Posting days: Sunday and Wednesday and, sometimes, maybe, extra ‘news flashes’

Sunday October 222nd 2017

Big adventures this weekend.

Daisy has run out of medication and, although I know my neighbour would take me to pick it up, I think it’s time I ventured out myself. The RSPCA had no spaces for new registrations but Whitecross vets at the bottom of my road have kindly accepted Daisy as a temporary client. They are also willing to undertake Hairy One’s monthly anal gland emptyings until I am able to drive again. I am surprised and impressed that they are happy to do this. I don’t think every vet would be so flexible.

The mini trek should be do-able because there’s a bus stop four houses up from mine, the bus runs frequently, and it stops very close to the vet’s.

I am extremely careful and all goes well.

Spurred on by this achievement, I decide to try taking Isis to the little lane which runs behind our row of houses and gives access to garages. There’s no way I can hold Hairy One’s lead with two dislocated arms, of course, but I thread her lead through the wide elastic belt I use to attach her to her extending lead, and off I creep.

She is very excited – this is the first time we’ve been out together for over two months. Fortunately she walks the short distance quite steadily.

The lane is hardly ever used so it’s grassy and clean. Once through the gates, I release Isis. Off she goes, full of the joys.

She leaps and twirls and dances her way along the shorter side of the L-shaped track, and then continues round the corner.

Generally, even Isis stops now and then for a couple of seconds, or pauses in mid-air enabling me to take a crisp image. But not today.

She even wriggles while she’s leaping.

She doesn’t stop until she reaches the other end of the lane. I think she has smelled something unusually interesting.

The photo shows about a quarter of the longest arm of the lane. The wind is very cold and I’m tired. I decide that once we’ve done thirty minutes, I’ll walk up to the end and encourage her to puther her way down again. She can take as long as she likes but we’ll be moving.

She seems to happy with the idea and obediently jiggles her way back down in front of me. When we reach the corner, I’ll herd her subtly around it and towards the gate.

But the best laid plans  ………… When we reach the corner, she dances her way around me and returns to the end of the lane again for a lengthy practice of her dance steps.

Sigh.

Back I trudge. Again Hairy One is happy to dance before me.

When we reach the corner, she disappears with a whisk of her tail back to the far end again.

SIGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

I needn’t have been concerned about her getting a full hour. Five times I fail to stop her to  turn her towards home. On the sixth she stands still enough for long enough for me to clip on her lead. We stay on our lead as we walk to the gate. There’s a limit, you know.

Today friend J. takes us in her car to Kings Heath Park. We meet Gr. and stop for a short chat. I feel human again.

We make our way very carefully alongside the current bowling green to the bench which sits just inside the Colour Garden. Here I am able to let off Isis.

She is ecstatic, pelting around the edge of the largest shrubbery, snatching at the air. Most of her time is spent on two legs. She lies down for about three minutes to collect herself, but other than this it’s go, go, go.

Later, we both settle on the futon. The cold wind has chilled me, and even under a fleece I’m still shivering. Then Isis does an unheard of thing. She stretches full length along my back. As always, she’s delightfully warm.

We sleep like this for almost three hours. No hysterical snarling and raging when she feels something touching her in her sleep. Not a twitch or a growl. Aw.

I wonder if I’ll still be able to walk tomorrow.

Isis came from the Aeza cat and dog rescue and adoption centre in Aljezur, Portugal. For information about adopting an animal from the centre, contact kerry@aeza.org or  www.dogwatchuk.co.uk