A Few Recent Shots of Henry

I recently trimmed the hair on Henry's head and neck, and he looks much more cocker-spaniel-like now, with his little domed head showing a bit better (and I've even trimmed his eye-lashes). Before, he was definitely a bit of a scruff-bag. There's still some work to do (his coat is a never-ending battle!), but I think he's looking quite fine at the moment! As a result, the camera is on him quite frequently. Here's a few recent shots; he just looks so sad in most of them.

He's recently started making a strange noise to me in the afternoons, after dinner, before he goes out to play with his dog-friends in the park ("dog club"). He goes rao-rao-rao and eventually almost howls - it's his way of saying "I want to go out and play, right now!". I uploaded a couple of videos of this on youtube (here's the first, second and third - he's looking particularly scruffy in the first couple!), but here's some photos of him in action - pursing his little moosh! He gets quite croaky and very sad-sounding, so he always gets a good cuddle afterwards (and his play in the park with his friends and his favourite green ball).

I just got a new wide-angle lens and of course the first subject I had to try it out on was Henry, my little muse. Not the most flattering angle! No doubt there will be more...

Dogs of the Day - 1st June 2014

After taking some photos of masses of Harley-Davidson motorcycles at the Warr's dealership off the King's Road earlier in the day, I decided it was time for something completely different, so snapped some of the local dogs.

This is Archie the cocker spaniel posing very nicely for me - such a gorgeous face.

These two having a good fight are the teddy-bear like little Elvis, a 6-month-old cavapoo, and Gracie, a year-old Havanese.

This is Gilbert, waiting - rather sadly - for his daddy to return. Eventually he just gave up.

 

This is Gracie on her own - managed to get her staying still for about a second!

And last but not least, is the lovely Lazzie, who didn't seem to notice the lens shoved underneath his nose as he waited to play ball.

Dogs of the day - May 12th 2014

I haven't taken the camera to the common for a while, but today the sun was shining (although dark clouds hovered ominously in the distance) and I was working from home, so I decided it was time I caught up on the photos of Henry's friends.

There's a couple of new puppies around, but they weren't out today, so I had to be happy with the older puppies - those around 8 months. This is the lovely Jessie, a golden cocker spaniel with a gorgeous blonde quiff.

And then there were some of the regulars - Pepper the beagle, Archie the schnoodle (schnauzer/poodle cross), Lazzie the coton de tulear, Alfie the pug and a couple of others. The dogs only posed for me if someone brought a handful of treats from their pocket.

Otherwise there was a fair amount of boisterous puppy activity going on - running around together, biting, playing - particularly between Pepper and Archie.

Being two now (it was his birthday last week) Henry doesn't join the playing all that much, usually content to play ball with me, or have a good old roll. Fortunately he doesn't roll in stinky things!

A Few of the Local Dogs

I've been a bit busy of late, with a new day-job keeping me away. The photography and the dog-walking are now reserved for weekends only, for the time-being. When I do get out with Henry, he's still obsessed with the ball. His catching skills are coming along very well!

I took the camera out today, armed with the 50mm f/1.2 lens, hoping the rain would hold off. There were a couple of light showers, but generally it stayed dry, so I was able to snap a few shots of Henry playing with his ball and some of the neighbourhood dogs - some regulars, others new.

This is the adorable little Alfie, the pug. He's been on a diet recently and looks great. He likes to play with Henry, but most of his time is spent being ravaged by Myrtle.

Myrtle is an affenpinscher, and extremely hard to photograph as she's a cute little blob of black fluff. She is smitten with Alfie.

This is male chihuahua, whose name I can't remember. He may be small, but it doesn't stop him trying to hump much, much bigger dogs!

These two are Roxy the Airedale and Sonny the French Bulldog. I've only met Roxy a couple of times - she makes Henry look tiny. Henry and Sonny have played together since they were pups. Sonny is also very keen on Henry's favourite green ball.

 

I hadn't met this dog before - her name is Dora and she's a wheaten terrier - also made Henry look tiny!

I'm hoping the weather will have enough dry spells tomorrow so I can take the camera out and about again.

Dog of the Day - 2nd August 2013

Henry hasn't been the Dog of the Day for a while, so here he is!

These are a couple of recent photos of the little chap who's 15 months old this weekend; the older he gets, the longer his eyelashes seem to grow (now 2.5")!

With all the hot weather we've been having his new favourite sleeping place is on the marble fireplace; sometimes he looks a complete eejit.

Dog of the Day - 30th July 2013

Today's Dog of the Day is a very energetic and acrobatic 11-month-old working cocker spaniel called Keila. Henry can catch a soft rubber ball from a couple of feet away, but this dog's catching abilities are amazing - she can catch a hard tennis ball after a huge throw in the air - as can be seen below!

My Thoughts On Having a Dog

Just over a year ago we got a dog. He's the 4th dog in my family, but my first (with my husband). He's the same breed (cocker spaniel), same colour (blue roan) and same gender (male) as the previous three. I would have considered a female, but the blue roan and cocker spaniel bits weren't up for discussion. Once you've had one it's difficult to move on...

I first saw Henry at 7 weeks old. He was the last one left in a litter of 5, possibly as he was the smallest of the litter. We didn't have a choice on the gender after all, so another male it was! It was the first time I've ever been to see a littler of puppies knowing that there was only one to choose from, so if we hadn't liked him the search would've continued. Fortunately both my husband and I made the decision on the spot, just conferring once we'd left the breeder's house to check that we were both sure. We were sure; Henry was ours a couple of weeks later.

After a wonderful year with the little man I thought I'd share my views on what having a dog has meant to me and how it has changed my life.

It's love
There is something very simple and pure about the love that you have for your dog and that your dog has for you. Some (non-doggie) people think that dogs love you because you feed them, but it's so much more than that. The greeting I get when I've been out for a few hours is just wonderful - he is so pleased to see me (and me him!). Similarly watching him squirm with joy when hubby comes home is just delightful. The love is unconditional on both sides.


I've connected with my neighbourhood
I've lived in the same place for 16 years and for the first 15 of those I didn't have a dog. I also knew very few of my neighbours. Since that first day in July last year when I walked around the area with my tiny pup in my arms I have made so many new friends (mostly other dog owners) and spoken to neighbours I'd only vaguely been aware of in the past. If I take him on the tube someone will always want to talk to me and pet the dog! One of my doggie friends gave me the bed that her Rhodesian Ridgeback puppy had grown out of. Every afternoon a group of us stand around and chat while our dogs play together or potter about, munching on sticks or sniffing around where the picnics have been. People talk about London being unfriendly - well get a dog and then tell me that you still think that's true.

I've made new friends online
As well as making new friends who live nearby, I've also made new friends online. I joined a forum where people share pictures and stories about their cocker spaniels, as well as asking for advice about feeding, grooming, illness, and so on. It's an amazingly supportive community and some of the people do eventually become "real" friends. I've even met one of them in the flesh (she lives nearby)!

I always have company
I am never alone. My husband can go out or go away but I will never be alone. Henry will always be lying around somewhere, in the corner under my chair, on his throne of cushions on the sofa, on the marble fireplace (when it's hot), or sitting looking at me and then the treat shelf and then back to me. Or whining at me to play with him. Or warbling at me because he's hungry. I will never be lonely while he is around.

Having a puppy = sleep-deprivation
Henry was a fairly easy puppy, not destroying furniture and not being too frenetic (he had his moments). One thing we did have a struggle with, though, is sleep. We put him in a cage at night for the first few months and if he needed to go to the loo (or just wanted company) he'd whine and I'd go and attend to him. Living in a flat surrounded by flats above and below as well as on either side meant that I couldn't just let him whine or bark and get over it. I had to get up and see to him. Often he'd need to go out a couple of times during the night. At about 5 months he finally started sleeping through properly and then we got rid of the cage, so he could sleep on the sofa or in his little bed. Sometimes he still wakes up early. I spent a good portion of the first few months extremely sleep-deprived. Having a puppy can be hard work and tiring! At least puppies do sleep a lot, so it's possible to grab the odd twenty winks while they're kipping. It does get better, and on the anniversary of the day we picked him up we all slept in until 11am! He must've whined at some point but we had ear-plugs in (neighbours partying the night before) and slept through it. My first lie-in in a year!

He makes me laugh and smile
Henry has a few little habits that will never fail to make me laugh and smile. The one thing that always gets me is this: if we're playing he'll get a toy and run up to me and bash me with it. If I'm lying on the floor with it I'll be bashed in the head. If I'm standing or kneeling he'll try to climb on my lap and bash my body with it. It makes me laugh every time. And the thing that always makes me smile is when I pick his bowl up before each meal he licks his chops, licking either to the left or to the right, but usually the right. Every morning until he was one after a trip outside but before breakfast I'd lie down on the sofa and he used to jump up and snuggle against me; we'd have a little snooze together until he got hungry. It still happens sometimes, but I have to pick him up now. When he looked at me and then jumped up and made himself comfy, his nose nuzzling into my elbow, I'd feel so happy! We've taught him to "kiss" in return for a treat. He'll bash his nose against you until he gets something and does it with other dogs too (not the most affectionate of kisses!). Never a dull moment with a dog to entertain you.

He gets us out of the house
It was a long, wet winter and I probably wouldn't have left the house on some days, but because I had the dog I went out - got some exercise, some fresh air, some Vitamin D, some contact with the outside world. He keeps us active and sociable!

I'm tied down
Obviously having a dog has a downside: I'm completely tied down by having him. No more weekends away at the last minute on a whim (without a 4-hour round-trip out to drop him at my parents first). Any trip needs to be carefully planned to ensure that my mum can look after him. We've had one holiday with him, though, and have another planned this year - both to Cornwall. He loved playing around on the beaches, nibbling at seaweed, digging in the sand; looking forward to going back to explore a bit more.

Any day out needs to be planned around him too. Can I take him with me? How long can I leave him for? And so on. Fortunately I learned early on that most of the local cafés and pubs are dog-friendly (as well as some restaurants), so at least I can take him out with me (I compiled a list of all the places too!). He's fine being left on his own now for a few hours, but he's always at the back of my mind. There are plenty of dog-walkers and minders around here to look after him if I want to pay, and some of my doggie friends have offered to look after him too, so there are plenty of options to leave him. As well as being a tie with respect to holidays, he also takes up a lot of my time on a day-to-day basis. I spend a large portion of my day either walking, playing with him or cuddling him: dogs are time-consuming too!

A dog can be expensive!
Not sure if we've just been unlucky or whether it's because we live in London, but having a dog is expensive. Henry knows the vets very well! Fortunately I took out pet insurance for him when he was a puppy (which is about twice the price in London than elsewhere) as he's had a couple of stomach upsets (including worms and campylobacter (requiring expensive tests on his poo!), as well as bouts of diarrhea), a corneal ulcer (probably from play-fighting with another dog) and he was recently diagnosed with a congenital cataract.

Otherwise he's fit, healthy and happy, so fingers crossed no more health issues in the pipeline. He won't let us brush his teeth, so some future costs are expected there. To save on grooming costs I decided to take that on myself and invested in a few grooming tools. With some cheese in a squeezy tube anything's possible. The other doggie owners regularly pay £30-50 to have their dogs' hair cut.

Good practice for dog photography
Having a dog with mostly dark hair and a little bit of white has been a good challenge for my photography skills - trying to expose him properly is very hard. He's been a great subject to practise on. If I didn't have a dog I'd feel a lot less easy about photographing other people's dogs too. Through photographing dogs I've learnt a lot more about their personalities and have grown to appreciate that other breeds are quite nice too ;)

Right, time for walkies with my little furry best friend. He's become very fond of playing ball (and swimming if he gets the chance) and it makes me so happy to see him having so much fun.