming and they never seem to consider how cold it is when I come out and have to run home quickly as they never offer to towel me dry until I am back home. Anyway I suppose its all part of life's rich tapestry and I will just have to put up with it as I do enjoy swimming and fetching sticks!