out with the old and in with the new – or is it? Part 3

Posted on February 13, 2022 by patinkingsheath

 

 

A post should appear each Sunday!

Sunday February 13th 2022

 

Isis is a very good little dog. She never destroys things when she is alone, unless I’ve carelessly left a cardboard envelope, folder or box within easy reach. She’s not that interested in the contents and doesn’t mind at all if envelopes contain important letters. She just tears them up along with their contents.

She enjoys swinging folders around before wrenching them apart; it’s just par for the course when the documents fall out onto the floor in a heap. Sometimes she dances on them or chews them, sometimes she doesn’t.

Cardboard boxes she’ll drag down from a chair so that the contents -usually books – drop out, then she’ll rip off the boxes’ flaps and sides before chewing them, leaving a pattern of little sharp tooth marks and piercings over their surfaces.

Usually, her toys are scattered around amongst numerous bits of torn up, hairy cardboard. I feel bound to remove the hair before putting the card in the recycling bin, but hey, she’s a dog. It’s up to a human to keep important stuff in a safe place.

I can deal with that.

She doesn’t whine or bark while I’m out.  Come to think of it, I’ve never heard her whine, and nowadays barking is reserved for appropriate occasions.

Indeed, a few weeks ago I get out her Northmate slow feeder again. Long term blog readers might recall that I stopped using it years ago, soon after I bought it because she flew into such a rage when she had to work on releasing a treat. Now she seems to enjoy the challenge, and is even able to hunt out and remove the treats  without becoming hysterical. 

Wonderful!

What a paragon of virtue, you’ll be thinking.

Sadly, the happy state of affairs recounted above no longer obtains.

Hrrrrrrrrumph! How much difference a week makes.

From Monday on, she regresses spectacularly.

I can hardly believe it. The hairy little toad must have read Part 1 of this saga and decided she doesn’t wish to be a paragon of anything, especially virtue.

First, she revives her meal time barking.

On Monday and Tuesday I am not too concerned about it. In the morning on both days, the sun shines extremely brightly on the front of the house. Isis is aware of it, and doesn’t like it. In the evenings, she only utters a few preliminary and quite subdued woofs. I’m sure she will revert to normal as soon as the light settles down.

She doesn’t.

In fact, her wild behaviour escalates mealtime by mealtime, until she’s not only barking and snarling, but leaping up the wall and driving off imaginary predators, just as she did for a very long time after she came to live with me.

The cacophony is head spinning: her stainless steel dish clatters against its stand, and her full water bowl bounces up and down, smacking against the wall and sloshing its contents onto the kitchen floor.

By Wednesday I decide that something must be done. Yes, I know I should have responded as soon as the retrograde behaviour emerged. I think that I was so incredulous about her antics that I was convinced she would stop and return to ‘normal’ when next fed.

Silly me.

So back we go back to the only response which seems to work: Human signals ‘eat it’, and retires to the back room, a few feet away. There she lurks until a sharp ‘YAFF!’ resounds from the kitchen. (She doesn’t have to wait long.)

Silently and calmly, she whisks away the feeding stand, in the process upending the water bowl and emptying the remaining water onto the floor.

She places the feeding stand on top of the washing machine, and calmly mops the tiles.

Yet again.

She attempts to ignore the outraged roars of outrage from her dear little dog, who is now spinning around in the hall while simultaneously barbering her tail and left back leg.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Once Isis has subsided, her bowl is replaced.

We go through the routine twice each mealtime, apart from this evening, when, apparently paticularly hungry, she desists after one vanished meal.

It’s very wearing.

Altogether, it’s not been the most glorious of weeks.

Last Saturday, I have to admit to myself that yes, I really can smell gas just inside the art room and must call Cadent, the emergency arm of British Gas.

An engineer comes out.

Isis would like to eat him, but I contain her in the front room.

For at least an hour, he tries to find the source of the leak. He can’t. He suggests other possible scenarios: chemicals in the art room? I tell him that no, it’s definitely gas. The smell could be coming up the sewerage pipe and into the bathroom next door? No, I tell him, it’s definitely British Gas gas, not sewage.

Eventually, he has to throw in the sponge and cut off the gas supply.

He asks when the engineer is coming to sort out the leak. He’s shocked when I tell him not until a week next Monday, and tells me the to phone again and tell the office that the heating and hot water are off. I do, and they rearrange the appointment for next Thursday.

The engineer leaves us a fan heater.

And departs.

My heart sinks. It’s the second week in February, and as the days go by, the temperature drops. It feels much warmer outside than indoors.

On Thursday night I go to bed in my dressing gown and wool gloves.

The prospect of five more days without heating or hot water does not fill me with great joy. But I think about homeless people. At least we have food and a roof over our heads.

And Isis has not eaten the emergency engineer.

Soon, though, she decides it’s a good idea to bark from the time I retire to bed, until three or four in the morning.

So now I’m not only cold and uncomfortable, but also b. tired.

But more of that next week ………..

 

Isis came from Aeza cat and dog rescue in Aljezur, Portugal. (And, by the end of the week, she is very fortunate not to have been posted back there!) For information about adopting an animal from the centre, contact kerry@azea.org or go to http://www.dogwatch.co.uk.

 

Posted in a very naughty dog, crisis, food rage, Isis at home, Isis is no angel, oh dear, patience is a virtue., self-damaging, self-harming, something's not right, strange behaviour, these dogs!, twirling, we don't like bright light, we don't like bright sun, what on earth's the matter?, who'd be a human? | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

out with the old and in with the new? Part 2 – a positive step!

Posted on February 6, 2022 by patinkingsheath

 

 

A post should appear each Sunday!

 

Sunday February 6th 2022

 

Before Isis arrives in England, I have a Dogwatch house and garden check to make sure that she will be safe here. (As I reflect soon after the hairy creature arrives, it might have been more appropriate to check whether the garden will survive Isis!)

By the time Hannah arrives for the check, I have cleared the garden of anything which might be dangerous for a deaf/blind dog, and checked exits, entrances and fencing. I have also attached plumbers’ foam tubing to all interior sharp edges which she might walk into.

Hannah says that the only thing she is a little concerned about is the height of the back doorstep, and whether Isis will be able to navigate her way down to the concrete blocks which have been placed below it, and on to ground level. Neither of us are certain that she will be O.K. with this, but Hannah suggests I monitor her to see how she copes.

Fortunately, once she susses out the situation, Isis steps on and off the concrete blocks with no trouble at all.

Then, one day about three years ago, for no apparent reason, she refuses to set foot on the blocks. Instead, she launches herself from the doorstep, sails over the blocks and lands with her nose about an inch away from the brick wall which divides our house from our neighbour’s.

When I investigate, I discover that one of the blocks had shifted very, very slightly so that as I put weight on it, it rocks. This must have happened last time Isis stepped on it. Now, we are talking of about three millimetres, not three inches! I try to reassure Isis, go through the procedure with her, stroke her, pat her and cajole her. But to no avail. That block moved when she put a paw on it, and there is no way she will step on it again – ever.

She propels herself so vigorously, in order to clear the blocks, that I fear it will be only a matter of time before her little hairy face smacks into the wall. I take the blocks away, and she quickly adjusts to jumping exactly the distance necessary.

Ever since then, I have tried to work out what aid I can buy or construct to enable her to make a more gentle descent. True, she has no trouble at all taking off from the kitchen and landing safely in the yard, but what will happen when she is older and not so athletic? The space between the step and the wall is too narrow to accommodate a ramp, or a small set of stairs. She needs enough room to turn right at the bottom of a ramp to access the garden.

Hmmmm. Every bright idea I have has a snag. I just cannot visualise what would do the trick.

Then, a few weeks ago, looking through the ‘wanted’ and ‘offered’ on Birmingham Freegle (the recycling site), I see an item which looks ideal. It’s described as a ‘temporary step’. In the photo it looks strong and solid. It’s 29 x 17 inches (74 x 43 centimetres). I request it. I’m in luck: it’s offered to me. And the Freegler who’s gifting it lives in Bournville,only two miles away.

After our walk next day, Isis and I set off to collect it.

A charming man opens the door. The step is in situ. It stands about three inches below his doorstep and is almost as wide as the door. On the underside, it has what looks like a thick rubber washer at each corner. The family had found it very useful in the past, the man tells me, but they no longer need it.

It’s much lighter than it looks and easy to put in the boot.

When we reach home, I examine it more carefully, and discover that what I thought were washers are, in fact, little rubber tipped legs. Best of all, they’re adjustable, like those used to level up fridges and washing machines when a floor is uneven.

It’s made of a speckled grey composite material, and even has rows of small, raised antislip circles like those featured on the floors of wet rooms.

For a day or so I experiment with placing the step in various positions. Eventually, I position it parallel to the kitchen floor, raise the legs nearest the kitchen threshhold as high as they’ll go, and place a new brick under each leg to make the step higher. Now this end is about three inches below the threshhold. Then I lower the legs at the other end as close as they’ll go to the ground. Now there is a gentle slope for Isis to stroll down.

Although the step is light, it feels very firm. I walk up and down it. Even with my weight, it doesn’t move a millimetre.

Now to introduce Isis to this special dog aid!

I make her wait by the open kitchen door while I plant my feet on the new step. Restraining her with both hands on her shoulders, I guide her slowly onto the step, steering her to the right so that she can walk down the slope into the garden. She is hesitant, of course, but shows no anxiety. When she’s ready to come in again, I guide her to the base of the step, and up into the kitchen. She doesn’t appear to be at all worried by this novel way of exiting and entering her house.

She’s a quick learner. After a couple of days she masters it and can use it on her own. I still guide her, acting like a rudder, with light touches on either of her hips. I’m doing this because I want her to turn very precisely, so that when she is old, there’ll be no chance of her stepping too close to the edge.

I’ve not come across a ‘temporary step’ before, but it’s perfect. I’m delighted.

I think that many owners of elderly or disabled animals would find one of these useful.

I’ve just googled ‘temporary step’ and found some online. The one which looks most like ours is the Big Foot half step, which is expensive. There are several which don’t have adjustable legs, and these are much more affordable.

They’re all made for humans.

But we don’t care.

 

 

Isis came from Aeza cat and dog rescue in Aljezur, Portugal. For information about adopting an animal from the centre, contact kerry@azea.org or go to http://www.dogwatch.co.uk.

 
Posted in a very good dog, clever girl, clever Isis, dear little Isis, Isis at home, Isis says "No"., learning to trust, relationship building, something's not right, strange behaviour, teaching my deaf/blind dog, what on earth's the matter? | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

out with the old and in with the new?

Posted on January 30, 2022 by patinkingsheath

 

 A post should appear each Sunday!

 

Sunday January 30th 2022

 

Over the last two years, Isis has changed quite a lot.

Her dislike of sun and bright light both outside and indoors remains, but she has become much more tolerant; for example, when she smells the coffee I’m making, she knows that I’ll drink it in the front room, and goes in there to wait for me. Whereas she used to chunter, bark and spin as soon as she arrived, now she lies quietly on the rug until I sit down in my armchair. Only then does she spin on the rug until I close the blinds. Very sensible, I think, for what’s the point of staging a tantrum if there’s no-one there to respond?

Outdoors, she is still very reluctant to walk when the light is fluctuating or her path takes her through alternating patterns of bright light and shade. Her body language exudes fear, but, as Kerry told me many years ago, Isis is a brave little dog. The more our bond strengthens, the more she seems to trust me to look after her, so we are able to develop coping strategies. Now, when the light menaces her, I put her on the lead, and she immediately becomes more confident.

At last, after years of mealtime hysteria, she no longer finds it necessary to defend her food from imagined predators. It is the norm now for mealtimes to be quiet and relaxed, the only sound to be heard being contented crunching.

She is still very nervous of other dogs, except for Blitzi, Wesley and Scamp, and, of course, Rufus and Nancy, whom she has known since she was first taken into the park, more than seven years ago.

To my surprise, she remains fearful of people, even those whom she often meets in the park. However much I try to reassure her, however carefully they approach her, she does her best to avoid them. Apart from Bev, Ji., Adopted Niece and the people who care for her at Hollytrees Kennels, she has made no new human friends. She’ll not accept treats from anyone else, nor will she tolerate any adult stroking her: on rare occasions, though, she has allowed very small children to pat her.

 

**********

 

From time to time, new behaviours appear.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Quite recently, she refines her homecoming routine. She deduces that it is not safe for a dog to walk straight into the house when she returns home from her walk. In fact, it is not even safe to set a paw in the hall. Not when one is still wearing one’s harness and lead.

Human will grab the lead, force an innocent dog down the hall, into the kitchen, and then, horror of horrors, whisk her up into one of the sinks and give her a BATH.

In order to preempt this unspeakable cruelty, Isis devises the following strategy: she waves her tail – note waves, not wags – when she steps into the porch. Then she stops and waits to find out what Human will do. If Human opens the inner door and steps forward while little dog is still encased in her harness, with lead attached, a horrible feeling of apprehension descends on the small animal. Her tail disappears between her legs, her ears droop, and she licks her lips anxiously. Time to flatten herself on the mat.

On the other hand, when she feels fingers carefully removing her harness, she unglues her tail, wags it joyfully, pricks up her ears and almost smiles. A year or so ago, she would have bounced down the hall as soon as the the house door was opened. But more recently, she perceives that this can lead to another unwanted outcome: Human might close the door behind a naive animal, re-open the porch door and leave the house.

Clearly, this possibility gives Hairy One food for thought. Now she never rushes forward as soon as she is harness free. Now she either waits in the porch until Human begins to walk into the house, then follows close behind her, or moves forward just enough to enable her to place her front legs in the hall while keeping her hind legs in the porch.

Sometimes, this can become complicated; if I leave something behind – a  key, phone or letter, for example, and attempt to step back into the porch  to retrieve it, we can find ourselves trapped in a complex dosey-doe, as I attempt to squeeze past her to reach the item, and she swivels on the spot and presses herself against the glass of the outside door. Fine, I can leave the house if I want, but she is coming with me.

It’s not a very large porch, and manoeuvering two bodies and six feet around it is extremely difficult without someone’s foot, usually mine, being trodden on.

To be fair, when I have to leave her behind, she doesn’t make a fuss. She plods sadly down to the back room door and  vanishes. I know because I check through the letter box and feel sad. It’s her resignation which upsets me. She’s not a giving up sort of dog.

When I return she’s always asleep, unless I fiddle about upstairs or in the kitchen long enough for my scent to reach her. When she doesn’t stir, I sit down gently beside her and place my hand next to her nose. Then, depending on how she is lying, she either stretches out all her legs in a leisurely fashion, or sits up straight and allows me to cuddle her for a (short) while.

But I am only allowed to go so far. And only, as we will see next week, when she feels like it.

To be continued ………………………….

 

Isis came from Aeza cat and dog rescue in Aljezur, Portugal. For information about adopting an animal from the centre, contact kerry@azea.org or go to http://www.dogwatch.co.uk.

 

Posted in a terrified dog, clever girl, clever Isis, Isis at home, Isis says "No"., learning to trust, park dogs, park people, relationship building, scary shadows, scenting, sleeping, twirling, walking with Rufus and Nancy, we don't like bright light, we don't like bright sun | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Isis has lovely presents

Posted on January 23, 2022 by patinkingsheath

 

 

A post should appear each Sunday!

 

Sunday January 23rd 2022

 

You think you know your pet so well, then s/he does something quite unexpected, contrary or apparently inexplicable.

I had intended, in my first 2022 post, to review Isis’s little idiosyncracies which I’d noticed during 2021; my intentions, however, were thwarted by the ferret saga.

For some time I have been aware that Hairy One’s toys, particularly her snakes and her squeaky tiger are decidedly the worse for wear. Shortly before Christmas I buy her new toys. These comprise: a rubber duck with a very loud quack, and two Orvis toys: a squirrel and a duck. The Orvis toys have interesting textures which will surely appeal to a dog. They are strong and each has several squeaks. ‘Ideal for Isis’, I think, pleased with my carefully considered choices.

I decide to give her the quacking duck and the squirrel as soon as they arrive, and to keep the other duck until Christmas.

First to be delivered is the honking rubber duck. She’s always been thrilled with noisy toys. I can’t wait to see her response.

There she is sitting in her dog bed. I give her the duck to sniff, then place it close to her hairy ear and give it a hearty squeeze.

It emits a very loud and long drawn out    Q U  –  A  –   R  –   K !

Instead of being fascinated, poor Isis is terrified. She stumbles from her bed, ears flat and tail between her legs, looking absolutely panic stricken.

Oh, that worked out nicely then.

I apologise and reassure her. I’ll leave the duck next to the rim of the bed, and let my dog her make his acquaintance in her own good time.

But when, some time later, she returns to her bed, she sits as far away from duck as she can and completely ignores him. And next time I look, I find duck on the floor. Well, at least she’s no longer afraid of him. That’s something.

Patiently, I return him to her bed. But each time I am absent from the room for a while, she throws him out again. One morning I find him several feet away from the bed. In his place is a nestful of snakes.

Oh.

Right, perhaps she’ll be happier with the squirrel. It’s very sweet, has a big, fluffy tail, and is much quieter. I offer it to her to sniff. She can’t be bothered. I sit next to the ingrate, and play with squirrel. I tickle her with it, make it bat her gently with its little paws, sit it down next to her, even put it against  her muzzle, then snatch it away. She usually enjoys this kind of play and will snatch a toy back and hang onto it like grim death.

Not this time.

At least she’s not afraid of it. I leave it in her dog bed, next to quacking duck during the day, and place it on our day bed when she is ready to sleep. Inevitably, by morning, squirrel has been hoofed off the bed and is lying on the floor.

Hairy One’s Christmas presents are not, to say the least, going down very well She is somewhat less than captivated by them.  Sometimes now, if I pretend to steal one, I can persuade her to play tug with it, but not often. I tell her how lucky she is, and how many poor dogs don’t have any toys.

She is unmoved. Her old, niffy, decrepit snakes, her equally malodorous, ancient tiger, even polar bear which my dog Ellie had before her, are what she chooses to keep in her bed. Several times a day, she picks them up, shakes them, growls at them, snaps them vigorously to and fro, flings them up in the air, tosses them out of the bed, then rushes to retrieve them. When she has finished playing, she lies down and eventually falls asleep with one of them in her mouth.

 

 

 

 

Hmmm.

I’ve not yet given her the last toy, the textile duck. Perhaps if it smells of me, she will be more inclined to accept it. I’ll take it to bed with me and let it take in my scent. After all, she usually finds my scent reassuring.

For two weeks I sleep with this duck next to me. 

Meanwhile, Isis sleeps alone. Rubber duck and squirrel sit, pristine but unloved, in the dog bed, or, more often, lie on their backs on the floor, with their legs in the air.

I’ve not yet given her the textile duck which has been marinating in my sweaty bed, but I think she is as unlikely to be impressed by parfum de human as she is by her other presents.

I’m right.

Finally, the most powerful test of all. As I’ve commented previously, if I take tiger, the snakes, or even her old teddy or polar bear and put them on the rug in the front room, as soon as she discovers them, Isis immediately carries them back along the hall and places them in her bed.

In turn, I take the honking duck, the squeaky squirrel and the textile duck into the front room while Isis is otherwise occupied. When she comes in to find me, she ignores them and leaves them there.

Oh well, much loved tiger and the remaining bits of snakes will not last forever.

Then we’ll see.

P.S. I often leave one or another of the new toys on the day bed, and, one morning last week, when I come downstairs I find Isis fast asleep with her head resting on her squirrel.

Being a soppy human, I am foolishly pleased. Who knows, one day she might claim her presents.

On the other hand, of course, ……………….

 

Isis came from Aeza cat and dog rescue in Aljezur, Portugal. For information about adopting an animal from the centre, contact kerry@azea.org or go to http://www.dogwatch.co.uk.

Posted in a terrified dog, Isis at home, Isis says "No"., oh dear, patience is a virtue., strange behaviour, these dogs!, what on earth's the matter?, who'd be a human? | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

what the hell’s going on? part 2

Posted on January 17, 2022 by patinkingsheath

 

 

A post should appear each Sunday!

 

Sunday January 16th 2022  

 

Last week I meanly left the story thus:

‘But I know that however weird her behaviour might seem, there are always reasons for what she does. Obviously, she has picked up a very compelling scent, but what on earth is it, and why are no other dogs reacting to it? It’s unlikely that I’ll ever know.

But, then, …………………………………………….. …………………………………….to be continued next week!’

 

After about ten minutes, a young couple appears. They must have come up from the playing fields. As they walk through the patch of woodland, they smile at Isis, who continues to cavort ecstatically beneath the trees.

Then I notice that the woman seems to be carrying a little bundle wrapped in what looks like a shawl – a very young baby, I conclude.

They are only a few yards away from Isis when the man glances at her, then ducks down and scoops something up from the ground. I wonder what he’s found.

Now he’s definitely cradling something in his arms.

They walk out through the trees and up onto the path. Then the man bends down again, and carefully places something small and furry on the ground.  Ah, a very small dog, or even a cat or a rabbit on a lead, I guess. From where I am standing, I can see that the something small and furry has a long, slim body. A dachshound? But no, it has a thick, furry tail. A baby fox?

The small creature is standing in the grass. It’s very alert, and it’s sniffing intently. Ah, now I know what it is. Wow! Fascinating!

Bam!

Isis, tail still waving, mouth open and nose awhiffle, receives a full-on hit of the animal’s scent.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The man, spotting Hairy One, quickly lifts up the little animal. The predator sniffs her way towards the spot in the grass where the creature had been set down.  Sniff-sniff-sniff-sniff-sniff-sniff- SNIFF! Yes, she’s right, this is exactly where it stood. It’s even peed here. Her enthusiasm knows no bounds. While she is picking up the trail again, I walk over to the couple.

Each of them is cradling a beautiful ferret. The young man has the jack, and the young woman the jill. The animals are very alert and full of curiosity. Both have their shiny, dark eyes fixed on me. They are siblings, the jack a dark chestnut, black and fawn, the jill white with two black patches. He, they explain, is the more confident of the two. His sister is far more timid and afraid of strangers.

I am enchanted.

Their humans explain that their ferrets are not used for rabbit hunting but are pets. They’ve had them for a year, from when they were pups,  They are hilarious to watch when they play in the living room in the evening, chasing each other round and under and over the furniture (the ferrets, not the couple).

I ask if I can stroke the chirpy little jack. His small mouth is round and pink, his whiskers translucent, and trembling with curiosity. His nose is rather like Isis’s, pink, speckled with black, and his fur is soft and and dense. I could almost stuff him down my jumper and run off home with him. He seems perfectly relaxed as I stroke his head and his curvy little back. He hoovers around my wrist, pushes his snout into my sleeve, then gives my wrist a quick nip.

After a few minutes, Isis sniffs her way to the man’s feet and stands, transfixed, her little face turned up towards him, as if she’s asking, “Can I have it, please?” This is, to say the least, completely uncharacteristic of Isis, who always flinches away from strangers. I’ve never seen her with a happier expression: she looks as if she’s smiling. 

Time for us to go, I think. I say goodbye to the ferrets and their humans, put the hairy hunter on her lead, and walk her back to the woods.  

Here, she is as excited as she was when she first rushed down the slope. Again, she flies from tree to tree, desperate to pick up the ferret scent again. She follows the lovely smells to a large holly bush which protrudes onto the path. Then she dashes back among the trees, turns and sniffs her way back to the holly bush. The fourth time she does this, she doesn’t rush back to the woods. I walk round the bush to investigate.

She’s vanished.

I hurry to the first bend in the path.

There’s no sign of her.

Now I feel the beginnings of panic. She’s never run off like this before. She couldn’t have disappeared down the path so quickly. She’s probably walked round the holly bush and popped out the other side. If I rush back, I’ll find her in the woods.

But my gut feeling tells me otherwise. She’s following those ferrets. And at the end of the path, there’s Moor Green Road, then Dogpool Road, both  streaming with cars and buses.

I begin to run. But it’s a long way, and soon I have to slow to a quick walk. 

At last I spot her. She’s already walked around the vehicle gate, and is on her way to the road. Her head turns in my direction. She pauses. I’m striding as fast as I can, but if she walks on, there’s no way I can catch her before she reaches the road.

Two walkers, a man and a woman, are coming towards me. They’re walking past Isis, the woman a short distance in front of the man.

I’m shouting to them to stop Isis, but I’m gasping, gulping air, and they can’t make out what I’m saying.

Isis is turning towards the road. Now they’re getting nearer and I’m shouting as loudly as I can,

“Please can you stop her. She’s blind! If you stand in front of her, she’ll stop.”

The man can’t make out what I’m shouting. But the woman can, and shouts to him, telling him what to do. Now he’s running back past Isis and planting himself across her path. 

She stops.

The man doesn’t move.

Isis turns round, and now she’s walking slowly away from him, towards me. 

“I’m so sorry,” the man’s saying, “I didn’t know she was blind.”

“Of course you didn’t. Thank you, thank you, thank you so much.”

Isis wags her tail a little as I clip the lead to her collar. She’s not looking at all upset.

Just a little puzzled.

 

Isis came from Aeza cat and dog rescue in Aljezur, Portugal. For information about adopting an animal from the centre, contact kerry@azea.org or go to http://www.dogwatch.co.uk.  

Posted in a joyful dog, clever girl, clever Isis, crisis, dear little Isis, Holders Lane Woods, Isis in danger, Isis in trouble, oh dear, running running, scenting, strange behaviour, these dogs!, what on earth's the matter?, who'd be a human? | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

what the hell’s going on?

Posted on January 9, 2022 by patinkingsheath

 

 

A post should appear each Sunday!  

 

Sunday January 9th 2022

 

It’s January 2nd when we head down Dogpool Road, turn right onto Moor Green Lane, and park opposite The Highbury pub.

It’s a dull, damp, grey day, just the right conditions for Isis to enjoy a walk through Holders Woods: no flashes of sunlight interrupt the even greyness; no dark shadows are cast on the track in front of her; there’s nothing to alarm her, nothing to disrupt our walk.

Isis potters along beside me, pausing now and again to snuffle among the little mounds of leaves blown against the side of the path. She doesn’t appear to be finding anything particularly interesting today. She’s walking slowly and looking rather bored, as if she’s thinking, “Same old walk, same old smells.”

She’s not actually yawned yet, but I’ll not be surprised if she does. I guide her towards some of the little tracks which meander up the steep banks on the right hand side of the path.

But she’s not that interested.

For months after she first encountered the badger setts, she was wildly excited, and danced around sniffing and pouncing by the tunnel entrances, before following the routes the extended badger family had taken the night before. She would have happily spent the day there, and had to be prised away from the area.

Now those scents are old hat. She’s been there, done that.

O.K. Let’s walk up this part of the bank. We’ve not been up here for a while, and there are numerous narrow little mud paths we can follow to the car park.

We make our way up but find our path blocked by a barricade of woven branches. This is a sign that the rangers are ‘resting’ a specific area to encourage regrowth, or are protecting recent planting.

Oh.

Isis doesn’t exactly sigh, but looks very much as if she might.

We  begin our descent. Hairy One leads the way, as Human, struggling to keep a foothold in the sticky mud, slithers and stumbles.

Suddenly, Isis lifts up her head and shoots down the bank. In a frenzy of arousal, she pelts across the main path and into the small wooded area on the other side. 

I am astonished.

You could, as the saying goes, knock me down with a feather.

Never before, in the seven years and four and a half months since I adopted her, has she behaved like this.

Cautiously, tussock by tussock, I pick my way around the slippery mud patches, cross the path, and join my rampaging dog in the wood. Walkers raise their eyebrows and smile at her antics.

Now, nose to the ground, she zigzags among fallen tree trunks, sniffs beneath them, runs her nose along the sides of them, and stands on her back legs to snuffle along the tops of them.

And now she’s raising her head, sniffing the air, running to the trees, snuffling among their roots, stretching up as far as she can to explore the boles of close-by trees.

She prances and dances round the trees, then zips along the logs. Her tail is wagging like a deranged metronome, her nose constantly twitching, her whole body quivering with excitement.

She repeats these investigative routines over and over and over again, while other dogs of a variety of breeds, walk past without even twitching a whisker.

People are looking at us enquiringly. This situation is becoming embarrassing. “She’s picked up an interesting scent,” I explain with a forced smile,  wondering if my dog is losing her marbles.

But I know that however weird her behaviour might seem, there are always reasons for what she does. Obviously, she has picked up a very compelling scent, but what on earth is it, and why are no other dogs reacting to it?

I’d love to know, but, sadly, I never will.

But, then, ……………………………………………..

To be continued next week!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Isis came from Aeza cat and dog rescue in Aljezur, Portugal. For information about adopting an animal from the centre, contact kerry@azea.org or go to http://www.dogwatch.co.uk.

 

Posted in a joyful dog, clever girl, clever Isis, Holders Lane Woods, scenting, something's not right, strange behaviour, what on earth's the matter? | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

what IS the matter with Isis?

Posted on December 23, 2021 by patinkingsheath

 

 

A post should appear each Sunday but hey! It’s holiday time, so things are a bit different. Isis and her human are taking the next two weekends off, and, hopefully, will be posting again on Sunday January 9th – if my adding up is accurate.

 

Thursday December 22th 2021

 

The Christmas card debacle occurred because the cards, which I ordered online several weeks ago, didn’t arrive until late on Saturday. Isis and I had arranged to visit J. on Sunday afternoon after our walk, and afterwards, by the time I had written most of the cards, it was 2.00 a.m. and I was good for nothing.

Yes, I know I didn’t post on Wednesday. I’ll not bore you with excuses. Sorry.

 

As we creep towards the end of 2021, I will leave you with a conundrum.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This year, Isis and I seem to have consolidated what we have learned from each other, and I grow more fond of the little toad each day.

Sometimes it occurs to me that she might not feel the same about me.

Take last week, for example.

If, for any reason, I have to leave her at home on her own for a few hours, or I’ve been preoccupied, and she hasn’t had the amount of attention a dog deserves, or I fall asleep and can’t be bothered to go to bed, I spend the night with her on the day bed. This is no sacrifice: she is as warm as a little convector heater but much squishier, and I have a supply of pillows and a duvet stashed at my end of the day bed. Usually, we sort out our sleeping positions without any arguments, and everything is nice and cosy.

One afternoon, I strip the day bed and replace all our bed linen with pristine items.

That night I snuggle under the fragrant duvet, and settle myself contentedly on the equally fragant pillows.

‘Little Isis will be so pleased,’ I tell myself. ‘Isn’t this lovely sweetheart?’, I intone in my sloppiest voice.

Isis promptly stands up and jumps off the bed.

Oh.

I guess she wants a drink of water.

She doesn’t.

She pads into the hall, pauses, then returns to settle herself on the floorboards below me.

She’s never done this before in all the seven years and five months she’s lived with me. Perhaps there’s something wrong. Has something fallen into her drinking bowl? Did I forget to check the level of water in her bowl? Has she finished her water?

I wriggle out of my warm nest to check. She pads after me into the the kitchen. No, as I thought, her water is fresh and her drinking bowl is full. She follows me back to the day bed, waits until I creep in, and then she returns to her previous spot on the floor.

I wait. Several times, she shuffles, sits up and lies down again.

I lean over to stroke and pat her. I whisper sweet nothings into her nearest ear. I pat the bed forcefully, indicating that she should jump up onto her blanket.

Realising, perhaps, that I am requesting some response, she gets up, walks over to her own bed, then lies in it, looking solemn. I pick her up and deposit her on the day bed. I check to make sure that there’s nothing stuck in her hair, or any tender spots on her body. She has shown no sign of discomfort or distress at any time in the day, and, as I expect, I find nothing.

As soon as I approach the bed, she gets off, and returns to her chosen spot on the floor.

Eventually, I take the hint. I put away my stuff and leave the room. I make a coffee. When I peer round the door, there she is, on the day bed, on her clean blanket, relaxed and ready for sleep.

I have to admit, I feel somewhat disgruntled. “Please yourself then”, I mutter, before covering her with a clean mini-fleece.

What on earth is the matter with her?

I can only guess, so I’d really appreciate your suggestions.

After all, the silly teasers inside your Christmas crackers are pretty uninspiring, aren’t they? You’d be much more challenged by trying to solve this one!

 

SEASON’S GREETINGS TO YOU ALL, AND I HOPE YOU HAVE A POSITIVE AND REWARDING NEW YEAR.

 

Isis came from Aeza cat and dog rescue in Aljezur, Portugal. For information about adopting an animal from the centre, contact kerry@azea.org or go to http://www.dogwatch.co.uk.

Posted in dear little Isis, Isis at home, Isis says "No"., oh dear, patience is a virtue., sleeping, sleeping arrangements, something's not right, strange behaviour, these dogs!, what on earth's the matter?, who'd be a human? | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

apolgies, apologies

Posted on December 20, 2021 by patinkingsheath

 

 

Sunday/ Monday December 19th/20th 2021

 

A post should appear each Sunday  …………………..

 

But, owing to a seasonal debacle, I have only just posted my Christmas cards. Now I have to take Isis into the garden, hide her treats and bed her down.

I am incapable of writing an intelligible post; in fact, I am incapable of writing a post at all.

I hope, with Isis’s assistance, to publish a post on Tuesday or Wednesday – by which time, of course, many of you will be too busy to read it.

Hey-ho,

Pat

 

Isis came from Aeza cat and dog rescue in Aljezur, Portugal. For information about adopting an animal from the centre, contact kerry@azea.org or go to http://www.dogwatch.co.uk.

Posted in Uncategorized | 2 Comments

and where shall we go today, dear?

Posted on December 13, 2021 by patinkingsheath

 

 

A post should appear each Sunday!

 

Sunday December 12th 2021

 

Now we have a tried and tested portfolio of walks: Kings Heath Park, neighbourhood roads, Highbury Park, Holders Lane, Cannon Hill Park, Clowse Woods, Earlswood Lakes and Jasmine Fields are all within a ten or fifteen minute drive away.

The most important criterion when deciding on each day’s venue, is, of course, the weather.

When it’s dull and wet, Isis is happy to go anywhere, but invariably chooses a road walk. Usually she wants to walk to Kings Heath Park, but sometimes she prefers a circular tour of the neighbouring streets. These walks are all about smells. As I perceive it, the only challenge for her is whether she can retain enough urine in her bladder to pee on absolutely every scent she picks up.

Highbury Park, large and varied enough to offer a choice of routes, used to be a sea of mud at this time of year, particularly during the Covid lockdown when hordes of people stomped round, intent on grabbing their hour of exercise.

Now, thankfully, there’s space again, and since the new paths have been laid, it’s possible to circumvent the muddiest areas. Even if the sun is popping in and out, and making Hairy One nervous, the park is large and the landscape varied, so it’s possible to choose ‘safe’, shady paths for her.

And when the weather is settled, she can pick her own itinery,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

or, when it’s very warm, even spend much of her time in her cool, watery apartment.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Walking through the tree-lined paths in Holder’s Lane can be difficult for her when the light is changeable, or even when there’s steady sun, because of the alternating strips of light and shadow; but there are so many off-path tracks, so densely wooded that the sun can’t penetrate them, or deep down beside the river, shielded by high banks, that it’s usually possible to find a non-threatening sections which she can enjoy.

Isis loves exploring Clowse Woods, which she has visited many times with Rufus and Nancy. The trees and undergrowth there are so dense that the light rarely penetrates as far as the ground, and the woods are so extensive that even Bev can lose her way, so there are always new areas for dogs to explore. Unfortunately, when there are prolonged periods of rain, as there generally are at this time of year, most of the paths are swamped with mud.

Bev reports that the through pathway to Earlswood Lakes, closed for over a year because of extensive drainage work, is open again, so that a walk round the lakes is now viable. It’s years since I walked there, and Isis has never been, so that should be interesting for her.

When the weather is unkind to us, when clouds scud across the sky, the sun plays peepo, and poor Isis cringes on her way from the house to the car, our default destination is Jasmine Fields.

Even though we have to face the sun when we enter the main field, once we’re through the gate, Isis has choices: she can run into the centre of the field which is completely open so that there are no shadows, or she can turn left or right. Any one of these routes gives us access to the walk above the canal where the tangle of trees protects her from any glare. Whatever the weather, she feels safe here, and she’s thrilled with the stimulating scents left behind by nocturnal creatures.

She is more wary when we descend from our happy meandering and reach the canal towpath. For about two hundred yards the trees are not dense enough to shield her, and when it’s sunny, there are stripes of light and shade to walk through.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Her tail drops, and she has to be coaxed to walk on; soon though, the path is shaded by high banks and tall trees, and she can relax again.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ah, as the Beetles almost sang, ‘Jasmine Fields forever’!

As we urban dog walkers often tell one another, we are very, very lucky to have access to so many open spaces.

 

 

Isis came from Aeza cat and dog rescue in Aljezur, Portugal. For information about adopting an animal from the centre, contact kerry@azea.org or go to http://www.dogwatch.co.uk.

Posted in Clowse Woods, Highbury Park, Holders Lane Woods, Jasmine Fields, Kings Heath Park, oh dear, rain, scary shadows, scenting, walking in the park, walking with Rufus and Nancy, we don't like bright light, we don't like bright sun | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

breakthrough

Posted on November 29, 2021 by patinkingsheath

 

 

A post should appear each Sunday!

 

Sunday November 28th 2021

 

Sadly, stupid Human has accidentally deleted last week’s post, the duck with the orange feet.

But now she’s trying very hard to stop gnashing her teeth and renting her garments, as they used to say, and is determined to concentrate on the good news. (Although, if anyone knows of a way the post can be retrieved, she would be delighted to know.)

Last week we left Isis refusing point blank to have anything to do with her lovely new honking duck. However many times he is offered to her, she turns her back on him. Ever hopeful, I replace him in her bed, and wait.

He is one of her three presents. I await the arrival of the other two. Perhaps she will find them more acceptable.

Then, the very next evening  …………………………………………..

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’m delighted, of course.

Now, when I pick up her duck, squeeze him very gently, and pretend to steal him, she grabs him and holds onto him very firmly. I’ve discovered that if you squeeze his head or neck, the honk is much quieter than when you grasp his middle, so when playing with her, I can modify the sound.

It’d be interesting to know how the stimulus works for her. Normally, I can clap my hands, click clickers, blow a dog whistle or make any loud sound a few inches from her and she doesn’t stir until she smells me; yet that first loud honk terrified her. I can only guess that she was startled by the vibration or the honk has a specific tone which she can hear.

Two days later, the other toys arrive. This time Isis waits until we are in the porch before  she tells me someone has been to the door.

Ah yes, clever girl: on the floor, there’s a card from the postman. The parcel has been left at my kind neighbour’s.

Both of the soft toys are made by Orvis. They had good reviews, and I’m not disappointed. They are a good size, look to be of excellent quality, and each has an interesting variety of textures. They should be perfect for Isis.

In last week’s post, I said I’d ordered a sloth, but I am wrong. It’s not a sloth who arrives with the new duck,  but a squirrel.

Here she is.

 

 

 

 

 

This time, Isis isn’t afraid of the new toy. Not at all. She just turns away her head when I give it to her to sniff. Then she ignores it.

She ignores it the next day.

And the next.

And the next.

And the next.

Sigh.

Now it’s Saturday. Every day it seems to me that Hairy One’s coat is an inch longer than the day before. In the evening I give her a thorough nose to tail grooming. After this, I present her new toy again for her to sniff, then rub it, very lightly, along her back and across her chest.

I think that perhaps if it smells of her, she’ll be happier with it.

But she looks mildly irritated and continues to ignore the creature.

Oh well.

I retire to the kitchen to make myself a coffee.

Before going to bed, I peep round the door. To my surprise, Isis has moved to the end of the day bed and is fast asleep with her head resting on her new toy.

Aw!

Now we have one more present to go: the soft toy duck.

Here he is.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I decide on a different tactic this time. The new duck can be her Christmas present. I’ll put it in my bed and leave it there for the next few weeks so that it absolutely reeks of me. It could be that she takes to this toy immediately.

Or not!

 

Isis came from Aeza cat and dog rescue in Aljezur, Portugal. For information about adopting an animal from the centre, contact kerry@azea.org or go to http://www.dogwatch.co.uk.

Posted in dear little Isis, Isis at home, Isis says "No"., oh dear, patience is a virtue., sleeping arrangements, these dogs!, who'd be a human? | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment