Monday 26 August 2013

Mad Dogs and Englishmen


I heard the latch of the front door close softly this morning as my eldest son left   for work.It was 7.20am and the sun was shining, so different from his experiences last summer. It has been a really exciting week for him.First he was offered his apprenticeship then gained  great GCSE results and then   to cap it all, out of the blue he got a call to ask whether he could do holiday cover at the local kennels over the weekend. It’s a James Herriot sort of experience , dog kennels, in a rural  setting  full of eccentric clients AND dogs and my son loves it!. He has us in stitches with the stories he tells when he gets home….

There are the people who arrive on their way to the air port who have forgotten to book their dogs into kennels or the customers who can’t bear to be parted from their dogs and take half an hour to say their weepy goodbyes.  Then there are those  who send their dogs in with packets of sweets and goodies. In a farming community it raises some laughs. I’m just waiting for the dog who arrives complete with flowery wellies and a rain mac from Next in case it rains.

My son has been regaling us with his adventures this week.There has been a Rotweiller with painted claws , the German Shepherd which pulled him over, the Staffie which has to be walked on its own , the dog which won't eat dog food and the Newfoundland which raised itself up to the height of my son, who at 6ft towers over me, put it's paws on his shoulders and gave his face a great big lick! A real assortment of cuddly and not so cuddly canine friends.

Dogs are great. We have two in our house. The carpet is always covered in fluff, they pinch the childrens’ bean bags to sleep on or get into the suitcase or laptop bag but they have always given so much love to the children and keep us sane. My autistic son loves them too. They stay up at night with him when he’s awake. He feeds them and gives them love and Rusty our border terrier is more like a teddy bear than a dog. 

  I went blackberrying with them this morning.There is one special bush that is ready way before the others . I picked blackberries whilst the dogs stood underneath ,eating those they could reach- no wonder our dog Benny has a mother called Bramble.




They may be a tie but we all love them and they are a wonderful part of this home educating family


2 comments:

  1. Lovely! We have just adopted our own canine pal and we are loving having him around!

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    1. They have taught our children how to think of others rather than themselves and how to be gentle and caring. We owe them so much. Have a lovely time with your new friend!

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