Our Life In Dogs

It’s always good to get new subscribers to the blog. It's also encouraging to know that people have taken the time to read the content and then share their email addresses to notify them when new content is available. I thank all of you who have already subscribed and would urge you if you haven’t to do so by completing the ‘Subscriber’ form on the website home page.

Just over a week ago, I received notification of a new subscriber who like us is clearly a dog lover (the email address told me this). This particular new subscriber with the specific email address (you’ll know who you are, as you read this), contacted me at an opportune moment. You see, our elderly doggie was none too well when the subscription notification arrived. This subscription (with its doggie related email address), gave me some encouragement at what was a difficult time. Thanks for that x

For Margaret and myself the reality is that dogs have been a large part of our life together and we have some great memories given us by the 4 dogs who have blessed our lives in so many ways. So, I thought this would be a good time to share a little about each of them.

Going back almost 40 years. Our first dog was a rescue dog called Barnum. He was a ‘mixed breed’, with a strong terrier influence. He came to us when we believe he was around 2 years old and lived until what we estimate was 18 years old! Throughout that time he was seldom ill and had something of an indestructible quality about him - hence his long life. He was a very affectionate dog, who we loved greatly. However, he wasn’t without his faults. One of these was his ‘aggression’ towards other animals when encountering them on walks etc. Presumably, this was a result of his earlier life, which new nothing about. His behaviour proved very difficult to manage at times, meaning he spent most of his life on his lead as we couldn’t trust him off lead. On occasions, if we checked thoroughly for other animals, we were able to let him run. One particularly occasion comes to mind when I did this.

I was walking him in a park near to where we lived at the time. The area was clear and so I risked letting him have some freedom. He was behaving himself very well, doing his doggie thing and presumably enjoying his freedom. When suddenly, he started to move at great speed across the grass. It soon became apparent that he had seen a squirrel. The watchful squirrel noticed our black and white terrier sprinting towards him, it turned around and quickly ran up a nearby tree. Barnum still running with the aim of catching the squirrel, didn’t notice the tree and he went head first into it. He was brought to an abrupt halt and stood there dazed for a few moments before turning around and staggering back to me. Thankfully, Barnum, the tree nor the squirrel had any long term lasting effects (although I think Barnum’s pride might have been dented). His dizzy and puzzled look is something I’ll never forget as it was like something from a cartoon. The memory has brought me many moments of amusement since. Thankfully, there was no harm done and Barnum lived for many years after that event.

Barnum camping and boating with us

Our second dog was called Ben. He was a magnificent Red and White English Setter, who we purchased as a puppy. Ben was a lovely looking dog, who we often received complimentary comments about when taking him for walks. Like Barnum though, he did have his own peculiarities. The main one of these, was that he didn’t have a great sense of recall. To call this ‘inconsistent recall’ would be an accurate description. When called to return, sometimes he’d behave impeccably and on other occasions he’d be an absolute nightmare. He needed plenty of exercise and when he was off lead and running, he looked amazing, with his longish hair flowing in the wind. He could move at great speed and also had good lungs and a strong heart which meant he could run at that speed for a considerable amount of time. Once he decided to go, there was no catching him.

At the time Ben came into our lives, we lived in a scenic town in the north west of England The town lies adjacent to a tidal and muddy estuary. The estuary area is also a great place for birdlife including waders and ducks etc. This became a particular problem when walking him along the promenade, which was beside the estuary. Sometimes, (it wasn’t always), he would notice the birds out on the estuary and following his setter instincts, off he would go chasing them. Despite being called back, if the mood took him, he would run literally for miles, till you could no longer see him. The first time this happened I remember continuing to call and wait for him to return. I was petrified that he wouldn’t return, get lost, or he’d get caught in the sinking sands or come to some other harm. I waited and called him for 30 minutes or longer and I was beginning to panic wondering what to do. So I returned home, to make the family aware of the situation before getting a serious search party together. Soon after returning home though, and before I had time to go out again. I looked out of the front window, down the road, and saw a dishevelled, lathering and filthy setter, still running at great speed back to our house. He’d been gone for over an hour and goodness knows where he’d been to or what adventures he’d had. But despite looking dirty and by now exhausted, he appeared to be happy, and glad to be home - I think he’d had a great time. This occurrence, whilst thankfully not being regular, did happen on a number of other occasions. Like with Barnum, I’m glad to report that no harm was done (except that my nerves were in shreds)!

Beautiful Ben

Our third dog, came to us an adult from a family member whose circumstances had changed. He could no longer remain at there house and we agreed to adopt him. Smudge was a little Yorkshire Terrier, who had a BIG heart. He was a wee doggie we came to love due to his tremendous personality and character. Smudge was a true ‘lap dog’ in every sense of the word and he liked nothing more than sitting on Margarets lap for cuddles. Our children were both well into their teenage years when he joined us and he loved the attention and affection he’d receive from any of us. Whatever, the situation or circumstances he would be there for a cuddle giving back unconditional love. And although he joined our family when Ben was of ‘mature’ years and although he was small in stature (Ben was quite a large dog), Smudge soon declared himself pack leader and Ben accepted this. This didn’t happen through aggression or unpleasantness, but through Smudge’s bossiness and self confidence. It’s strange how this works in animals and indeed humans!

Smudge

The dog we currently have, who is our fourth dog, is Jerry an English Springer Spaniel. He became a member of the family 13.5 years ago. Like our other dogs, he has been a faithful friend who has brought us great pleasure and much happiness. Jerry is now a ‘Senior dog’, who sadly is beginning to get some health problems - he’s become deaf and has developed some weakness in his back legs through a combination of arthritis and small strokes. Throughout his life, Jerry has been trustworthy when off lead. He has a good sense of recall, (or he did when his hearing was functioning), would ignore other dogs, animals or people and just got on with exploring and enjoying himself. Like our other dogs, there are numerous stories I could share with you about Jerry. But one particular story comes to mind. When he was still young, about 2 year old. Margaret decided to use part of our garden as a vegetable patch. The ground was planted and a few seeds/plants were sown. One of these crops were carrots. These were growing quite well, until Jerry discovered them and that he had a liking for that particular vegetable. As they grew, he started to dig them up and eat them. The evidence appeared in a trail of mud, discarded green carrot heads on the patio, and some which were still dangling out of the side of his mouth. Despite his current frailty, the sight and smell of carrots will still get him up excitedly on his feet. He loves carrots, but for Margaret the experiment of growing them was a big never to be repeated fail.

Picture 1 = Young Jerry, Picture 2 = Smudge and Jerry, Picture 3 = Adult Jerry & Picture 4 = Senior Jerry

So, its true to say that dogs have been a significant and important part of our life together. They have added much to our family life. They have offered us friendship, fun, a reason to take exercise (whatever the weather and despite recent lockdowns), taught us patience and given us a broader love of animals. On top of all this, they have given us that unconditional love you get from a dog, they have been a listening and non judgmental ear at times of difficulty, and whatever the situation, they have been there to welcome us home with a look, a kiss, a bark or a dance that tells you they really do love you and are glad to see you.

I love dogs and am grateful for all that they have given me. So, thank you once again to my new subscriber who at a difficult time with Jerry, helped me to reflect on ‘Our Life In Dogs.’ As for Jerry, at the time of writing this, he is a little better. He’s still very ‘doddery’ on his back legs, but we are determined to continue enjoying our time with him and giving him his ‘best life.’

Thank you once again and stay safe,

Stephen