An incident on the beach

So Gail and I took a Monday afternoon stroll from home down to the harbour.

When we reached the little rocky beach just inside the harbour wall I surveyed the general scene.

I went for a wee paddle.

Then I spotted something interesting going on just a few yards away.

Guess what happened next?

Hint:

Terrier with a high degree of curiosity + terrier who loves digging = Naughty Nobby???

Gail says: Fortunately all three kids found it highly amusing when Nobby, ignoring my calls, bolted across to them and clambered all over the poor lad being buried while kicking sand in his face... 

PS We are driving down to England today, for a ten day visit to various friends and relatives. It will be Nobby's first time away (apart from going to Torridon) and a big test of his social skills... While in England, Nobby will be attending a Very Special Event, and on the way back we will be visiting a Very Special Blog Pal. Watch this space! 

SingalongaNobby

 Go on. You know the tune and you know you want to sing...

Any Ditch Will Do

Out on a hike, I ventured off-route

To check beyond doubt, what I thought I knew.

And right behind, someone was calling,

But I just ignored them.

Any ditch will do.  

I dived right in, I was beyond thrilled  

The ditch was mud-filled, what an awesome coup!

But it soon came clear, Gail’s heart was sinking,

She was not thinking

That any ditch will do.

So home we go,

The bath is run,

My coat of mud will soon be gone,

The dirt is flowing down the plughole,

I am left all wet. 

May I return to the beginning,

When Gail is grinning, and I am too. 

The world and I, we are still waiting

Still hesitating**

Any ditch will do. 

*Lyrics inspired by last week's 'Muddy Nobby' photo, with apologies to Andrew Lloyd Webber

**Gail complains that Nobby's adapted lyric here is totally misleading. He never, ever hesitates before jumping in a ditch! 

Lateral thinking...

When Gail takes me for walks over in Torridon, she prefers that I keep to the straight and narrow.

It seems she gets alarmed when I clamber on a wall with a drop the other side.

She doesn't understand that I just want to check out the marine life for my Nature Friday post.

And you won't believe how cross Gail gets when I jump into a ditch in search of frogs.

Look, here's proof of the interesting things one finds if one ventures off the beaten track.

Happy Nature Friday, and thanks once again to the LLB Gang for hosting this, our favourite blog hop. Don't forget to go and visit all the other posts.

The four phases of watchdog duty...

 

Look, even a hyperactive 5 month old WFT can't stay alert for ever...

Celtman - an alternative course?

When Gail and I arrived in Torridon village on Friday evening we found the place a-buzz with camper vans, tents, and lithe and muscular humans, all assembled for the annual 'Celtman' extreme triathlon, to take place the following day.  

It so happened that the route of our walk on Saturday afternoon coincided with a section of the final leg of the triathlon. 

When I asked Gail why she had suddenly clamped on my lead she replied that if contestants had started the day at 4 am by swimming 3.4 km across Loch Torridon (c.11ºC), then cycled a hilly 200 km in rain and a gale force wind, and were now nearing the end of an even hillier 42 km run, they probably didn't want to be subjected to an enthusiastic terrier-style greeting (which may or may not involve some nipping at exposed calves).

  

I wondered why Gail wasn't taking part - after all she cycles and goes swimming regularly, and appears to want to sprint after me in the park sometimes. Well you won't believe this, but she blamed me for her not entering the event. Well, me, and the fact that café stops along the route did not seem to be part of the arrangements...

It got me thinking. Perhaps we should organise our own 'Nobby and Gail friendly' event. 'Celtdog: the less Xtreme Triathlon' would be a good name. Here's my proposed programme. 

1. THE SWIM: The human swims across the little bay (Òb a' Bràighe) just close to our cottage, with the dog barking encouragement from the shore. I believe the distance in the water is about 250 m. After the swim the human has a hot shower and a mug of hot chocolate while the dog replenishes his energy with bowl of dog biscuits. If the weather is really horrid, or the jellyfish too abundant, the human is allowed to paddle around the edge of the bay.

2. THE BICYCLE RIDE: The route goes from our cottage to the nearest café. The café is in Torridon village, a distance of 5 miles (8 km). The dog may either run along side or be transported in a basket attached to the handlebars or in a separate trailer. The human is permitted to dismount and push on the steeper sections. A suitable handicapping system will be devised based on breed of dog and subtly weighted in favour of fox terriers... The destination café is to serve the human with tea and large slices of cake, but only dog-friendly cakes are permitted as licking the plate will be encouraged. 

3. THE RUN: Or walk. Along the shore path at the head of Loch Torridon then and a short distance on the road to end up in the very superior Torridon Hotel. Distance c. 2 miles, elevation gain < 10 m. On arrival at the hotel, participants - both human and canine - will be offered an unlimited selection from the restaurant menu, then can recuperate at their leisure in one of the luxury bedroom suites. The hotel's absurd restrictions on canine visitors will of course be suspended for the duration of the event.

Do we have any takers? 

Gardening tips from Nobby

I guess all our humans have shortcomings. 

One of Gail's is her lack of interest in garden work. This is fine when it means that my walks are prioritised, although less so when she puts her desire to go riding her bicycle with her friends first. 

Anyway, I don't think I am betraying any secrets when I tell you that her efforts at keeping our back yard tidy tend to be sporadic and less than thorough. 

For example, earlier this week Gail did actually venture out, trowel in hand, and dug up a huge dandelion from the patch of grass/moss/clover that she (laughably) calls our "lawn". 

Did you know that dandelions have deep roots?

I really wasn't satisfied she'd removed all parts of this pesky weed and so, while she was out on her bike yesterday, I decided to do her a favour and excavate a deeper hole. Just, you understand to make sure all traces of the root system had been removed. 

I was pretty pleased with my efforts and imagined that Gail would be too.  

But when my owner returned home and saw the results of my hard work she just sighed, and said (with a certain lack of logic) that if my Human Grandad* saw what a mess I'd made of the lawn he'd be turning in his grave....

Happy Nature Friday friends! Do go and look at the other posts in the LLB Gang's always wonderful blog hop. Perhaps at least one of the participants will be showing you a properly well kept garden ...

*Gail says: Human Grandad was always particularly proud of his perfectly maintained and weed free lawn.

 

The joys of youth!

A Day in the Life

A puppy's life, I highly recommend,

From dawn to dusk, excitement without end!

I wake, and stretch, and in my puppy head

I plan new mischiefs. Shall I try to shred 

A cushion? No. I'll start to dig a hole

- Australia would be a worthy goal..

Then to the Park, where every dog's my pal,

(Until they realise I stole their ball... )

When Gail shouts "Nobby, come!" I might obey,

Or not, depending how I feel that day.

I'll gambol, scamper, run and run and run.

You think I'm tired? I've only just begun! 

Perhaps we'll go exploring somewhere new,

A beach, or wood, or riverbank will do.

I treasure each fresh scent, each sight and sound,

The way my paws sink into boggy ground,

The feeling of the wind that lifts my ears,

The sense of being young and without fear.

And as the day draws to a close, I grab

My favourite toy and jump onto Gail's lap,

Curl up, and there together we unwind,

Dog and his human, fondly now entwined.

And if that cushion is undamaged still,

This terrier can plot a future kill... 

Nobby on the Naughty Step...

 

Macro mania in Ballogie Woods

When we went for a walk this week in the woods and Gail got out her phone, I naturally assumed that it would be me she wanted to photograph. 

After all it usually is.

But for once, I was wrong. It seems my owner has recently discovered her phone camera's 'macro' function (for taking close-ups), and so every few yards she would stop, kneel on the ground and zoom in on the pretty but mostly rather small wildflowers in bloom just now.

Chickweed wintergreen

Tormentil

Bugle

Mouse ear

Crane's bill

You already know that I am generally a Good Boy when Gail starts coming over all botanical, and for the most part I waited patiently when she found yet more different species to photograph.

Twinflower

Lousewort

Yellow pimpernel

Milkwort

Bitter-vetch

But I'm sure you'll understand that the forbearance of a young WFT does have its limits...

Happy Nature Friday friends. I'm off!

On the buses

Readers of my predecessor Bouncing Bertie's blog will know that he was was a seasoned train traveller who during his life clocked up many thousands of miles by rail. But when I searched for his account of his first ever trip on a train, it didn't take much reading between the lines to work out that his behaviour was initially far from perfect...

I am still much younger than Bertie was when he was first introduced to the concept of public transport and I have yet to set paw on a train. But Gail has decided, now she is of an age to travel for free on all buses in Scotland, and what with fuel prices being so high (plus of course concerns about greenhouse gases), we might from time to time use the bus rather than the car to get to the start point of certain local walks.

So on Monday afternoon it was all aboard First Bus No.19 for a short (4 mile) ride from Aberdeen city centre to Cults, from where we could take a pleasant walk home along the Deeside Way.

I fear some of my readers might be secretly disappointed I have no amusing disaster stories to tell.

I waited patiently with Gail at the bus stop. After about 5 minutes the bus turned up. There were plenty of empty seats and I was allowed to sit on Gail's lap and look out of the window for part of the journey. 

My only complaint is that this window rattled rather noisily when the bus was moving, but I didn't let it bother me and I was in fact as quiet as a mouse throughout. 

Now that I have lulled her into a (possibly false) sense of security, Gail says she is emboldened to take me on a longer bus trip before too long! 

Territorial expansion...

Vladimir Putin has not been alone in his mission to expand his territory these past few months...

I wasn't long residing with Gail before dissatisfaction with my assigned living space (the kitchen and sunroom) set in and my quest for Lebensraum commenced. 

I was keenly aware too, that the empire of my predecessors had extended over a far wider portion of the house than I was initially allocated. 

The first conquest was the easiest. Having mastered the dog flap, and peed and pooped on the kitchen floor once too often for Gail's liking, free access to the enclosed back garden was surrendered without opposition.

My next manoeuvre was an occasional sortie into the relatively well-defended front room. Even the most watchful border patrol can be outwitted by a fast moving and quick-witted fox terrier. Before long came an acceptance that my annexation of the comfy sofa was legitimate according to international canine law.

Gail's study proved a tougher nut to crack. But the fiercest opposition can be defeated by the heavy artillery of a terrier's determination, and finally my 'Special Operation' bore fruit.

Gail is still expressing doubts as to whether I should be allowed to permanently occupy 'her' study and so I have decided to put the matter to a referendum. Readers, please leave a comment below to give your views (and remember that I shall be counting the votes with no independent supervision and I have the sole authority to declare ballot papers invalid...)

Oh and yes I am aware that the matter of access to the two upper floors in the Aberdeen house is still to be addressed. But for the moment I am happy to consolidate my gains and maybe regroup for a bedroom campaign later in the year...