Holiday coming soon.

Soon Blue will be sat in the back of the car and enduring a 13 hour car journey to the Highlands of Scotland.

Blue is no stranger to both the journey or the location, this being the seventh time he has done such a journey. Along with the Lake district he really feels at home once we are there.

He has been keeping well, continuing with his weekly swim at Aquadoggies, where the ball he plays with helps keep him active and entertained, though he still has a bit of a clumsy care free side while running around the pool, on Wednesday as he tried to cut short one corner, his back end went in the pool, but he recovered and just carried on. Although we have lots of pictures, this week I got some close ups.

A short clip below from a previous visit

Good news that the skin infections that caused severe fur loss last year did not return this year and he remains healthy and active.

Last week he stayed at home and looked after the house, while we went to London to see Les Miserables, with a visit by our good neighbour Anne, one of only three others that Blue could be trusted to let into the house while we are not around, when we returned we were told he was as good as gold, just as his Pedigree name "Folkvang Good As Gold"

This weekend he will be on his own once again while we visit Wembley to watch Reading FC take on Arsenal FC in the FA Cup, you can see below where Blue's loyalties lie

Come on you Blues!!

We will be leaving as late as possible, just in case the game goes to extra time, but with Anne keeping him company at different times, he probably won't miss us until we walk back in the door.

Walking with Blue was a bit of challenge this morning, while in the park he took  a dislike to a jogger, pulling, barking, starring just pure obsession. Best of all the jogger never came within 20 yards of him, the majority of the time the jogger was the other side of the park. Causing me to have to drag Blue, walking backwards for most of his dawn walk.

Blue has now mastered ESP or something, perhaps it is a GSD form of ESP. When we sit to watch to TV in the evening, he will stand and stare either in my face or my wife Sue's face to get us to let him out the back door for a wee or a bark or as normal both. He will then come back in and stare at his water bowl or the back of Sue's head, until water is added to the bowl, even if it wasn't empty. Each and every time he expects a reward for this behaviour, however he does not always receive such reward.

It is good to see a new series of "Supervet" back on Channel 4; The work done by Noel Fitzpatrick is absolutely amazing. For Blue the outcome of his work is appreciated each and every day, this week an episode we watched was heartbreaking where a six month hold German Shepherd had both elbow and hip dysplasia, the outcome was Euthanasia, which was hard to watch but the right decision made by the brave owner.

So until the next blog

Keep your friends close by.

Finders keepers, returned for a price.

New balls

While out for his dawn walk this morning in the local park, Blue dived into the undergrowth and came out with a football, moments later he was back in the undergrowth a bit further along and out came Blue with another, matching the same as the previous.

So off came the lead, and as he chased one ball kicked across the park, he could not wait to get back for the other one also. So this mornings walk was a success in Blue's eyes. Normally he plays  with any balls found for a while then gets bored and leaves them for others to enjoy, today he wanted to keep them. Give it a day or so and we will return them from where they came.

Blue says if anyone wants to claim them, the going rate is one pigs trotter or pigs ear per ball will be a fair trade, applications must be in person, however they will only be available until the weekend,  when they will be set free again.

Blue does have a scent for balls, two days ago he retrieved two white cricket balls from the same park, but different hedgerows. Though he soon bored with them and carried them a few feet and left them for others to pick up in the middle of the park.

We were once walking in the Torridon Mountains in Scotland, behind Liactach, when suddenly he dived into some thistle and came out with a set of sunglasses, looked expensive and were in excess of £70.00 on the Internet.

Obviously Blue knows how to use his nose, though not sure if it is human scent or something in the material of the balls  and sunglasses.

Perhaps he could sniff out a good striker for our home town team Reading Football Club ;-))

One size does fit all. (Readingfc Dog collars)

Like me Blue is a lover of football.

With the season looming we felt in only proper to prepare for the  new season in the Premiership.

The online Megastore had an item that might be just right for Blue.

A dog collar.

(One size fits all)

So with our ten pound gift voucher and our 45 kilo German Shepherd

we set off for the Megastore.

Blue waited patiently while I went and brought his collar for £6.00

 myself an £18.00 shirt

 &

 the wife a replica shirt.

Blue was happy to pose with me and the Megastore in the background.

Once we got home it was to be the moment of truth, does one size really fit all.

Yes it does !

Blue celebrated by drinking his paddling pool dry

Then it was time for a nap, this retail therapy does tire the poor little mite out.