An eye update - and the 'joys' of ageing

Thank you to everyone who's been wishing me well with my current eye problems.

I was back at the Pride Veterinary Centre on Friday where my eye specialist was very pleased with how my eye was improving - slowly - but I have to keep on with the eye drops and ointment for another three weeks and then go back and see her again.

What I have got - deep breath - is called Nodular Granulomatous Episcleritis. According to what I've read on the Internet, Cocker Spaniels and Collies get it a lot. And me, apparently.

It's in my left eye - which by coincidence the Man Of The House took this charming picture of before the trouble started.

It can be a long term condition and my eye doctor says no-one really knows what causes it - although UV rays are one possible factor.

Anyway, on this visit to the Pride Centre I met a really nice Yorkshire Terrier called Lizzie in the waiting area. She was 14 and with her folks who told the LOTH that she had quite a lot of heart problems and other issues. She was really nice and we got on well and sitting with her helped to calm me down and stop me shaking so much. I hope she was OK.

It got me thinking about getting older, and that made me think about this book - Living With An Older Dog - that was published recently by Hubble & Hattie.

You may recognise the name of the publishers as they are the same people who have published our friend Peggy Frezon's great book - Dieting With My Dog - recently.

I would urge you to check out Hubble & Hattie's website as they only publish animal books and you will find some GREAT books there.

Anyway, Living With An Older Dog is a really useful book, and me and the LOTH are really pleased that Hubble & Hattie sent us a copy to review recently.

It's packed full of useful facts about the changes that dogs go through - mentally and physically - as they get older. It's really not a depressing read because there are lots and lots of positive things about getting older (whether you are a dog OR a person!) and we should never forget that.

I love living in retirement with my family as I have my own space where I can go when I want to be alone and sleep and I can be with the family when I want some company and hugs and fuss. I still really enjoy a game in the garden - and I LOVE my walks and trips in the car - but I also like having peace and quiet.

The LOTH says we'll be keeping this book close to hand as it has lots of useful information and it's very reassuring. It's written by David Alderton - a trained vet - and Derek Hall - an experienced pet writer who has owned and trained lots of dogs himself. They know their stuff. There's lots of practical advice about travelling and holidaying with older dogs and diet and special care that might be needed.

I know we all rely on our vets for lots of advice and support, but me and the LOTH think this book is a nice addition to have at home as well.

I have got a little bit fed up of the eye drops - but for now I am down to just four eye drops a day (from six) and two lots of ointment and I am getting little bits of cheese as a treat for being a good girl about it all.

If any of my blogging friends out there have any experience of this NGE eye problem I'd love to hear from you to compare notes!

Gorgeous Gilbert and Lovely Lucy

When I first started to visit other pet blogs I was amazed to find what SOME greyhound get up to.

Take the energetic pack over at Never Say Never Greyhounds! They make me tired just looking at their pictures. I mean, running round in a big circle is one thing, but all that pole weaving and jumping. Wow!

But this weekend the Lady Of The House came across two lovely dogs (with a lot of greyhound blood in them) doing equally energetic and special things.

Let me proudly introduce to you, Gilbert.....

............and Lucy...

The LOTH was at a Heelwork to Music weekend in Leicestershire (just watching you understand - not competing. I was safely back home taking it easy and dreaming of camels....).

She met Lucy first of all on the Saturday - and thought she was a greyhound at first, but her owner Jenny told her that Lucy was a mixture of Greyhound, Whippet, Deerhound and Bedlington Terrier - although Jenny said she did not know the quantities.

Jenny got Lucy when she was about 10-months-old from someone who lived on a small holding and her job up to then had been to chase and catch rabbits. Lucy didn't even know how to walk on a lead...but now, at the age of six she can do complicated Canine Freestyle 'dance' routines with Jenny.  As well as entering competitions she does demonstrations for charity days. The LOTH told me her routine was really good and there was lots of fun with props like picnic blankets and buckets and spades, because it was all about the Lazy, Hazy, Crazy Days of Summer.

Lucy - who competes under the name Lucy Lollipop - came 6th in that class. Jenny said Lucy didn't 'work' much last year because she lost a toe. But she's fine now.

When she'd finished her routine, Lucy adopted this familiar pose which makes me think there must be a HIGH percentage of greyhound in her genes.

Bright and early on Sunday morning, Lucy Lollipop was competing again in Heelwork to Music - and this time she was 3rd! Here's an action shot of her.

But the dog who won the same class was Gilbert - or to give him his performing name Beachbum Bertie. Gilbert is five-years-old, and was billed in the programme as a crossbreed and the LOTH (who knows less than she thinks she does most of the time) thought he must have Irish Wolfhound blood in him. But his owner, Gail, told the LOTH that his DNA had been tested and he was more than 80% greyhound - and the rest was American Wire-Haired Pointer.

His Heelwork To Music routine was fabulous, the LOTH said.

She seems to have had a great time without me. If you are interested, you can read her report and all the results here on her Lost and Fond website (she seems a teeny bit obsessed with what music everyone was performing to, if you ask me).

I'll just finish with a couple more of the LOTH's pictures of Border Collies - who of course always do so well in these competitions.

But, I think this first chap needs to open up his eyes as he seems to be VERY close to a large cat.

Lucy's owner Jenny was trying to encourage the LOTH to start training me. She said nine wasn't too old to start a Heelwork to Music career and she had once trained up a 12-year-old Lurcher.

I think I'll just gaze blankly at her, as if she's speaking a foreign language, if she mentions it to me. That's my usual ploy when I don't want to do something. It's worked a charm so far.

It's not just doggy dancing

It's The Lady Of The House here. As Winnie told you yesterday she has graciously allowed me to use her blog to tell you about MY weekend at the Canine Freestyle GB event in Markfield, Leicestershire.

This involved two days of competitions - Heelwork To Music on the Saturday and Freestyle on the Sunday - featuring about 100 dogs in total. Some people travelled from as far away as Belgium and France to take part.

Now, before I start I have to agree with Winnie that I'm not the best photographer in the world. In the case of the Canine Freestyle event it was also made worse by the fact that these dogs don't half move fast!!

So I'll start off with one nice photo of a couple of lovely new dog friends who sat next to me in the auditorium on the Sunday. The black labrador had earlier done a lovely Freestyle routine to the song Beyond The Sea, and her whippet sister had come along to lend support. They were clearly deeply devoted to each other.

If you don't know much about Heelwork To Music and Freestyle there's some information here in a feature I did at my Lost & Fond website.

It's so much more than "doggy dancing" - the rather gimmicky nickname it is often given on TV talent shows and in British newspapers. It's just a joy and an inspiration to watch the bond between dogs of all shapes and sizes and their owners. The great thing about the weekend was that there were also dogs (and people) of all abilities too, from those with lots of experience to people just starting in the sport. Because it IS a sport - no doubt about it - which involves hours of training and practice.

Here's one young owner and her loveable crossbreed dog who won one of the Novice Freestyle classes. This enchanting pup also won his own trophy for being the crossbreed who got the highest score from the judges all weekend. His cute little face reminds me of a few of Winnie's blogger friends - any thoughts?

Ok, so now the pictures get a bit rough... but I'll add them anyway. Bear with me please.

Showing that size is no object to Freestyle, here's a Great Dane taking part.

This Chesapeake Bay Retriever did a routine to In The Army Now.

Here's a Standard Poodle taking part. There were also two adorable Toy Poodles who travelled from Belgium to take part - but the pictures of them were really too bad to post.

Border Collies always do incredibly well in Heelwork To Music and Freestyle. This routine below made me laugh as it made a feature of the more traditional job of Border Collies.

This American Cocker Spaniel did a great routine to Singing In the Rain.

This blur-like figure below is Glenalpine Katie - a very talented actress as well as a HTM/Freestyle star. On Saturday she was a close runner-up in a Heelwork To Music routine to My Guy. She's pictured putting in the winning performance in one of Sunday's Freestyle classes to Doris Day's Deadwood Stage.

Finally I was really thrilled to see Anne Shuker win a Novice Heelwork To Music class on the Saturday and do really well in Freestyle on Sunday. She taught the Boy Of The House at primary school and occasionally took her beautiful sheepdog Splash in with her. Splash was the first dog the BOTH didn't completely hate and was the turning point in him overcoming what was a paralysing fear of dogs.....so in a round-about way if it hadn't been for Splash we might never have been able to add Winnie to her family.

Here's Splash and Mrs Shuker performing a space-inspired Freestyle routine to Europe's Final Countdown Probably the worst picture of the lot - but you can see Splash jumping beautifully through a hoop.

There's no doubt that dogs and humans all had great fun.

Well, thanks for putting up with me for today. Normal service with Winnie will be resumed tomorrow.