http://www.yourdog.co.uk 45for one-to-one sessions if needed and a vast
choice of activities.
Vitally, there was also the matter of
arranging back-up.
In the past, a friend had luckily been able
to step in and care for Archie and Angel on
the few occasions that an emergency had
taken me out of the house.
It isn’t something you tend to think about
until it happens, but those occasions had
brought home to me the importance of
having some kind of plan in place.
You never know just what life will throw
at you, so it’s as well to be prepared for
anything, and I knew that I couldn’t
commit to taking Dulcie unless I had
that all-important back-up.
Happily, my neighbours agreed to be i rst
responders, and Dulcie also has two local
‘aunties’, who can pop in at short notice, as
well as her brilliant foster mum, Frances.BIG DECISIONS...
SLEEPLESS NIGHTS!
Although that was one weight of my mind,
the enormity of the decision I was making
caused several sleepless nights as the time
to meet her drew closer.
I was having a real crisis of coni dence,
and came very close to ringing and calling
it all of. Once I met her however, all my
worries evaporated, and since bringing her
home she is living up to her name. A real
sweetheart, she is a joy to have around, the
perfect balm for my sore heart, and I love her
to pieces.
There is a saying that it takes three days
for a new dog to decompress, three weeks to
adjust to a new routine, and three months to
feel at home, before the dog shows its real
self. So far, at just one month in, we are still
in the so-called ‘honeymoon’ period, but she
is gradually coming out of her shell.
I have seen her mouth relax from a tight
line, been honoured by her i rst invitation to
play, and been delighted to watch her gallop
gleefully round the garden, discover that
toys are fun, and begin to display a sense
of mischief.She is a smart cookie who loves to learn,
and there are lots of things I think she
might enjoy trying, including rally, parkour,
mantrailing, and hoopers — all things that
either didn’t exist, or were in their infancy,
during my previous Whippets’ youth.
But the most important thing is that
we are having a lot of fun together, and
whatever the future may hold, from the
moment we met she has been doing
a terrii c job of reminding me that life
together is a shared adventure, with
something new each day for us to explore,
learn, teach, and take pleasure in.
To anyone else in the same situation,
wondering if they are doing the right thing
in opening their heart to another dog, I’d
say go for it — because to misquote the old
Richard Rodgers song: “There is nothin’ like
a dog.”...and discover
the fun of toys.Dulcie is starting to
enjoy new adventures...“I have seen her mouth relax from
a tight line, been honoured by her
i rst invitation to play...”
...and to relax.44-45 YD Dulcie Mar20 CS(SW)ok.indd 45 17/01/2020 13:48