Stealing the Limelight

Stealing the Limelight

Lolly, eight weeks old

All the four-footers have been confounded by the introduction of a tiny creature which has completely stolen the limelight. They are not quite sure just what it is – at least, they were not when Bethan brought it into the house last Saturday. The cats, Herschel in particular, went into predatory mode on first sight. Bethan and I had driven to Shropshire to Threevalleys Gundogs to collect her (first) puppy, a little black bundle of absolute cuteness.

Bethan with Lolly, nine weeks old

Yesterday Bethan came to visit and Lolly, for that is her name, now nine weeks old and a little larger and much more confident, travelled with her by bus, tube and train from Muswell Hill to Crowthorne. They spent the day with us. This time, the cats did not attempt to stalk Lolly although they are still markedly bigger than her.

Jellicoe, whiskers well forward, approaches with caution. Naturally, Isambard was nowhere to be seen!

The dogs, all seven of them, (Tia, Foxy and Buster are spending their summer holiday with us) had relaxed by the time Bethan and Lolly left. Today they are tired – all the stress of coping with an incomer has taken its toll.

A close encounter with Foxy

Lolly will be visiting again next weekend. It is important that the adult dogs become accustomed to her while she is still very small as they will often be spending time together. 

Frankie, nineteen months old

Frankie was delighted to see a tiny version of Jenna. For him all black Labradors are called Jenna but he is beginning to distinguish Gus and Tia. The fox red Labrador brothers Bertie and Buster are a puzzle to him for they still look very similar. Foxy is one on her own and on a strict diet, for she is greed personified. Frodo, of course, is very different and definitely not a Labrador.

Susannah with Frankie

Bethan with Lolly

There’s never a dull moment in the Cooke household!

Fun in the Forest

'Let me help you'

Buster doesn't need any help but Bertie is quite possessive over his AquaKong.

Sometimes Buster helps his brother Bertie!

An old(er) lady flanked by two young chaps.

Tia is accompanied by Bertie and Buster

Flotilla.

All eyes on the Kong . . . well, most of them. Frodo is not a retriever, except of biscuits.

Dear deer!

Up periscope . . . 

. . . when the signal is stationary we are informed that Jenna has 'treed a quarry'. . .

. . . as if!!

A cooling dip for Frodo . . .

. . . and a gentle swim for Foxy, always hoping for (but not receiving) biscuits.

Kersplash!

Can you see me? I can see you!

Tug of war . . . Bertie always wins.

At one of the 'new' ponds.

Left to right: Frodo, Bertie, Buster, Tia, Janice, Foxy, Jenna, Gus

Buster sits and waits for the Kong to be thrown.

The Nineteenth Blog of Augustus Lazarus Cooke (Gus)

Hello everyone!

It has been ages since I blogged. I told you last time that we had all gone to stay with Tia and Foxy and Buster for a day and how our people went out and left us with Dean. Well, we went to spend another day with them and this time we stayed with Kiri while everyone else went out and again everyone was happier when ‘it’ was over.* Kiri had two babies to look after ‘cos Susannah had taken Frankie down the night before ‘it’ but she was quite happy to stay at home and Frodo behaved himself – he knows Kiri very well. We got home very late that night and the kittens were pleased to see us.

The kittens are really big now – well, that’s what the Humans say. Course, they’re never going to be as big as us dogs. Just as well, I think, when I look at their sharp teeth and claws.

Mr H went off the other day to spend some time with some men he knew years and years ago. They all passed out together, he said – strange, I thought, but Mrs H explained that meant they were all remissioned on the same day (editor’s note: they were commissioned . . . )

Then, just after that Mrs H went to stay with Susannah and Frankie. 

She was looking after Frankie while Susannah went to work. Mr H had to learn how to work the washing machine and he even hung the washing out on the line. It was funny watching him – he puts the clothes out differently to Mrs H, not nearly as neat and tidy.

Now Tia and Foxy and Buster have come to stay for their summer holiday. It’s fun going for walks all together. T, F and B really enjoy the ponds in the forest – there’s not much water where they live. Yesterday we went out for ages. Buster is funny. He sits in the pond with the water up to his collar waiting for Mrs H to throw the Kong. He’s just as much of a cheat as Jenna and Bertie gets quite upset so Mrs H tricks Buster and pretends to throw the Kong in one direction but changes it at the last second. She has to do the same with Jenna so that I get a chance to retrieve the ball. Tia’s a good girl – she watches like I do and then races off. Foxy doesn’t bother. She likes retrieving biscuits but Mr and Mrs H aren’t doing that with her ‘cos she’s rather rounder than she should be and it’s not good for her joints.

It’s quite warm today so we’ll probably go to Simons Wood where there’s lots of shade but only one pond. 

It’s a big pond, more of a lake really, with ducks and geese and dabchicks and the water’s clear so we don’t come home carrying lots of mud in our coats. I hope we go soon . . . I like our walks.

Be good.

Hwyl fawr am nawr! (That’s Welsh for ‘Goodbye for now!’)

*’it’ was Trevor’s funeral. Trevor is Mr H’s brother.

The Seventeenth Blog of Augustus Lazarus Cooke (Gus)

The Seventeenth Blog of Augustus Lazarus Cooke (Gus)

Here I am with Bertie - he's quite confused - doesn't know why he can't play with the kittens.

Hello everyone!

I know it’s only been a little while since I last blogged but I wanted to tell you how life has changed.

Do you remember me telling you that Mr H kept saying, ‘You don’t know what’s coming your way,’ and how Mrs H laughed and said, ‘They’ll be all right,’ and I thought it wouldn’t be anything nasty? Well, it isn’t anything nasty as far as us dogs can see but we’re not allowed to get close enough to really find out.

Just after the Boss’s birthday he and Mrs H rearranged the furniture in the sitting room and got the big puppy pen out of the garage and put it next to the patio doors. All us dogs thought there must be a puppy coming and we were thrilled. After that Mr and Mrs H took us for a walk and then they went out again on their own but this time they took Winston’s basket with them. Bertie got really excited and sniffed it all over and we all thought it was a big mistake about Winston dying and maybe he was coming home after all. It wasn’t and he didn’t but what they did bring home were three tiny cats – kittens they’re called - and they’re distant relations of Winston and Monty.

We wanted to make them welcome and play with them but we weren’t allowed and anyway they weren’t very friendly. They hissed at us and growled and we backed off. I think they were afraid, actually – we must look ever so big to them.

Mrs H took them into the conservatory and they rushed off and hid under the bureau and the low coffee table. They didn’t want to be stroked and they didn’t eat anything. Naturally, we were curious so we stood in the kitchen looking through the glass door and they ran as far away as they could.

Then Bethan and Robert came. Robert loves cats though they make him breathless and Mrs H calls him the Cat Whisperer ‘cos he picked them up and they didn’t struggle.

This weekend everyone else came so the kittens were played with all day and they were really tired. They’re not scared any more but we’re still not allowed to meet them nose to nose apart from when they’re in the puppy pen at night. I’m looking forward to the day we can all be together ‘cos I liked Monty and Winston and I miss them curling up with me.

I expect they’ll tell you about themselves but here are some photos of their first day with us. I don’t think their eyes could be any bigger!

Herschel

Isambard

Jellicoe

Got to go – supper time. There’ll be more room in the kitchen now that Tia, Foxy and Buster have gone home.

Be good.

Hwyl fawr am nawr! (That’s Welsh for ‘Goodbye for now!’)

Early August in the forest

Early August in the forest

Bill junior is lighter in colour than his father

Bill and Beatrice Crow daily demand their biscuits. Bill is still the more confident bird and comes down from the tree immediately he spots that a biscuit has been thrown for him. The two young have been reduced to one, a very noisy and insistent bird that follows Bill to the ground, not to pick up the food but to squawk to be fed. Bill flies off and the youngster follows.

Frodo, Buster, Tia, Foxy, Janice, Gus, Bertie, Jenna

We decided to visit some of the ponds we’ve seen from a distance. Since the fire of May 2011 that destroyed so many trees the Forestry Commission has worked hard to clear and replant, helped by local volunteers. 

Buster, Bertie, Gus

New ponds have been dug and are full at the moment, a magnet for water-loving dogs.

In the distance you can see the Tuley tubes, protective tree sleeves to defend young saplings from foraging herbivores. They also accelerate growth because they act as a miniature greenhouse and channel growth into the main stem and roots. 60000 trees have been planted and are growing strongly.

Gatekeeper or Hedge Brown (Pyronia tithonus)

On our way back from our walk yesterday Barry spotted this butterfly. It is a Gatekeeper (Pyronia tithonus) or Hedge Brown and flies from mid-July to the end of August. It is common and widespread in the southern half of Britain and is gradually increasing its range northwards. This is a female – the male has a dark patch on his forewing that marks an area of scales (androconia) that produce scent to attract females.

It is known as the Gatekeeper because it is often found among flowers and grasses near field gates. Its alternative name indicates that it frequents hedges and the edges of fields.

The Fourteenth Blog of Augustus Lazarus Cooke (Gus)

Hello everyone!

Something exciting happened to us the other day. Tia, Foxy and Buster came to stay and all our humans went out but we weren’t left on our own. Two humans we didn’t know came to look after us so when our people came back we were pleased to see them but we didn’t go mad like we usually do – well, I do.

Anyway, the two new humans, Carole and Roy, came to look after us again when Bethan got mad. They spent the night with us and gave us our breakfast the next day before our people got back. We didn’t have our usual food – we had kibble. Mrs H says a bit of junk food now and then doesn’t do any harm, but I liked itJ I would have liked to go and see Bethan get mad but there was no room for dogs. Anyway, Winston wouldn’t have liked being left all on his own.

Gus and Bertie

Bertie’s taller than me now but he’s not as broad. He’s ever so good at running and swimming and Jenna doesn’t bother to chase after the Kong ‘cos she knows Bertie’ll get to it first and if he doesn’t I will. When we can’t find the Kong Jenna lends a nose to help us. The ponds in the forest are really, really full and the water’s deep. It’s great. It’s lovely to plunge in when we’re hot and thirsty. I can drink as I swim – I think that’s quite clever, really.

Gus, Frodo, Jenna, Tia, Mrs H, Foxy, Buster (behind Foxy), Bertie

Tia and Foxy and Buster’s people have gone on holiday. Buster really misses them but they’ll be back in a little while. Buster’s a bit afraid of me ‘cos I tell him off when he gets too rough. I’d never hurt him, though, ‘cos he is only young and still learning. Foxy lets him get away with anything and that’s not good for a pup.

The smaller children– that’s Elliot, Eve and Louis - came to stay a little while ago. I like it when they come ‘cos they make lots of fuss of us all.  We all like children. Yesterday in the forest we met some children and they played with us – it was fun. Children are more fun than people. What? Mrs H just told me that children are people, too – they’re younger and faster, that’s all – oh, and noisierJ

I’ve heard that there’s going to be a baby soon – I’m not sure I know what that is. Is it like a puppy? I expect I’ll find out all about it when Susannah gets it. I don’t know where she’ll get it from, though.

Well, that’s all for now. Be good!

Hwyl fawr am nawr! (That’s Welsh for ‘Goodbye for now!’)

The Thirteenth Blog of Augustus Lazarus Cooke - Gus

Hello everyone!

Well, it’s a New Ear again and it’s cold at last after so much wet and warm. Frodo’s pleased ‘cos now the ground is hard he doesn’t have to have his paws washed every time he comes in from the garden. (I really like Frodo!) Jenna and Bertie and me don’t sink in the mud like him. I think that’s ‘cos we’ve got webby paws.

Our Humans didn’t go out for New Ear’s Eve – they stayed at home with us and watched the fireworks from London on the television. They said they were wonderful and there will be more later on. They said there will be fireworks for the Queen’s cold an jubilee and for the Oh! lim picks. I don’t know what those are but lots of people are getting excited about them.

I wondered if the ears were getting shorter - well, the Humans keep saying they don’t know where the time goes. I don’t think it goes anywhere, not like water down the drain. Maybe the garden needs drains ‘cos the water there doesn’t go anywhere – it just sits on the top like dirty puddles.

Mrs H was saying they need to get a dog sitter. I don’t want one. I don’t want a big person sitting on me – I’m not a bean bag. Mostly Mr and Mrs H don’t go out without us and if they have to be away for a long time then Gillian comes. That’s good ‘cos then Tia and Foxy and Buster come, too, but one day this year everyone’s going out together for a long day and we can’t go with them. Winston’s all right – he’s a cat and he’s got everything he needs indoors. Bertie knows how to use Winston’s litter tray but he’s a bit big for it now and me and Frodo are definitely too big, so you see we’ll have to have a dog sitter. It’s all Bethan’s fault – she’s getting mad – I think that’s what they said. Everyone’s happy about it apart from us dogs. Still, Tia and Foxy and Buster will probably come and stay with us that day. I hope the Humans can find someone to look after seven dogs.

Bertie’s grown such a lot. He’s much taller than Jenna now and he’s nearly as tall as me. I’m still growing muscles but I look like a proper dog. Bertie’s a puppy, with long gangly legs and his snout is longer than ever mine was. He smiles with wrinkles all over his nose, specially when he’s done something he shouldn’t. We play together a lot but sometimes he’s too rough and I have to nip him. Then he squeaks and goes to one of the Humans for a cuddle. Foxy never tells Buster off so he’s a bit surprised when he’s here and I scold him.

Bertie can jump on the Humans’ bed now. It gets a bit crowded on there ‘cos Winston likes to join us but he doesn’t take up much room. The Humans don’t seem to mind so long as we don’t start playing. Usually I get off after a while and find a dog bed to sleep in but Jenna and Winston stay all night and Bertie often does, too. Frodo never gets on the bed. He used to but he’s not allowed now ‘cos of his drugs. It’s true – no good comes of drugs.

Time for a snooze. Be good!

Hwyl fawr am nawr! (That’s Welsh for ‘Goodbye for now!’)

pee ess:Bethan’s coming home tonight ‘cos they found a dead rat in their sitting room this morning. They don’t know if it’s the one they saw in the kitchen or another one. Robert’s gone to the States for a few days and she doesn’t want to find another one while he’s away – or at all! I bet me and Jenna could see them off. Grrrr . . .

The Twelfth Blog of Augustus Lazarus Cooke – Gus

Hello everyone!

I expect Winston’s already told you about our new family member. He’s called Bertie and I wasn’t very keen on him to begin with. My people brought another one home at the same time, just like him! I thought they had gone mad but after a couple of days the other one went to Dorset with Gillian and Paul. He’s called Buster. Bertie had six brothers and two sisters – I’m just glad the Humans didn’t bring them all home.

Bertie smelt different to the rest of us and he had a very loud, high voice. After a while I began to realise that he was just a smaller version of me – a much smaller version – and now I play with him. I’m very careful ‘cos he’s still quite little and I’m so big and strong. I take toys to him and we play tug.

He’s bigger than Winston now but he still can’t go up and down the stairs so Mrs Human has to carry him and she says he’s getting heavier all the time. I’m not surprised, the amount he eats! He loves the food us adult dogs (and Winston) eat but he’ll have to eat his puppy food for a long time, too, to make sure he grows properly. I remember I had to do that, and that wasn’t very long ago. I had my second birthday the other day and although I’ve finished growing up I’m still growing out, I think.

Bertie goes into his pen to eat – that’s so Winston and Frodo don’t pinch his food. The Humans have to put his bowl in the middle, out of Winston’s reach or else Winston reaches in and pulls the bowl towards him so he can hook out the food and he really doesn’t need it, that’s what Mrs H says.

I don’t think Bertie knows that Winston is a cat. He keeps trying to play with him like another puppy and Winston keeps telling him to stop.  Then Bertie goes into his litter tray to use it so he’s really quite a confused little dog. Winston doesn’t seem to mind him doing that.

Now he’s had all his jabs he can come out walking with us and that’s fun. He chases after us but he can’t keep up. He watches us retrieving, Jenna and me, that is. Frodo doesn’t pick up – he just looks elegant and beautiful and lopes along next to Mrs H.

Last week Bertie was chasing Jenna and followed her into the pond. He was quite surprised to find himself in the water but he swam really well for a little chap.

Then he sat and shivered and had to be wrapped up in Mrs H’s jacket – he liked that!

We’ve been to Dorset twice to see Buster. It’s a long way to go just for the day and we’re tired by the time we get home again. Foxy is glad we go ‘cos it gives her a rest from Buster playing with her all the time. They’re all coming here next time and they’ll sleep here, too. I like it when Foxy and Tia come. We charge about in the forest and go in all the ponds. The ponds are really full now, ‘cos we’ve had so much rain and there’s more to come.

Gareth and Nina visited the other day. It was good to see the children again – I really like playing with them. 

Susannah came to see us on Saturday but she wasn’t feeling very well so she didn’t stay long, just enough to make a fuss of us dogs and Winston and cuddle Bertie.

It is fun having a little brother – I know he’s not really my brother, though he sort of is – but it is quite tiring. We all go to bed quite early and he sleeps through the night, most of the time. Mrs H says it’s (almost) like having a baby again.

Hwyl fawr am nawr! (That’s Welsh for ‘Goodbye for now!’)