Pick Me Up! Special – September 2019

W

alkingalongthe

quayside,crowdsof

boatenthusiastsall

aroundus,I

couldn’thavebeenhappier.

It wasJunelastyear,andmy

partnerCraig,36,andI wereat

theScottishTraditionalBoat

FestivalinPortsoy.

Meetingonline,we’dbeen

togetherforjustovera year,after

bondingoveroursharedloveof

hikingandtheoutdoors.

Justthen,Craigturnedtoface

me,withsomethingtoask.

‘Willyoumarryme?’hesaid,

presentingmewitha beautiful

shellring.

‘Yes!’I smiled.

It wassucha simpleproposal

butit wasexactlywhatI had

alwayswanted.
Westartedplanningour
weddingrightaway,andweboth
agreedononethingfromthe
start– wewantedit tobesmall.
‘Justthetwoofus,’I smiled.
Wealsowantedit tobewild
andunpredictable– allthethings
welovedaboutexploringthe
Scottishcountryside.
Wesoonsettledongetting
marriedontheIsleofSkye.
I’dcompleteda Dukeof
EdinburghAwardtherewhileat
school,andtheislandwasCraig’s
familyhome.
Wefounda celebrantto
performtheceremony,a piper
anda photographer– andthat
wasourguestlistdone!
Onthebigday,inMarchthis
year,I slippedintomycorseted
floor-lengthgown,and
WORDS BY AMY WALTERS PHOTOS: SWNS

Emma MacVicar, 29, from Aberdeen,

binned her wedding dress hours after

getting married...

completed the look with a pair of

green wellies.

Pretty and practical all in one!

Then I hopped into the back of

our photographer’s van.

The piper played as I walked

towards Craig on the windswept

beach of Honeycomb Rock.

Our short, simple

ceremony was perfect.

Afterwards, we got back

in the photographer’s van

and stopped for photos

around the island.

Passing the Old Man of

Storr, one of the iconic

wonders of Scotland, I

couldn’t pass up on the

photo opportunity.

It was a huge rock that

jutted out into the sky –

perfect for pictures.

Hopping out of the van,

we began hiking.

As we climbed, it

became misty, and I

slipped on the thick mud.

But nothing could take

WINDSWEPT

A

caringvetdressedupas

a giantmousetocalma

nervousrescuedogthat

neededsurgery.

MikeFarrelldonnedthehuge

greyandpinkonesie-styleoutfitin

ordertoexamineDalmatian

Rupert,whoneededanoperation

onhisleg.

OwnerSonyaSchiffhad

broughtherfurrymouseromper

suitforherdevotedpettosleep

onbecauseit smeltofher.

Butwhenthepoorlypooch

provedreluctanttobehandled,

Mikejumpedintothecostumeto

helphimrelax.

Sonya,fromLondon,said:

‘WhenI adoptedRupertfrom

DogsTrusta coupleofyearsback

hehadsomequiteserious

guardingissuesandaggression,

whichwebelievewereassociated

withpain.

‘It took a year for him to bond

with me after his rehoming, at

which point he developed

separation anxiety if I left him.’

Sonya took Rupert to Davies

Veterinary Specialists in Hitchin,

Herts, to be checked out after he

began suffering from a lame leg.

But he was very protective and

showed signs of aggression if the

vet tried to touch him.

He was eventually diagnosed

with hip dysplasia and cruciate

ligament problems, and 18

months later needed surgery.

Mike, an orthopaedic specialist

at the clinic, said: ‘Initially Rupert

growled when I tried to examine

him in my usual clothes.

‘His owner was worried about

his aggression towards strangers.

‘She was also worried about

how he would respond to being

takenintohospital.’

Committedtomakinghis

patientsfeelatease,Mike

decidedtodressupin thefurry

mouseoutfittoseeif Rupert

wouldbelessanxious.

Theresult-

whilehilarious

• was highly
  effective and
  Mike was able
  to examine
  Rupert safely
  and then
  perform surgery
  on his ligament.
  Monika Kafno,
  a behaviourist at
  the surgery, said:
  ‘As dogs have a
  superior sense of
  smell and ability
  to smell between
  10,000 and
  100,000 times
  better than
  people, their
  brain processes
  information in a
  very short time.
  ‘This triggers

Little

Pick Me

Ups!

WORDS AND PHOTOS

: SWNS

Some vets will

go to extremes

to make their

patients

comfortable...

MAN OR MOUSE?

an association

of the smell

with a particular

experience and

is why the

onesie worked.’

He jumped right into

the comforting onesie!

away from this moment.

Finally, after over two hours of

climbing, our photographer got

out his camera to capture our

wild and blustery embrace.

When we turned to walk back

down, some tourists stopped in

their tracks.

‘I thought she was a ghost!’ one

of them gasped.

I couldn’t help but laugh.

What with the mist, my huge

dress and the mystical setting, I

suppose I did look like a ghost!

As for my wedding dress – it

was completely ruined.

Covered in mud right up to my

People mistook

me for a ghost!