To Spain, or not to Spain?

That was the question, and here is the answer - not. Poor Richard is gutted. They said he had to make a decision by Friday lunchtime and at that point the antibiotics hadn't kicked in yet, so he had no choice but to pull out of the trip. Of course by the evening they'd started working and the swelling was going down - so he could have gone after all, only it was too late.

Meanwhile tonight Maddie slipped through a loophole (now closed) and over the wall in her never-ending quest to protect us all from these new cats (I presume) and I could just hear her scampering around the neighbourhood with the occasional bark. Sigh. Thank God it was a Sunday night and there were no cars about - cos that's the last thing she was thinking about!

Needless to say, just as I'm standing there contemplating putting some shoes on and heading out to see where she is (a fruitless task if ever I saw one), she shoots back inside the back door and into her crate.

"Job done" she says. Hmm. So the back door is now firmly closed!

He's still got it!

So Murphy's still got it, Maddie's looking for it and Gizzy's giving it out.

At the vet yesterday with Murphy for his boosters. He loves the receptionist and always runs in and puts his front paws up on the counter (which is quite high) to say hello. She wasn't there when we arrived - in the back getting medicines etc - so when she came back as there was nobody else in I let go the lead to let him say hi. (I was sitting down at this point).

Well! He didn't just go and say hi, he took off and leapt up, landing ON THE TOP OF THE COUNTER!! Gave the receptionist the fright of her life! Not bad for a 9 year old golden retriever from a standing start, though.

Maddie of course is still attempting to patrol the garden in a raucous manner but we're getting wise to her.

Finally, Gizzy's doing her bit to keep the mayhem going. She bit Richard on the hand when he was in bed yesterday morning (looking for her breakfast) and his hand has completely swollen up! Very hot and angry looking (worse than mine went a few months ago). A trip to the pharmacist yesterday and the doctor today had resulted in a tetanus jag, TCP washes and a course of penicillin :(.

The worse news is that he's supposed to be going to Spain on a team-building field trip on Saturday and if his hand hasn't started recovering he'll be going on a trip to hospital instead!

Bad cat!

Interlopers!

Well! The mystery behind Maddie's recent mania for going outside at all hours of the night and barking has now been revealed. I let her it for one last shot into the garden before I went to bed just there and s I stepped out after her a huge cacophony arose from the shed corner of the garden. Dear lord, I thought she was having a fight with another dog! (Such is the way of the excited spaniel)

I yelled at her and got to the spot just in time to see - a foreign cat making a speedy exit over the top of the shed and off. topping just to nip in and assure myself it wasn't Gizzy (whom I found perched half way up the stairs with her paws curled neatly under her), I went back out to see if I could persuade the noisy heroine to forego her triumphant spurts around the garden and come inside.

Suddenly I spied movement behind a fence on the other side of the garden (on top of a wall) and - wait! ANOTHER cat! This time a black one with white dabs, not the same as the white mottled one Maddie had come across. It took the hint of the hiss I sent its way and retired to the front of the neighbour's house then sat down. Clearly a local, but obviously these two are new to town.

Hopefully they might be a bit re wary of Gizzy's garden from now on, but who knows? Was Maddie's guerrilla pounce enough? I sure hope so, I don't like spending my nights running round e garden in my PJs, trying to persuade her to come inside.

Maddie the woose

Maddie did it again - she must have knocked over the pool cues which are stacked against the wall next to her bowl and the resultant clatter was too much. By the time I got there the bird had flown.

I eventually ran her to ground upstairs on Nick's bed, being comforted by Elle!

Better late than never

It really works! I stamped my little feet and (almost) shouted - and I got my own way! Once I got over the guilt and upset I was cool with it, too.

Note to self - don't leave it 4 hours next time or you come across a bit crazy.

Multiplying!

Last week I went out to get something on Saturday morning and when I came back and opened the front door, a big shaggy dog ran out, terribly pleased to see me, and cavorted round me in the hall. Poor Murphy could barely reach me and Maddie was keeping a very low profile!

Who was this dog? Had I missed something? We weren't looking after anyone's dog, were we? The back door was open and it flashed across my mind that it was some random dog in the neighbourhood who had found his way in; but no, he couldn't have got over the wall, surely?

Turns out it was Baxter, belonging to Elle's sister-in-law and her was only there briefly as a stopping point, to be picked up by said relative. I have met Baxter before but I remember him as a shaggy cream dog, not (as it turns out he is) a shaggy grey and white dog. The memory plays tricks, I must be getting old!

Pets

Dunno if I've said this here before, but one of the things I love is to hear a dog's tail banging on the floor just cos I've walked into the room. It's just so amazing that my very presence can have that effect - heartwarming and humbling.

And now Gizzy has taken to waiting for me too. She usually spends her evenings curled up somewhere upstairs, but tonight when I came home from a meeting she was curled up in the corner of the stairs, snoozing. She woke up when I came in and is now stretched out on top of me (I'm in bed). I think she was waiting for me, isn't that sweet? Or annoying, I suppose if you're allergic to cats. And no, I'm not.