Getting better all the time

Bet you’ve wondered where I’ve been. Well Mum’s PC hasn’t been working properly for a long time now and it was really difficult to type on it without making lots of mistakes. I know she’s had several goes at fixing it but now she’s finally managed it. It’s brilliant – I can type normally on it again (well, as normally as is possible for a little dog with paws and without opposable thumbs). She’s blaming me as it turns out it was all down to the mains lead she was using, and she wasn’t using the proper one cos I chewed through that when I was a young pup. Mum! That’s what pups do. You can’t blame me for that. I didn’t know!

Anyway, it’s been a month now and I’ve been going to see Rachael who is my physiotherapist every week. I really wasn’t keen at first as she kept trying to touch me and massage my leg and back, and I’m not really too keen on people touching me. But I’ve sort of got used to it. It actually feels quite nice and it’s made my leg ever so much better. And on the plus side Mum sits there and feeds me lots of treats and peanut butter.

Rachael has also given Mum lots of instructions about my walks. We have to do lots of walking uphill and along the sides of slopes (what Mum calls ‘slope-walking’ – she’s even got a little song for it), although we’re not supposed to go downhill much. And I’m encouraged to wade around in water. The bit I don’t like though is that I have to have a bandage on one of my back feet (it seems to vary as to which one) at the start of each walk. Mum takes it off after a few minutes but I don’t like it at all. And I have to stay on the lead all the time on walks. And not only that, but Mum insists that I have to wear my Gentle Leader too. She says it’s so that I don’t pull and hurt my poorly knee. But what fun are walks when you have to wear your Gentle Leader? You can see me in it in this photo of me and a young staffy puppy, Roxy, that we me on our morning walk. Roxy was 11 weeks old.


But, I am ever so much better. Mum took some video of me on Monday for the vet. It’s a bit boring, but you can see I’m walking properly again now.



So after we say Rachael this week Mum spoke to the vet and he was really pleased with how well I am too. He’s told her she can reduce my meds and then stop them. I‘ve still got to keep going to Rachael though, and I notice he didn’t say I could be let off the lead.

Last Sunday was a good day as Eric and Pat came over to lunch. I always love to see them. Here’s us sitting in the garden just before lunch. You can’t really see me – I’m hidden under the table.



A couple of weeks ago Mum took some photos of me & Max in the garden as well.

























Well I don’t think there’s much else to tell you. I’m enjoying the summer and hope it stays nice like this for a long time. I love lazing around in the garden in the sun.

Hooray, hooray, hooray, hooray

I didn’t have an operation yesterday after all! Of course, I got pulled around by the vet a lot, and given an anaesthetic, but at least I didn’t have an operation. Even being in the cage at the vets was bearable (and they’re nice big cages at that vet) as I had some really nice dogs round be. Mum seemed to know one of them’s Mum from the Staffy Club. Her name was Ruby (the dog that is – her Mum is called Pammy). She was a really nice dog, but a lot quieter than me. I was there for a long time though – all day. I slept all the way home in the car, and was a little bit confused last night, but after a good night’s sleep I’m fine again. Oh, and I got chicken and spaghetti for my dinner again!

Anyway, the vet said it wasn’t the same thing as on my other knee and that I’ve damaged something called the cruciate ligament. He says I’ve got to go on taking my tablets and that I’ve got to go and see someone called a physiotherapist. Somehow I have a horrible feeling that that is going to involve a lot more pulling me around, so I’m not particularly looking forward to it. I’m allowed to go for walks too, but the vet said I have to stay on the lead, which isn’t so much fun. And I don’t seem to be allowed to play with Max. Anyway, Mum has to phone the vet in a month’s time and tell him how I’m getting on.

Oh Poo, Poo, Pooity, Poo

That’s all I can say. Now my other leg is bad. It really hurts most of the time and I can’t put it down properly (well, except when I’m playing cos I get excited and forget then). The vet has given me some different tablets, but it’s not any better. So now I’ve got to go back and see Ian Macqueen, my orthopaedic vet in Devizes. We’re going there on Monday and Mum says I might have another operation. I’m not looking forward to that. It’s bad enough having to go to the vet and being pulled about, but if you have an operation you have to have those horrible anaesthetic things, and you wake up in a crate in a strange place and can’t get out. And then your leg hurts like anything for several weeks. And you’re not allowed to go out for walks.

Not that I’m going out for many walks anyway, cos of my leg hurting. I don’t mind on the occasions when I don’t want to go, but at other times, like this morning, I want to go too, and Dad just takes Max and leaves me behind. And I know that he’s up the Delph saying Hello to all my doggie friends (or in Max’s case not saying Hello as he’s never particularly sociable).

It has been sooooo long since I wrote anything – I can’t believe how long it’s been. But there’s not been a huge amount happening. Most days it’s just going walks and playing with Max.







And Mum and Dad have been decorating, and that’s pretty boring. But I’m enjoying all the warm weather. Sometimes it’s been a bit too hot and I’ve had to spend 5 minutes in the sun and then move and lie in the shade for a while to cool down. We’ve had the paddling pool back in the garden but I still don’t like it. Max goes in it sometimes though.

Anyway, at the beginning of May I had a poorly foot. A red lumpy thing came up on my toe. Mum took me to the vet and he prodded it and it started bleeding everywhere. I bled all over the vet’s floor! So I had to stay there and have an anaesthetic (yet another one!). He said it was a wart and he did something called cauterising it. Mum came and got me later in the afternoon. Anyway, it’s all right now.

But we’ve been to two doggie shows. The first was the Waggy Tails Rescue fundraising day in Bournemouth (we went last year). But it was really got so I spent a lot of my time in the shade under one of the trailers.



But the really good thing about that show was that my friend Lenny the Lurcher was there. I hadn’t seen him for absolutely ages. I got sooooo excited and we had a good play together – well, as good as we could given that we both had our stupid leads on!

The next show was HUGE though. It was called Paws in the Park. And there were loads and loads of dogs there. I had a great time and Mum bought me a new bed which she was told would be good for my leg. So here’s me & Max & Mum…









And here’s me sort of sleeping on my new bed…





Then the week-end after that Dad went away. On the Saturday Eric & Maria came and visited us and Mum. It was really nice to see them again, and we spent all day just sitting around in the garden in the sun.

Then the day after that Mum too us over to see Eric and Pat. While we were there I spotted something on the lawn…



I told Max about it and he came to have a look too…



Mum told us it was a hedgehog.



I’ve never seen one before. I wanted to go outside to have a closer look, and Max nearly jumped through the window, but Mum wouldn’t let us. Spoilsport! But what a great week-end (although, of course, it would have been better if Dad had been there to – I have to say that cos I know he reads this and I don’t want to upset him or he may not give me any more peanut butter!).

This month I’ve not done a lot cos my leg has been getting wore. But yesterday was Max’s first birthday. I got to help him open his presents.





They were good presents. He had a sort of rubber bone that squeaks and holds treats…



And a big rubber ball on a string.



He’s got the hang of the ball: we can either play tug or chase with it, or you can shake it around…



But he hasn’t really worked out how to get treats out of the bone yet. I’ve tried to show him how to throw it up in the air, or roll it around on the floor with your paw, but he still doesn’t get it. And the very best way I’ve found is to take it half way up the stairs and then let it roll down them – that way lots of treats come out (although I have to be careful as Max gets to them and eats them before I can – come to think of it maybe he’s not that stupid after all!).

After we’d opened Max’s presents and played with them for a while, Dad gave us a blueberry muffin.



And then for tea we had chicken and spaghetti (my favourite!). And Mum had made Max a birthday cake, so we all had some of that too. It was a good day. I hope my next birthday will be as good.

So, while I try and forget that I have to go to the vet next week, I’ll leave you with a few more photos of me & Max from yesterday.

Walking back to happiness

What a fabulous time we had yesterday! At first we couldn’t work out what was going on – we didn’t go for a morning walk. And then, just after lunch we were bundled into the car. When we stopped I was a bit worried – I thought we had to see the vet, especially when Mum & Dad took us inside. But when we got inside there were quite a few other dogs, and over the next 10 minutes more kept arriving. I thought I’d died and gone to doggie heaven!

Anyway, it turns out that we were all there to go for a walk together. Mum said it was in aid of a pets charity. What a great idea! We loved it! There were 24 of us dogs!!!! And we ranged from 12 weeks to 12 years. We had a really long walk – it took all afternoon. We went along the river, so there was lots to see and do. There was the river itself, and lots of fields to run around in, and cows, and cow poo! When we got to the where we were going we all sat around in a pub garden while our owners had a drink and a chat. I got to play with some of the other dogs, especially a really nice young Irish Setter called Scooby. Then we all walked back again.

So here are some photos Mum and Dad took on the walk.


















Now, the more observant among you may be wondering why Dad hadn’t got any shoes & socks on at the pub. And that’s because Max went too far out into the current in the river and nearly drownded! Dad had to wade in after him – so his socks, shoes and trousers were soaking. Mind you, it was Dad’s fault – he was the one who threw the stick that Max went after.

But we had a really great time, and were gone all afternoon. All of us dogs got on really well together (although one was a bit nervous) and did lots of running around. Refreshments were available: beer & chips for the humans, or river water & cow poo for us dogs. I was a bit surprised that I was the only one who ran off to say Hello to the cows though – no one else seemed interested. And at the end everyone was talking about doing it again some day. I really hope so!

These boots are made for walking

And so, onto the subject of walks. I really enjoy walks. What I don’t enjoy is having to have a lead on! So when it’s time for a walk I skulk and hide. If I’m not careful though Mum/Dad go without me – well, I think they’re only pretending, but I’m not usually brave enough to risk it, so have to give in after a while. What I want to know though, is how come Max gets to get in and out of the car without having his lead on? Ok, I have a habit of running off down the street to investigate other gardens, and that really nice little alley I’ve found down there. But it’s not as though I go miles! And there aren’t many cars down our road. But no, I have to have my lead on to stop me running away.

On walks I’ve got wise to when we’re getting near the end and the lead is going back on again – so I stay well away, or at least far enough away so that Mum and Dad can’t get hold of me. They’re sneaky though. Sometimes they wait until I’m playing with other dogs, or saying hello to people – and then they get them to grab hold of me (the people, not the dogs, that is). While Max’s foot was getting better Mum decided I needed some more training, so she only took me out on my lead – I didn’t get let off at all. And that wasn’t much fun, I can tell you – although she did make up for it with lots of tasty treats.

Anyway, the weather has been much better, so Mum has been taking the camera out on our walks. There are lots of photos, but so that I don’t bore you I’ve chosen the best of them. This first lot are from the Roman Road and over the Heath.







Then these are from Wareham Forest. First, before Max’s operation.









And then after, when Dad was with us as well.

Dad and Max…



Then Max showing off







Then we move onto ME!




(Oops, bit of an ear malfunction there!)

Look at me – I’m almost swimming!



Sometimes Max has just no sense. I had to give him a very wide berth or risk getting stabbed with a long pointy stick!



Then there’s me & Dad…





Well, that’s it – hope you like them.

Oh, and one last thing. Dad – stop moaning about the typos. Those keys on Mum’s laptop are a bit small for a little dog’s paws!