Growing up
Minnie was growing fast. I mean she is still a ‘small’ dog but when I bought her she was so tiny and the runt of the litter I just expected her to be a little weed. But not so. The jumper from Patch, the one that swamped her was now too tight. It looked like it had been sprayed on!
Funny enough I named her Minnie because she was so small but in actual fact she has turned out bigger than Maisie! I do wonder if I had been duped at the kennels and they just gave me a younger dog from another litter and passed her off as a runt to explain why she was smaller than her litter mates.
Maisie is smaller than I expected, she is stocky though. Their mums were Bichon Frise sisters apparently and their dad was an apricot toy Poodle. Minnie takes after her mum Maisie takes after their dad. I do wonder sometimes if there was a ‘terrier’ somewhere along the lines though because Maisie shows all the signs of being a ratter!
Too big!
It’s like a bag!
Too small!
Taking them out for a run on the beach is an absolute joy!
Taking them for a walk anywhere else is a nightmare! My husband likens it to flying kites, they are attached to those wonderful things called extendable leads and before we have walked out of our crescent either we are in knots or they are!
As they have got older, they have got worse. They know all the regular places that they may spot a cat they can bark at or where a dog lives or even where they will get a stroke.
As we start out for a walk into town (5 minutes away) the first thing they do when they walk fly through the gate is turn right and head for Michael’s next door. I suppose it’s not surprising as he gives them treats of ham, their favourite, and of course lots of cuddles.
Then starts the flying process, they are up on their back legs peering over low walls then dipping and diving looking under cars for a sleeping cat like true acrobatic stunt kites crossing each other’s path doing loop the loop.
When we get to the end of the crescent there is a guest house with 4 Yorkshire terriers that are sometimes at their gate. But whether they are or not there we still have to go and have a quick look to satisfy them.
Then we have to go through a little garden on the seafront because they always have a wee there and Maisie is then on the lookout for larger than average sized dogs so that she can have a go at them and tell them she’s gonna rip their throat out if they come any closer. I think she has little dog syndrome. The funny thing is that if she’s off the lead she will come flying into my arms so I can protect her.
There are a few shops that welcome dogs so we always frequent those first and give them our custom when we can but if my hubby goes into another shop and we have to wait outside Maisie goes into pogo stick mode until I pick her up. She hates just standing!
They are great in the car as long as they are in their ‘bag’. I bought it to protect the back seats from sand and dirty dogs. It hooks over the front and back headrests completely covering the upholstery keeping all the grot inside the bag. Not only that, Minnie and Maisie are totally relaxed on their quilt in the bag and go to sleep. If however they have to travel without the bag they are total wrecks! Shaking and trembling terribly.
They used to love it when I collected my granddaughter Lola from school, they would instantly recognise her amongst all the other kids in the playground.
Waiting for Lola at school