Black Doggerel

I was really, really hoping Spike's energy level would keep pace with his healing; but I admit I didn't really expect it.

Today he's climbed his first tree since the surgery, actually managed to pick up a stick (it was a bow-shaped one, and he spotted the opportunity to seize it by the raised part a split second before I saw the need to stop him) and grab hold of the leash in an attempt at leash tuggy. He dropped both leash and stick instantly and he hasn't bashed, bust or split anything - I checked very carefully.

still. holy shit. I really hoped he was going to stay chilled a little bit longer than this.

Somewhere along the line of our collective life together, Spike has got it into his head that if I trip while the dogs are onleash, it's Squish's fault and it's Spike's job to punt him out of the nearest airlock with extreme prejudice.

this is a bit not fun when i fall on the stairs in a tangle of dogs and leashes.

lawwwl Spike. I always hope the last dog walk of the night'll be quiet becaue I want to go to bloody BED, but no.

first there's the guy with the two offleash Staffies, whose recall wasn't good enough to stop them barrelling up to my dogs even though he was yelling his head off. They weren't trying to be aggressive, I don't think - I never saw them coming and I was too startled by the MASSIVE SPIKESPLOSION to ever really get a look at them, but I think if they'd been as angry as he was I'd have been in the middle of an actual fight instead of just a shouting match.

we got away from those, and we're nearly home when we pass a big white plastic bag on the pavement; it's one of those bags that charities give out for you to fill with your unwanted stuffs and leave outside the door for them to pick up. Poking out of the top of the bag was a white stuffed toy bunny, possibly bigger than Spike.

...I don't even need to tell you what happened next, do I?

I love my psycho hosebeast dog.

also, woke up today with almost no headache. WOOHOO.

Dear Spike and Squish,

Considering that we got trapped on a narrow path between a German Shepherd behind us and a Boxer mix in front of us and had no choice but to get much closer to both of them than Spike's usual comfort zone - you two kept your shit together remarkably well. I love you both SO MUCH. Have a sausage.

Dear Owner Of the Aforementioned Boxer Mix,

Would it have hurt to back off just a little and let us get off the path? Did Spike's raised hackles and "KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!!!!!" face look to you like bringing your puppy closer was a good idea? Then why do it? Okay, I did get him to calm down, but no thanks to you. If the GSD owner hadn't stayed back and let us off the path things could have turned quite unpleasant. Grow a brain plz.

Dear Cats, and especially Cassie,

I always give you a treat when I come back from dogwalking. I always have. Every time for two years now. Why, then, have you suddenly now decided that you need to yell your head off at me to remind me? And how long will it take to get through your food-obsessed head that I will stand there not giving you the treat until you shut the hell up?

in other news, my elbow is buggered again. Spike was very pully that week we were walking to Mum's nightly, and I seem to have slept on it badly last night and compounded the problem. It would be fine if I could only find my fucking elbow brace. But I've not needed it since Blogathon last year and I'm damned if I know where it went. On the other hand, hunting for it looks like it might be bringing on a Roz-attack...

Dear Local Kiddies,

Spike loves you, and I am gratified that you see him 200 yards away and come running to play with him. It makes him very happy.

But I can't stress this enough: DO NOT TAUNT HAPPY FUN COLLIE WITH STICKS. You won't find the fun and games nearly so much fun when he takes one of your little sticky fingers off, or worse, he chokes on a stick and I rip your livers out to feed to my cats.

I would say "I won't tell you again", except I am apparently doomed to have to tell you repeatedly until we move away or one of us DIES.

Ambivalent love,

Liz, Happy Fun Collie and The Quiet Cute Licky One.

YAYYYYYYYYY!!!! Spike won the ratemydog theme week!!!

So I was trying to take some pictures of them, because Squish was being particularly cute with his preciousss bone, and apparently being voted the Dog With The Most Attitude has gone to Spike's head. Because THIS is what happened.

It's on my webspace instead of Youtube because it was already very dark, and you always lose a lot of picture quality uploading to Youtube. If you can't get that to load, try the Photobucket version - it's not as good, though.


( I did manage to get a few pictures )

there's one huge fucking problem with dogs like mine in an area with great big mature oak trees every fifty feet.

there are squirrels EVERYWHERE. there are always squirrels round here but right now is peak acorn time and squirrel mating season and we can't even go round the block for a morning piss without two or three chasing each other ten feet in front of Spike's nose.

one of these days my arm is just going to pop off, and they'll take off merrily after the squirrels trailing their leashes behind them, arm and all.

I had to have a quick tuggy session to let off some steam and I came out of it with a bitten finger, a bitten elbow and a nipped tit, complete with rip in t-shirt. this is excessive even by Spike standards.

There's something weird in the air today. Afternoon dog walk - Spike kept barking randomly at nothing and walking round with his hackles raised. I could hear some of the neighbour dogs doing it too.

Early evening dog walk after the first half of supper just now (dog supper is in two instalments now, because Squish expects feeding at eight and Spike can't eat during kitten zoomies and I don't like to feed just one dog - so I split it, and if Spike's too busy at eight he just gets twice as much at midnight).

Squish found something in the long grass. I don't know what it was - I could tell it wasn't a cat and he was too interested for it to be a grasshopper. Spike caught his interest (Spotted McBird-Dog always spots things first) and we all went to check it out. We got to the spot they were pointing at and - nothing. They lost interest when we got there. We went back to the path.

When we got to the short grass by the houses Squish started barking at a wall. Angry guard dog barking. Squish. Never. Does. That. He barks to back Spike up when Spike decides it's necessary, or he might yap at squirrels or free range cats in excitement but he's never done angrybark at something on his own initiative. Spike was as baffled as I was, because once again there was nothing there.

The cats have been quiet today. Too quiet. Way, way, way too quiet. They've done just enough climbing and leaping on things that I can see they're not sick, but apart from Shona slashing hell out of my leg while I was eating breakfast (blood running down my shins - damn cat!) there's been nothing.

Creeeeeeeeeepy.

arghhh! I've been not letting Spike climb trees or leap walls since he hurt himself and of course, he's gone all pressure-cooker on me.

( cut for Spike rambling )

not going to get the chance to get to the pharmacy today. am about to phone them and make sure they have the pills waiting.