As a retired guide dog, Freda spent a lot of time in my doggy day care as she stayed with me for two nights every week. She was an absolute dream! Staying in my doggy day care, Freda never left my side, as you can see, and she was a wonderful companion to have in my studio as I worked (the finished version of the work seen in the corner of the bottom-left photograph can be viewed here.) Being a guide dog she was allowed in shops with the manager's permission and she soon became a superstar at Jarrolds Department Store! Assistants would come around from the cash register to give her a fuss. 'Freda' means 'peace' and this describes the atmosphere that she would generate wherever we would go. One of the unexpected benefits of shopping with a yellow Labrador was that, as we have the same colouring (as I'm blonde), selecting clothes to try on became a whole world easier as I would just hold them up to her fur to see if the colour was suitable for me!
Freda could also count at least to two and she knew when 3pm was as this was treat time and she had two treats. I would give her one, she would eat it with a quiet glee, then come for another. But never a third, which is why I know she can count to two. Once, we were in the cinema and I gave her her chew while I had pop corn and to my horror the second I gave it to her the film began. I thought there were going to be more ads and trailers! Crunch, crunch, crunch, all through the start of the film. I felt terrible for the other viewers. So I took Freda out and sat with her while she finished her chew. Then I gave her her second one and waited again. When I thought she'd finished I cajoled her to get up so we could go back into the cinema and her portable dog bed, but she had an expression of consternation on her face and her mouth was all wonky. I had a closer look and she had hidden her chew long-ways in her mouth! She didn't want to be rushed. So I sat with her during this sacred time while she nibbled her chew and when she had finished in her own time we went back in and she had a siesta. These were joyful times pet sitting for Freda in my doggy day care.
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For a fortnight in the autumn of 2012 I volunteered at a wildlife area in the Pyrenees and I was trusted with the amazing responsibility of taking the incredible three-legged Peggy out for daily dog walking treks in the mountains. She has so much character! It is impossible not to fall in love with her immediately. Look at her ears! They are so expressive.
And she is so intelligent. Denise, her owner told me that after her leg was amputated when they had guest over Peggy would look at the guest, then her leg, then the guest and then her owner as if to say, "look what she has done to me!" So cute. Especially because she absolutely adored Denise. Having three legs did not stop Peggy one iota and she would zim about with her peculiar rhythm. My job on the mountainside was to clear an area so that wild flowers could re-colonize it and turn it into a wildlife meadow. Firstly, I had to pull out all the baby oak trees that had sprouted and then strim the entire area. It must've been the size of a football pitch. Lots of healthy exercise. And Peggy was with me most of the time. You would think that it would take time for the flowers to come back but within a day we saw their heads coming through and even meadow-loving lizards began to return. Nature is incredible. But the best thing about my time at Denise's, apart from her wonderful company and dinners, was dog walking with Peggy. She stole my heart. Spending time with incredible dogs like Peggy has really reinforced my passion of having a doggy day care, pet sitting and dog walking business. From 2011 to 2012 I lodged with a family and helped take care of their dog, Docken (meaning dock leaf in Scots.) We soon became best friends on our daily walks. I also provided a service as a dog and house sitter when the family was away.
In 2012 a friend and I volunteered on a homestead in Portugal and looked after 5 dogs, 6 cats, 3 horses and a mule. It was an incredible, unforgettable experience. Walking the dogs every day at 6.30 in the morning reinforced my love of dog walking. Looking after the cats was also extremely rewarding as we got to know their routines and personalities. And all of this in such remote and gorgeous surrounds - it was pet sitting at it's best!
Smarty and I went dog walking together for three years while I lived in Glasgow, we lived opposite each other and made friends through the fence as she used to guilt trip passers by into throwing her ball for her in the front garden. I soon got to meet the owners and was happy to help them out by taking Smarty dog walking in Kelvingrove Park. We had a great time. She is such an intelligent dog and would position her ball so you would know exactly where to throw it, and then go and hide ready to pounce and catch the ball. As you can see, the potential for dog walking in this park is massive. Acres and acres of green spaces perfect for the super-intelligent Smarty and our walks. There we so many fun things to do as well which may not have been obvious to the unsuspecting dog walker. As we made our way in the direction of the skate park her attention would decisively leave her ball as she followed her instincts and her innate desire to round things up. That's right! She "herded" the skateboarders, BMX riders and roller bladers! Much to their amusement. She would run around and around the perimeter of the park until she was satisfied that everybody was "inside". Then we would walk to the other side of the park to the football pitches and on several occasions she thought the men and women were kicking the ball for her and went in for some pretty skillful tackles. Everybody was impressed. She was a bit of a ball hogger though and wouldn't give it back. You would think that people would be mad but Smarty was just the sweetest dog and everybody adored her. In fact her antics provided a nice interval from the footballing and the dog walking!
Living so close to me, Smarty would often come round to stay for a few hours while her owners were away and this is where my doggy day care was born! She was perfect in doggy day care and just the loveliest house guest. She is so cuddly! However, most of all she was perplexed that we weren't out on our walks. At her house there were two small children to herd but not much to round up at my house! Whilst visiting a friend in Utah I took his dogs for walks twice a day. Boo and Skye, Australian Shepherds, were the perfect walking companions in the snow and showed me all around the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Looking after the dogs during the day while my friend was at work was the perfect holiday!
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AuthorElizabeth is a dedicated dog walker with over five years experience. With a a first class degree in Fine Art from Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art and Design she is trustworthy, reliable, energetic and loves animals. Archives
December 2016
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