Domino (1) grinning ~~~ Domino (2) profile ~~~ Domino (3) stuck on the stairs
Tales from my journal:
White-Wash!
Domino is always getting grass or mud stains on him. Imagine my delight recently when I found a special whitening shampoo for white coated dogs.
My excitement was short lived however, when my friend, who I was shopping with, said, quite sincerely, that it was no good for Domino.
When I asked why, she replied "well, it is for white dogs, won`t it wash his spots off?..!!!"
What d`ya do with some people, might I ask?....!!!
Karen.
Licences
Here in Britain we have TV Licencing, and used to have Dog Licencing.
Some time ago, during a conversation about dogs with my Dad and his friend, the subject of dog colouring came up.
My Dad had only that day renewed his TV licence, and this must have still been on his mind, because when asked why he liked black and white dogs, he replied, "the licence is cheaper"...
Obviously this was one of his little jokes, but it took ages for it to sink in with his friend!
Karen
Judy`s Spot
Some years ago, My friend Jackie and I were walking to the local Stables, with her Dalmatian, Judy.
There were men repairing the road surface, who called out to us, saying "You dropped a spot!"
Despite me trying to tell Jackie they were messing around, and the men were rolling about with laughter, Jackie proceeded to search for the evasive spot... getting quite upset and scared what her Mum would say!
Eventually she realised, and we finally got to the stables., a "spot" later than intended!
Karen
(1)Soldier as a baby, and, (2) Soldier wearing daddy's hat
Lest We Forget!
Some years ago, I had a lovely little cross- breed called Soldier. He was white with black patches, but on his tummy, and under his coat, he was full of dal like spots- which made me wonder if he may have had a tiny bit of dal in him.
Anyway, Soldier became a mascot for the Queens Regiment Army Cadet Force, for which my Dad was Sergeant Major. (This was how he got his name.)
Soldier was still a puppy, 11 months old, when he took part in his first Rememberance Sunday Parade. He had his own little "Uniform" and looked so smart and proud. Everyone commented on how good he was and how sweet he looked.
When my Dad and his Cadets had to take their places at the cenotaph, I took charge of my puppy. All was well, until it was time for "The Last Post"...
Everyone but the Bugler had to be silent...what did Soldier do?, up went his chin and he started "Singing" with the Bugle.!!! Despite the seriousness of the occasion, people all round started to giggle, which then became laughter... I had NEVER been so embarrassed!, but thankfully everyone took it in good part, and the morning went well.
Soldier continued to be the mascot, but we kept him at home on Rememberance Sunday`s after that!.
Unfortunately I lost Soldier at 17 years old on 3rd January 1991. My Dad followed him on 21st May 1991. They are both badly missed, but on Rememberance Sunday, we get to Remember more than the occasion is intended for!!
Karen
Perdita
Since Disney made their own versions of One Hundred and One Dalmatians, I wonder how many people remember the original version!.
Perdita was a Liver spotted stray Dalmatian, who was taken in by Mrs. Dearly, and helped to rear the 15 puppies belonging to Mrs. Dearly`s Dalmatian, Missis.
When her milk dried up, Perdita, which is latin for "Lost", feared she would be abandoned again. But Mrs. Dearly was so impressed with Perdita washing all the pups, she assured her she was not going to become homeless. To celebrate this news, Perdita washed all the puppies again!. AHHHHH!!
Karen
Lady
Lady`s Banana
When my Dad`s rescued Alsatian, Rory, was about 8, we lost Soldier. Dad adopted another mixed breed from the RSPCA, Lady, who was about 3 months old.
Rory was getting a bit grumpy with Lady one day, as she adored sqeaky toys and he hated the noise. She had been running about with her favourite one, a banana, for hours. Later on, it had gone quiet.
We thought Lady had either given up, or broken the banana. Rory settled down on the sofa, looking rather satisfied, and Lady was fussing round him. We thought she was trying to get him to play with her, but he wouldn`t budge.
After about 10 minutes, she came over to me and started whining and pawing me, trying to get me to go to Rory, who was looking at us rather strangely. I kept telling Lady that Rory was older and didn`t want to play as much as she did, but she got more and more frustrated.
Suddenly, as plain as anything, she seemed to say " I want my `narna" - with real emphasis. Mum & Dad heard it too, it sounded so clear. I said to her "where is your Narna then?...with that, she went back over to Rory, nudging him to get out of the way.
He wasn`t very happy, looking as if to say "oh no, you can`t have it"...I made him move, not thinking for a moment he would have it, but there it was, he had been laying on it, hiding it from Lady to get some peace!!!
It is still hard to believe even today, but I wasn`t the only one to witness this, and I believe sometimes, dogs really can speak our language...
Karen
Rory
Hot Foot Rory
We used to have an open coal fire in the lounge at my Parent`s house.
One day, Mum cleaned out the grate, and placed the ashes in a metal bucket. They were still smouldering, so she put the bucket in the garden.
We hadn`t realised Dad`s Alsatian, Rory 6th, was also in the garden. He was a very nosy dog, and it didn`t take him long to investigate the bucket.
He then went off, and came back with a bone.
Before I could stop him, he put his paw in the ashes, to make a hole and bury the bone...he removed it even faster, and ran round on 3 legs yelling "Ow Ow Ow Ow Ow"...
I got another bucket and put some water in it. I caught Rory, and placed his paw in the water. He was most unimpressed, and pulled it back out, looking at me indignantly, as if to say "how dare you?"...then continued limping about like before.
A few minutes later, he came over and put his foot back into the water. He stood for ages with a relieved look on his face. He had realised the water had helped, and decided to use it.
Later, I inspected his paw. There was no real harm done, just a few singed hairs and a small blister. With a bit of doggie first aid and some TLC, he was soon back to his usual tricks again...
