My New BFF

It’s been a while since we made the trek from Australia to England but things are looking better by the minute. Living in Australia was great and I met loads of fantastic friends. There was Aura, my leg cocking greyhound chum. I’ve tried it myself but only manage to squat against a tree. It’s another art form and Aura had perfected it. We did so many things together, including getting massages (but that’s a story for another day). She was great fun and wore the mantle of BFF.

Since moving here I wondered if I’d find another best friend. I mean housemates don’t really count. However this past weekend I met my new best friend. Molly. 

Pleased to meet you Molly!

Let's run, come on!

She’s so relaxed and chilled and not like my brothers. We met up in my favourite woods and enjoyed tag teaming squirrels (to no avail) and running like lunatics. I really enjoyed showing her the best sniffing pattern to uncover those elusive squirrels. It was amazing, just being able to share new things with her. The leaves have been changing colours and falling to the ground but Molly explained that it's normal for this time of year.

Molly’s pretty quick but to be honest we never really had a fair race, it’s only polite to let others win from time to time. She doesn’t say much and next to her I look like I’ve escaped from a lunatic asylum. I’m looking forward to going out with her again because we were just getting going when they dragged us off to the pub.

Soaking up the fun.

Squirrel patrol.

It was pretty chilly but Molly enjoyed trying to get a drink from the unsuspecting, while I kept a vigil for any cats and let everyone know when one was near. I think this is the beginning of a beautiful new friendship, I might just get her a christmas present!

Seriously, she's not beating me.

Ear Styles 2

A return to the realm of ear styles. Here are a few more to get your ear's into.

The 'morning after.'

The 'Oh God I'm so ready to chase that ball.'

The Why?

The asleep but alert.

If you go down to the woods today...

You surely will get a big surprise! I went to the woods at the weekend and it was fantastic, I’d definitely recommend it to all my chums out there. I was never allowed in decent woods in Australia for one reason or another, be it snakes or other things but these woods were great. I couldn’t get enough of jumping through the long grass, running off through the trees to the call of Olive, Olive and OLIVE! I came back eventually but I was on the trail of something fantastic. Oh best thing ever, sorry hold on, let me start from the beginning.

I can smell you!

There’s this squirrel right, he runs along the back fence of the garden every day. He drives me nuts. Strutting along that fence like he owns the place, waving his nut in front of me, begging me to come and chase. To make things worse there’s a gate and a distinct lack of a level playing field. However in the woods, there he was, that same squirrel. He ran across the path thinking I was at home. So I chased him but lucky for him I can’t climb trees. I’ll find out one day, just what that devious squirrel is up to. Between him, cats and birds, we have a right bunch of thieving ‘you know what’s’ hanging around our garden.

There he is!

Anyway…the woods, if you ever get a chance, go for a run in Londonthorpe woods, absolutely fantastic. I’ve never seen so many brown leaves before; they just feel so lovely and crunchy under my paws. The one thing that eludes me though, is what squeaked at me from the grass? I stared for ages, flicked my ears from left to right but sadly it never showed its face.

Hopefully we’ll get to go there again soon.

Maybe see you here one day?

 

Fear

There’s nothing quite like a good old celebration. It seems like around this time of year we have loads…loads of occasions for people to dress me up. I always get ‘the fear’ when I hear there is going to be a gathering. Don’t get me wrong, I love them. There are always plenty of people to meet and greet, plenty of food to steal…I mean, freely given. I just don’t understand the human compulsion to dress me up. Take Halloween for instance, the last time, I ended up with a pair of wings and a glow thing. I didn’t mind the wings but I couldn’t see a damn thing I was doing, it was so bright. I just wonder what this year has in store. I've heard rumours about Christmas but it sounds like Jack is going to come off the worst. I'll admit, I dont mind dressing up in snuggly coats and the best Martingale collar. Oh and I do fancy a new snood, but rule of thumb people, if it looks cute put it on someone else…just show me where the food is.

I know, I'm gorgeous but stop it!

Do I look impressed?

They taste better when they're stolen.

Bless him, he's trying hard!

Running Free

When all you have to worry about in life is which enjoyable experience you should have next, it sometimes becomes difficult. I mean do you squeak that new pink ball? Do you chase Jack for a bit? Have a sleep? The honest truth is, when you aren’t worrying about where your next meal is coming from, you can allow yourself this luxury. I often think about the friends I met in the shelter and those greyhounds that haven’t been so lucky yet. This is when I realise what I love the most, is a full on sprint. My favourite days are those gusty ones. I don’t know why but something about the wind whooshing between my legs gets me all giddy. I just tuck my ears back and let rip. The figure of eight is best because I can really lean into the corners and get my sprint on.

Squeaky balls and Jack Russell’s are great but you can’t beat the feeling of running like a lunatic.

Ear Styles

Everybody knows that you don’t get anywhere in this world if you don’t have some style. Really these styles should be a feature in Dogue (if dog Vogue actually existed). For now I’ll just let you see some of my favourite ear styles. Part 2 will be posted soon.

The WTF?

The Hanglider

The Swish.

The 'well hello there.'

A close encounter of the pigeon kind

Halloween is still weeks away but I’ve already had my fill. With the lovely sun we were enjoying last week I decided to lay in the garden and bake myself. There is nothing finer than baking yourself then moving to the cool kitchen floor and then out again for some more baking.

On maybe my third cycle of bake-cool-bake I felt an almighty thud on my back. Still in the realms of sleep I sat up but before I could turn around I could feel a presence. As I slowly turned my head I was greeted by a pigeon perched on my back! I’ve gotten used to my mum’s rescued animals over the years but nothing prepares you for the scraggy ball of feathers. To top it off she just sat there and looked at me, what a cheek! How would she like it if I came and perched on her back? Granted it would be difficult given that she lives mostly in trees but I’d give it a damn good try. In case you are wondering, no I never ate her, I just hope she learns that my ass, is not a runway.

Tales of thievery

You’ve got to love the times when they drop their guard. Just last night they decided to go out while I was nicely cuddled up in my bed. Needless to say when they left, my eyes popped open. A door had been left ajar, so I thought I’d take up a comfy residence on the couch. 
However that was not the end of this joyous night. My nose was twitching and I snorted harder and harder…cheese, there was a hint of cheese in the air. Jumping from my cushion covered paradise I followed my nose. Behind a pile of DVDs lay dad’s secret stash of Wotsits. Then in a puff of cheese dust, they were gone. 

Unfortunately, I really should learn to put things in the bin rather than persistently lick the packets. Getting caught with cheese dust on your face is kind of a give away.

The Art of Sleeping

In no way is this post a comprehensive account of all the possible sleeping positions. These are some of my favourites, for now. They aren’t in any particular order because I change my mind on a regular basis.

Beanbags are sublime.

Can't beat a bit of cockroaching.

You can always spread out on the couch.

Shhh! Don't tell.

Jack's bed is always comfortable.

Nothing quite like freshly delivered compost.

I love the smell of grass and its camouflage

Just don't wake me up!

Now, where do we start?

I’m not going to bore you by rhyming off my history. All you need to know is that I’m an Australian born ex-racing greyhound, rescued from the Brisbane RSPCA. I live my life with a Scottish dad and an English mum, living in England for now. However now and again there may be some conversational clashes. Yes dad, grunts and shoving random letters together and calling them words does not constitute good language skills. They are very demanding of love and attention and just to illustrate a point I’ll tell you about my flight to England. 

I appreciate that long haul flights aren’t fun for anyone but I laughed when the old’s were complaining about having to fly cheap Malaysia Airlines while I flew Qantas. Believe me, there was no TV, no complimentary ice cream and nuts. The only thing the steward brought me was a top up to my water bowl. The funny thing is it promptly sloshed over me in take off! I’d have loved to watch Hotel for Dogs while snuggling up to the in-flight cushion. Instead they shove you in a box for an eternity with only my bed to ‘empty out’ into and then…then, when I finally get out, the old’s expected me to be happy to see them. Needy or what? I just wanted to sleep on something that didn’t reek. Hat’s off to the people at each end of the flight though, they did a grand job.

Anyway that all to one side, my life is pretty rosy now, Australia was amazing but how many greyhounds get to travel the world? I’m glad that the hardest thing I have to think of is where to go to sleep next.

Welcome to my mad world.

Yep, that's me on the left. I'm Olive and the other two are my housemates Jack & Blue (Take a wild guess at who jack is). We've only been living together for about six months but one thing I have come to realise is, I'm pretty awesome. 

You might be wondering "Why are you doing a blog? You're a dog for crying out loud!" In some respects, you're right but just like the people of the world, we have to evolve too. 

Pee-mail is a dying language; the messages are becoming garbled because too many of us are using the same inbox. There is finite space and I have to tell my stories, whether they are past or present. Every time I try to tell someone a story they just look at me and say 'do you want wee-wee?' or 'want a chew?' I'm not saying that nine times out of ten I don't want either of those things but it would be nice if someone just rubbed my ears and listened for a bit.

Don't worry this isn't going to be a moaning blog but more of a regular insight into the life and times of a slightly manic greyhound.