Tues 27th Sept: Blind Roley

I wrote yesterday’s blog as normal before leaving for my morning walk, and subsequently the day’s things-to-do, and only discovered when I got back home that it hadn’t been published and was still in draft form.  So today I’ll make double sure that it’s up before I go anywhere.  It’s nice to know that it’s missed anyway!

The All Blacks, ready for homing now

Today the last group of doglets not yet desexed went to Acorn first thing, and now there should be a gap before the next lot are due.  Hopefully by the time my current batch of youngsters are old enough they will already be in their new homes and it won’t be my job to get them spayed or neutered.  Unfortunately for them, I have one all-black litter, and being so they are so hard to photograph.  Everything blends in to become one black blob with a pair of eyes, so I have to rely on the volunteers who come to Whiskers’n'Paws to do the honours.  For the record, here they are, all together:  Batty, String, Bilko and Fritter.

Moxi, lost and - thankfully - found

Apart from having to get the doglets packed up (without breakfast) and to the vet, the morning started with the news (from the foster) that chow chow girl Moxi had gone walkabout.  This was particularly distressing because she had an adoption interview lined up for the coming day or so, but luckily she hadn’t strayed far and was picked up by someone living in the same village later in the day.  So now we just have our fingers crossed that she and her would-be owner like each other and she moves to her forever home very soon.

Apart from that little drama, I had received an email on Monday asking if we could take in a six month-old Sheltie that had a broken leg.  I agreed, and asked that the puppy be taken to Acorn Vet Hospital after having informed Dr Tony that it would be arriving so he could make sure he kept the time free for the necessary surgery.  All was arranged, and after having posted a plea for an urgent foster on Facebook (and found one), I thought everything was sorted.  That was until I got a call late morning from Tony asking where the Sheltie was.  I had no idea, having assumed it would be delivered as agreed, but in the end it turned out that the puppy was at another vet clinic where it had been taken instead.  I think “seriously under-impressed” would pretty much sum up how both Tony and I felt about the wasted time and effort.

After having taken the all-black litter to Acorn in the afternoon to have their due vaccinations, and to pick up the just-desexed doglets, it was time to go back home to continue the now-nonstop email dialogue about the Peak to Fong raffle, everything being urgent because of the license submission deadline.  All I can say is thank goodness for the amazing volunteer team we have working on these things because there is so much to do, and without everyone’s help it just wouldn’t happen.  It’s a bit like cooking a Christmas dinner- so much preparation goes into it, with the cake and pudding having been made months ahead of the actual day, and when the time comes and everything is brought to the table looking fantastic and totally yummy, you don’t realise what effort has gone into making it so.

Roley never looks at the camera, he only listens

Every evening I bring all of the dogs in for the night.  Most of them are either already in their beds, or come in when called, but there are a few doglets who see this time as an opportunity for a game of catch-me-if-you-can, or those who prefer to wait until everyone else is inside before venturing down from the top area of the garden themselves.  One of the dogs who waits for me to try and nab him is Roley.  For him there is no difference between night and day because he is completely blind, so he scampers up and down the bank as quickly and nimbly in the dark as he does when it’s daytime, while I am having to tread carefully.  His hearing is so acute that he can chase a tennis ball with total accuracy, and I try to spend some time playing with him while there are no other dogs around.  After all this time, I still find it incredible to watch him while I test his skills.  Roley loves these night time sessions, but he also knows that at the same time I’m trying to trick him so I can get him inside.  He’s such a smart boy though, and he can feel me coming every time I make a move in his direction.  It’s a game of cunning and wit, and I swear he deliberately lets me win in the end, only because he knows it means a good scratch and cuddle.