|
Katy is the first 'resident' of DCGR, she arrived on Sunday 23rd of July along with Breeze (aged 7) whom she had been
living with. Katy was at that time 11 years and 9 months old and as such we felt it unfair to try and re-home her,
with all the stresses that would entail. We have therefore placed her into permanent foster care with Chris and Brian who
have very generously agreed to love and care for her in her final years. DCGR will of course be paying all vetinary bills
as and when they arise as well as providing food, bedding etc to ensure that Katy is comfortable.
Jennie and Stuart Stott collected Katy on the Sunday morning, the first thing they had to do was bath both
her and Breeze, followed by a good meal after which they were weighed - Katy weighed in at 40lbs (Breeze at 44lbs), a
bit on the light side, but this could of course in Katy's case be down to her age. She was then transported through to Carlisle
where Chris and Brian came to collect her with their dog Cassie - it was felt that it would be better for Katy to be moved
straight to her new home in one day to try and minimise the stress for her.
She is a sweet little thing and will hopefully settle in well with Chris, Brian and Cassie. Our aim is to bring you regular
updates on her, with the help of Chris and Brian, so that you can follow her story as she settles in for her final years
under DCGR care. If you want to help DCGR care for Katy please go to the sponsor Katy page, or you can of course choose to
sponsor a foster home which is aimed at raising money towards the care and vetinary bills of all the dogs we look after before
they are homed.
See below for Chris and Brian's diary on Katy from day 1.
|
|
| Katie and Cassie sharing a bed |
|
|
Sunday
23 July 2006
Picked
up Katy from Albert’s house in Rockcliffe.
No real
problems sharing the back seat in the car with Cassie, but this needs to be sorted out better for them, as Katy lies down
lengthwise taking up most of the room. Cassie will go into a “donut”.
Katy
could or would not climb upstairs for bedtime, and was very nervous on the landing at the top; Cassie dictated that Katy would
sleep at the foot end of the duvet (on the floor next to my bed). As expected
a difficult first night, Katy cried a few times, but quickly settled after a bit of TLC.
Had to let her into the garden twice during the night for a wee – with the consequent problem of the stairs.
Monday
24 July
Katy
has quite an appetite, but that is to be expected for a few days. Very happy
to take short walks (c.10 minutes) with Cassie, but she attracts many flies around her mouth whilst out during the day –
due to her bad teeth and smell.
Apart
from her teeth (and/or gums) that need attention, Katy has a thick coat; she is getting groomed 4 times a day, and also had
an anti-dandruff shampoo with Cassie. She has some eyesight problems but I think
it depends upon light, shadow etc. Also problems with her legs, which are stiff
at times and cause her difficulties with lying down etc.
Had a
short trip to Castle Douglas, no problems but the two dogs cannot sort out their seating arrangement yet, but we have a cunning
plan for Tuesday!
Much
better night, just one cry about 3am for a toilet visit. Now manages to walk
okay down the stairs, but not up!
Tuesday
25 July
Took
Brian to Southern General Hospital in Glasgow for his 2-3 day stay (150 mile return trip). We lowered the “two-third” seat at the rear and put another duvet in to create a “letter
L” into the boot. Very successful with Cassie on the lowered seat, and
Katy partly into the boot – their choice. Journey went very well.
On return
home there was a dash from the car into the house by both dogs, Cassie wanted to lie on her lounge duvet for a good sleep,
but Katy stood by the food bowl until food arrived.
She is
eating well with light-to-easy meals every 4 hours from 8am to 8pm. Natural non-fat
yoghurt on portion of wet (skimmed milk) Weetabix for breakfast, fresh chicken with rice for lunch, meal and meat for tea,
and finishes the day at 8pm with portion of fat-free ice cream on sugar-free biscuit!
We are giving her a small portion of corn oil and PlaqueOff in lunch.
Two surprises,
about 7pm she was in the garden kicking her legs in the air and generally running about with Cassie. They seem to be getting on very well quite quickly.
Later
that evening she woke up after a snooze and panicked because she couldn’t find anyone (I was upstairs and Brian is in
Glasgow of course) - lots of whimpering as she ran room to room downstairs with Cassie running around with her wondering what
all the fuss was about. Got a good greeting from her when I call to her –
she ran up the stairs!
She is
really fitting in well and very quickly. Just a pity about her bad breath –
and the flies she attracts!
Slept
all night and no problems.
Wednesday
26 July
Katy
doing so well on early morning walk (leading the pack), that I extended it from ½ mile to 1 mile – no problems. Possibly this is her favourite walk of the day due to their being no flies, but could
be that there are more rabbits around, Cassie spots them well in advance whilst Katy only sees them when they run!
Tucked
into her breakfast as usual, that followed by a nap, and after that wanted to go out on a walk again.
Generally
eating well and looking much brighter.
Trip
to vet in afternoon for full check-up. Reported stiffness in joints and signs
of cataracts, some skin flaking and thick coat (but this is being dealt with), somewhat underweight, but apart from her teeth
the vets said she was in good health for her age and very alert. No chip (old
or new type) detected, They prefer to leave her to settle in, put on some weight and improve her coat and walking and they
will appraise her in 4 weeks (including blood test) to ensure that she could be given a general anaesthetic for dental work,
or just a relaxant for teeth scraping.
Stopped
at a forest stream on way home for dogs to have a paddle.
Katy
still has a good appetite and enjoys her walks and play. She does have some anxiety
about being left alone, for example she cried quite loudly when she woke up after a nap and found Cassie had gone (into the
garden) and I was in my office. Another good night with no interruptions.
Thursday
27 July
Now having
a 1 mile walk in the early morning, before the heat and flies; with 2 short walks in the day and a waterside paddle/walk in
the evening. She eats as much as Cassie and I’m sure she would overeat
if we let her.
Brian
returned home from Glasgow in afternoon (our neighbours were in Glasgow and picked him up), good welcome from dogs.
Another
good night, Katy has settled in well quick quickly.
Friday
28 July
Katy
eager to start the day, early morning walk followed by breakfast, then after a nap her twice daily brush down. Hairs still flying off her, but pleased to say there are signs of a healthy coat coming through.
Saturday
29 July
Good
hour’s walk in Polmaddy Forest
(Galloway Forest Park). Eating, walking and sleeping well.
Sunday
30 July
First
long day’s drive (with us). RSPCA Show at Otterburn for DGR. A 212 mile return trip. Took it well, lots of exercise at
showground, with breaks each way. Katy needs to pee quite frequently during the
day.
Monday
31 July
After
early morning walk, she had a snooze then came running out to kitchen for breakfast when her name was called. Still did a little cry later when she thought she was alone in the house (we and Cassie were in the garden).
Quick
visit to Tesco and pet stores in Castle Douglas, leaving dogs in car (sheltered position) for no more than a few minutes each
time – I was surprised that Katy already stands up and looks around for me when the electronic unlock is pressed for
the car. One week and she really has settled in well. Gave her part of a pigs-ear to suck on when we got home; it’s sad that she is not yet able to chew
on anything.
Saturday 12th August
Katy’s Weekend Break at Debate with Arthur and Agnes.
Chris and Brian were going south to a wedding and thought the trip might be too much for Katy. So having just seen
Lofty to his new home we agreed to look after her.
She arrived about 9 am on Saturday morning(12th August).
After she had said goodbye to Brian and Chris and Cassie, we went for a communal walk to the top of the garden. All very strange
for Katy but she seemed to manage OK. Back in the house she took some time to
settle. Like many of our new arrivals she stood and panted and for about an hour refused to lie down. Then she made her way
to Daisy’s bed, scraped and turned round as if she was going to lie down. But she didn’t. She peed on it!
This is behaviour we have seen from time to time when bitches meet for the first time. Anyway she was rushed outside
and in the following two days the ‘mistake’ was not repeated. After
that she relaxed and after the dinner which Brian had left for her, she spent most of the rest of the day sleeping.
During the night (3am) I became aware that one of them was moving.
It was Katy. We had noticed during the day that she drank more than we would have expected and this was the result. I got
up and let her out. She was up again at 6.30 and this time we all stayed up.
Katy and the other geriatrics went for a walk after breakfast. Not as far as usual but she did OK. She became more at ease throughout the day and actually ran up the garden with Lewis, legs going in all
directions.
The second night was uneventful with everyone getting a good night’s sleep.
Brian and Chris arrived about 1pm on the Monday and off she went.
Katy is a real doll. Very easy to manage and I am sure if she came again she would be OK from the word go. She is going
to have her teeth and toe nails done and after that will be just like new. Good luck to her and well done Brian and Chris.
|
|
|
W/E Saturday 19 August 2006
We collected Katy from Arthur on Monday afternoon. Before departing she
had a race with the other dogs in the greyhound grass run in the grounds – and didn’t she move! Really pleased that her legs are getting so much better and that her coat is thinning out from the unnatural
thick growth when she first arrived.
A routine week with 3 walks a day and still on 4 meals a day – she hasn’t lost her appetite, and trots
fairly well alongside Cassie on all the walks, although we notice there is a slight limp developing in her front right leg
– this could be the state of the claws which await attention by the vet.
They had an hour walking around Dumfries town centre early on Thursday (17th) which made a change for them, visiting the
pet stores and the French Market.
Saturday (19th) Katy and Cassie attended the Galloway Country Fair at the DGR stand. Katy stood up very well - in both senses - she didn’t rest all day and made herself available to
all visitors.
W/E Saturday 26 August 2006
On Sunday (20th) following a long day at the Galloway Country Fair, neither of the dogs awakened the house
at their usual hour of 6am. We left them to sleep and they finally came downstairs
on the Sunday morning at 7.40am!
Katy continues to enjoy her walks with Cassie and her food. We have concerns
about her limp and the amount of water that she drinks – and passes.
On Thursday (24th), Katy had her appraisal visit to the vets. She had her first injection (no problem
at all), with a booster to follow in 4 weeks. The vets have passed her fit and
suitable for a general anaesthetic (subject to a blood test just before the anaesthetic), to have the dental exploratory/treatment
and also to have her claws trimmed at the same time. They believe that her limp
is mainly due to her claw growth, so we will have to wait to see how she progresses after the operation. They also need a sample of her urine at that time to test for diabetes etc.
The operation will take place on Tuesday 29th. Katy now weighs
22 kilos – having put on 4 kilos since her arrival.
On Saturday (26th) we attended Burnfoot Hall at Ecclefechan at the DGR stand – once again Katy was
happy to meet the other greyhounds and of course visitors to the stand. She enjoyed
the afternoon - even the cloud burst didn’t dampen her spirits.
Katy often has short play periods with Cassie in the garden at home; unfortunately she cannot keep up with Cassie for
too long, but enjoys the fun.
A couple of habits have developed with Katy; one has taken us by surprise. If
Katy is tired (after a busy day) or possibly because she is uncomfortable (toothache?) she likes to climb up to have a lap
to sleep on for a while. Having a greyhound on your lap for 20-30 minutes is
not only rather unusual, but also verges on being uncomfortable after a while. But
because of her problems we make allowances.
Another habit is upon our return home from a trip out in the car, the first thing she does after getting out of the
car is to trot up to the lawn and have a good roll about - regardless of time or weather – it’s not that she is
glad to get out of the car, she is so pleased to come back home again!
W/E
Saturday 2 September 2006
Katy
was at the vets at 9am on Tuesday 29th August for her dental exploratory/treatment etc. By 10am, following blood and urine
tests the vets declared her to be in very good health and fit for anaesthetic. She
had her claws trimmed and just one tooth removed, the others were found to be without problems, once they had been scraped. However it was discovered that she had an infection in the gums.
We collected
her at 5pm, and she was in good spirits and glad to get into the car for the return home; upon arrival back at base she did
her usual trick and rolled about on the lawn, but not for long because she was obviously famished. Her gum infection is being treated by antibiotics for 10 days, upon the completion of the course
she goes back to the vet for a check-up.
As the
days go by Katy seems to be drinking water a little less, but it is still more than Cassie.
On Friday
(1st September) we made a 260 mile return trip to Kinross and Kirkcaldy, Katy and Cassie came along for the ride. We gave them a break every hour whilst travelling, a period that seems to suit Katy very well at present.
We expect that we will be making a trip to Hampshire (overnight stop) sometime soon and feel that Katy will manage the trip
very well, although we will have to extend the driving periods between breaks from 60 to 90 minutes due to distance.
W/E
Saturday 9 September 2006
A quiet
week for Katy with various short trips in the car around the Stewartry, plus one trip to Dumfries;
she really enjoys her short exploration walks at different venues.
Katy
completed her initial course of antibiotics on Saturday morning, but it appears that she may need a further course due to
there still being some inflammation in her gums. Her front right leg gets stiff
at times and she tends to limp when walking on hard surfaces. She has a scheduled
visit to the vet on Monday 12th so all this will be looked at. Katy enjoys life, she likes her bed (up to 7 hours overnight), enjoys all her meals, her walks and a few minutes a
day chasing around with pal Cassie on the grass.
W/E
Saturday 16 September 2006
Katy
had her check-up visit to the vet on Monday 11th, he confirmed that Katy needed another week on antibiotics to clear up her
gum problems; also the stiffness she has with her front right leg is a problem that can occur with older greyhounds. Her “wrist” joint is stiff and Katy often rests it by lifting her paw
off the ground (when on hard ground) or sticking her leg out like a walking-stick. He said that there is a treatment,
but he doesn’t recommend it whilst she is on antibiotics. She returns to the vet on 22nd September for her final
check-up (re gums) and her second injection.
Katy
has had a few outings away from her home territory during the week including Wigtown and Sandyhills, but she is always happy
to get back to her patch of lawn at home for a good roll-around.
During
the week, despite damp grass we cut the lawn and raked the grass into neat mounds ready for the compost; but in our absence
Katy completely destroyed the piles by rolling them all flat – and changed her appearance from ‘black and clean-white’
to ‘black and dirty-green’.
Due
to a family bereavement we are travelling down to Portsmouth
sometime during the next week, both Katy and Cassie will be travelling with us. This
will be Katy’s first long trip with us, and we expect no problems as she is very content to travel, providing she gets
a break every 90 minutes or so.
W/E
Saturday 23 September 2006
In general,
a quiet week for Katy apart from some exploring in the surrounding woodlands, and the autumn return of the pheasants which
means some of them feeding in our garden (five and counting), which causes Katy much amusement. She picks on one bird and follows it around and around the garden until it eventually takes off.
Our journey
to Portsmouth was postponed for a week, so Katy’s first
long trip with us will now begin next Tuesday.
She had
her trip to the vet on Friday (22nd) for check-up and the second injection. The
vet advised that she continue on antibiotics for another week as there is still a little infection in the gums. We were shown the full printout of the results of her blood and urine tests – both tests show a very
healthy dog despite her age (12 in October); just the stiff legs and somewhat tender front paws give her some problems.
On our
journey home from the vet we diverted to give the dogs a walk on the flat rocks on the River Dee, which has now returned to
its normal flow after several months of controlled flooding, due to the Clatteringshaws Dam outlet being open during maintenance
work. First time for Katy, who got quite bold after a while and decided to paddle
in the water; she very quickly found out that not all the river bed is shallow when she took an unexpected plunge! First time we’ve seen Katy swim. She got out without
any problem and after a several good shakes she carried on trotting from rock to rock with tail wagging. Towels are always on hand in the car, so she was soon dry; as usual she had a good roll on the lawn upon
our arrival home some 20 minutes later.
Saturday
saw us at the Langholm Show, giving support to the DGR stand and the dogs meeting up with all their pals. An excellent day with the weather remaining dry; also a long day for Katy who was so tired on the return
home that after her evening meal she retired to bed - at 7pm!
W/E
Saturday 30 September 2006
This week was Katy’s big journey – a return trip to the West Sussex/Hampshire coast of about 850 miles. We travelled down Tuesday evening and returned Thursday, stopping about every 90 minutes
each-way for the dogs to have a break, including the Tebay and Warwick motorway services southbound
and the Stafford and Southwaite services northbound because of the good grass exercise areas
for the dogs. We spent the two nights at a Travelodge just outside Bognor Regis,
but regretfully didn’t have time to take them to the seafront or Butlins!
Most of Wednesday we were attending a family funeral and reception at Portsmouth; the dogs were happy to stay most
of their time in the car but we made sure they were only left only for short periods.
The journey back took some 8 hours without any major hold-ups, and it was a relief for all of us to get home. The surprise came from Katy (who had spent the whole trip away in her usual quiet
laid-back way); on arrival home she ran up to the lawn with tail wagging and pranced around like a spring lamb before going
into her usual roll-around. She was so pleased to get home and get back to her
own bed for a long night’s sleep.
The next day we needed to get some shopping from Castle Douglas, but Katy refused to get into the car. We thought it best that she came with us because we would only be out for an hour and it would show her
that we were not going away again (at least for a couple of weeks), so we lifted her in to join Cassie, and after that brief
shopping trip there has been no further problems with her and the car.
W/E
Saturday 7 October 2006
Katy
finished her antibiotic course and we took her to the vet on Monday 2nd for the last of her current check-ups. The vet gave her a clean bill of health, saying that the infection in her gums had cleared up successfully. We notice that her walking is now getting better; in fact she is now happy to gently
trot along and keep up with Cassie’s pace, providing the surface is not gravel or stony.
On Saturday
7th we travelled to Berwick-upon-Tweed for the day, both dogs enjoyed the trip as we gave them several breaks at various places.
Katy especially enjoyed the riverside stops as she likes a gentle paddle; as yet she has not done any serious swimming –
that will wait a week or so when we are having a break on the Pembrokeshire coast.
We were
late back from Berwick, but Katy still wanted to do her “return home ritual” of springing about and a few roll-abouts
on the lawn before going into the house. After a light supper she retired to
bed, and apart from one comfort break she stayed in bed for nearly 10 hours!
W/E Saturday 14 October 2006
A quiet week for Katy, just one trip to Dumfries for shopping!
The unexpected temperatures and sunshine at the latter part of this week has enabled Katy to partake in her favourite pastime
– rolling about on the lawn and lazing about in the warm sunshine. Katy has a real talent for finding young hedgehogs – a surprising find for this time of the year. So far she
has found six hedgehogs hidden in the rough grass or under scrubs on our walks - a real tail wagging job! All of them were
a little too close to the road, and were moved to safer ground using the poop scoop! On Sunday we leave early for a week in south-west Wales, with one overnight stop each way. Hoping to get some good
snaps of Katy on the beaches of the Pembrokeshire coast.
W/E
Saturday 21 October 2006
Katy’s
first holiday - as far as we know. A short break of 3 nights in Pembrokeshire,
staying at the Travelodge in Pembroke Dock, a nice looking and well situated lodge opened in November 2005 with a friendly
welcome for the greyhounds and no shortage of suitable places to walk them very close by.
On the whole we were lucky with the weather, just a couple of downpours.
Katy
loved the sandy beaches, especially Broad Haven with its wide expanse of sand and gentle waves. For the first time we had let her off the lead to run around on the enclosed coves, and later on the quiet
bigger beaches; however she never ran for more than a few moments, preferring to trot and stay in close proximity - she obviously
likes to keep an eye on us.
Katy
paddled about at the sea edge, but waited for me to take my shoes off and roll up my trousers to escort them in
to slightly deeper water, which was surprisingly warm for October. Cassie prefers to
do her crazy circular run-arounds on the sands – Katy just observes.
We broke
our journey to and from Pembroke Dock with an overnight stop in a Travelodge both ways; stopping at Warrington Lymm on the
way south, which gave us an easy day to explore parts of Wales
we had never visited included a walk across the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct near Llangollen. We
returned via the Ceredigion (Cardigan) coast with a final beach visit at Borth near Aberystwyth – however that beach
has a pebble storm ridge in front of the sands; Katy had difficulty traversing the wobbly pebbles and had to be carried over
the ridge!
After
an overnight stop at the Bangor Travelodge a fast journey home. Needless to say
at journeys end Katy jumped out of the car to do her usual spring-lamb runabout and rollovers on our lawn. Despite having some great runs and paddles on lovely beaches, she was glad to get home – and that
is very gratifying.
|
|
| The Pebble Storm ridge - how undignified for an old lady! |
|
|
| How did you get down there then? |
|
|
| This paddling lark is not so bad! |
|
W/E Saturday 28 October
2006
A quiet week for Katy
following her trip to south Wales; kept to local walks due to appalling weather all week, but saying that Katy doesn’t
seem to mind the rain (providing she has her coat on), whilst companion Cassie hates it.
Tuesday 24th October was
Katy’s 12th birthday; as she has probably never had it celebrated before we gave her a couple of treats. Perhaps the cake and candle was going a bit far – but she liked the cake once the candle was removed!
|
| Katy and her Birthday Cake |
4
weeks ending Saturday 25 November 2006
A quiet
time of the year as winter sets in, but Katy grateful for the remaining warm days up to the beginning of November so that
she could spend a little time in the sun on her favourite lawn.
Her trip
to Pembroke in October seemed to have started up a love for the sea. On a journey to Largs a couple of weeks ago, Katy and
Cassie started a commotion in the back of the car when we reached the Firth of Clyde coast at the end of the Ardrossan by-pass
– crying that they could smell the sea! The only way to settle them was
to make an unscheduled stop and give them a break on the beach – fortunately empty at that time of anyone else. Katy ran up and down with tail wagging for several minutes in the waters edge chasing
seagulls whilst Cassie ran round us in wild circles.
The Dumfriesshire
Greyhound Show & Christmas Fayre was very much enjoyed by Katy, although she was tired out by the time came for her entry
into the Competition for “Veteran in Best Condition”. We were surprised
and delighted that Katy received 1st prize – although on her part she only wanted to sleep! Her trophy and ribbon has pride of place in the glass cabinet until next year.
Katy
we think has now reached her healthy peak; she still has stiffness in her front legs but despite that trots along, and can
attain a short spurt in the right conditions. She remains a slim dog despite
having eating very well, and enjoys a good variety of suitable food. She enjoys
chew treats and doggy biscuits but because of gaps in the teeth it does take her much longer than Cassie to get through them. Her only problem is incontinence, but that has been overcome that by ensuring she
has frequent exercise and a nocturnal trip into the garden about 3am. Her bed is protected by an incontinence cover just in
case!
|
|
| Katy and her Rosette |
|
|
| Katy and Cassie in their favourite place |
|
4+
weeks ending Thursday 28 December 2006
Katy
has stood up to the wet and windy December weather very well and enjoys her daylight walks, but not so keen on dark evening
walking. Both Katy and Cassie now choose to go upstairs to bed about 10.30pm,
and apart from being let out for a nocturnal toilet break about 3am, they stay in their bed until it gets light or they hear
the rattle of their collars and leads!
Both
dogs now share a blow-up single bed which they both enjoy laying on once they got the hang of not sliding off. It has an incontinence cover, under-blanket and throw-over. Just
one mishap, I was awoken one night by a “pop” sound followed by a slight hissing.
One of the dogs had managed to puncture the bed when moving about; as it was about 5am I didn’t bother to take
any action and continue to lay in my bed, watching the two dogs slowing sinking to floor level – they just slept on! A supplied puncture repair kit did a good job, and the whole bed is now wrapped around
with a double under-blanket to stop direct contact between their claws and the bed’s rubber surround.
Katy
still plays about on our lawn, which she has now reduced to a balding flat grass area.
On wet days she rubs her chops in the muddy bits which involves a clean-up on entering the house – but she enjoys
it so much that we really cannot put the mangy remains of a lawn out-of-bounds.
Both
dogs received Christmas presents from neighbours, including a doggy stocking and other chewy things and generally had a quiet
but contended period. We took them to various beaches on a number of occasions,
they especially enjoy Nun Bay near Kirkcudbright which has a couple
of good sandy stretches at low tide, and is safe enough for them to run free. Cassie
runs around at top speed in a circle, never venturing too far from us, and Katy attempts to follow but in much smaller laps
– “like a bouncy lamb with a smile on its face” as one passer-by said.
We shall
be staying at the Perth Travelodge (greyhounds welcome) for a few days in mid-January, visiting relatives and friends in Montrose,
Aberdeen and St Andrews.
Hopefully, subject to weather, Katy will be introduced to the fantastic sandy beaches and dunes around Montrose and
as well as some beaches that we have never seen in the St Andrews
Bay area.
Katy’s
weight is now just 24.02Kg (subject to confirmation); we doubt that she will put on much more despite having a good appetite.
|
| Katy at Nun Bay, near Kirkudbright |
Month ending 31 January 2007
The New Year period passed quietly and despite the bad weather Katy stood up well to the wet and windy walks along
the loch shore and on the exposed hillsides.
We spent a few days over the 2nd-3rd weeks of January in the north-east. We decided to use the Perth Travelodge as
our base as it was easy from there to get to relatives and friends in Aberdeen, Montrose and St Andrews, plus it has good surrounding
land for convenient exercise for the dogs. The Travelodge kindly gave us the
first room on the ground floor, so it was no problem to get Katy (with Cassie for company) out for her necessary toilet in
the middle of the night. I made the mistake on the first night of letting them
off the leads when I got them back through the fire door into our corridor – I think it reminded Cassie of Arthur’s
greyhound run in Waterbeck, and she took off at high speed with Katy in pursuit for the full length of the corridor and back
again. That would normally have been quite funny but it was about 3am; the sound of galloping animals must have woken a few
guests - fortunately I got them back into the bedroom quickly and apparently there were no complaints.
A great time was had by Katy and Cassie on the beaches, despite the high winds.
Montrose beach was a joy for them, especially as we had it practically to ourselves; it was warm and the waves dispersed
on the outer sand banks so the dogs were able to “speed-paddle” safely.
Among the other beaches that we took the dogs to, Katy enjoyed a short visit to the East Beach in St Andrews where
she made friends with a lurcher dog, and much to the amusement of the owners she wanted to get into their car with the lurcher,
and she really didn’t want to come home with us at all!
Despite all the beaches that Katy had enjoyed, when we got home she still made that rapid bee-line from the car for
to our now muddy-patchy lawn. She bounded around it jumping up in the air and
smacking the poor grass with her front paws. I think she was saying “I’m
home again!”
|
Montrose Beach - that water is SO salty! |
No, I don't want my photo taken while I'm eating my lunch! |
Month ending 28 February 2007
Katy showed signs of stiffness in her front legs during the first few days of February, she was slowing down from her
usual brisk pace and really didn’t want to walk very far at all, so a visit was arranged to the vet. Nothing serious diagnosed, just the onslaught of old age and the winter months taking their toll. She was prescribed a small measure of Metacam to be injected into her food once daily. Within 3-4 days her condition had greatly improved, and it wasn’t long before
she was chasing companion Cassie around on the beach again.
Sunday 18th was a beautiful clear day; we were in the Largs area and decided to take the dogs and car over to Great
Cumbrae – any excuse for us to have an ice cream at The Ritz café in Millport!
The dogs enjoyed the breaks at the small rocky beaches around the island, a stroll around the cathedral grounds and
around the summit. A really nice day that broke up the dreich month of February.
When out on one of our early walks last week Cassie found an old rabbit hiding in roadside undergrowth and quick as
lightning she crabbed it. Katy took excepti
|
