Benji, walks, weather and Glasgow

Two weeks since Benji was injured in an attack.  He is recovered fairly well and we are out walking again, but on a different route. Actually we are back on the original route which is in the opposite direction from the  area where  we were injured. He still has antibiotics to take twice daily  and I will take him back to the Vet on Tuesday as a follow up when the antibiotics finish. Apart from the surface wounds there seems to be no internal damage, for which I am most thankful. After three days in the stroller, he was ready for walking. He was glad to get out again and enjoying the walks and the fresh air. We stick mainly to the Ada Ryan Gardens and the Wetlands during the day when there are  very few people with dogs around. Since we are surrounded by National Parks and Conservation parks, there is not many places we can go to.  There are a number of places further down the coast that are pet friendly and the nearest of them is 70 miles away  (think Glasgow to St. Andrews) so just going there and then coming back again seems to me very wasteful. In order to justify travelling that distance it is necessary to make a day of it. At the moment I am not happy  going off and leaving Annabell. Yes the boys are here and that’s fine when I have to go to Adelaide for

Presbytery, but leaving her on her own while I go off on an unnecessary  road trip with my dog is a different matter altogether In fact it almost ranks as being self-indulgent.  When we have to go Adelaide and the Clinic, John usually looks after Benji, makes sure he is ok and feeds him. With the dog door, Benji can get in and out as he needs. When we come back from our afternoon walk to the Wetlands we go in the back gate and I take his harness off. Annabell’s comment is “What kept you? The dog was in ages before you!”   Me: “Ah yes, but he has a private entrance”

The weather over the last week has been great and the boy and I have got out and about. However, with the cyclone in Western Australia and the  effects  reaching to us, this will change over the next few days with forecast rain and high winds. Well yes, it was a bit on the  windy to very windy when we were out walking this morning but we didn’t get blown away and made it back to the house safe and sound. Sitting hear I can hear the wind rushing through the carport. It’s not constant and comes in waves.  Anyway, a very warm welcome to  Bogie. He is lovely and I did reply to the post but it seems to have vanished into  some void. I am finding this with a lot of

things recently. Fortunately not  the photograph I found and thought about Anabel Marsh – because I thought only a Glasgow person would really understand what it is all about.  The photograph is real but it was part of an article I read about photographic mishaps and when I saw that one,  Lobey Dosser was the first thing that entered my head. Weird, I know, but there you are.

As we move further into April the weather is starting to cool down in the mornings. This morning was positively fresh with a fine – but slightly damp – mist for a little while. Good for a  50 minute  morning walk. I still have my Glasgow Street Director ( yes it is out of date,) and Queen Margaret Drive to the Broomielaw is about two and one half miles, so there and back is as much as I do in a day.  :o)

Had Benji back at the Vet.  He is very pleased with him and  now that his fur is starting to grow back no more treatment will be required, but we did discuss how lucky we were that the teeth of the big dog did not damage anything internal or we would have been in strife. However, that has never happened to me in this area in all the years I have been here and I find that it has made me wary of other dogs and has made me change where I walk and and be in a position where I can see what is well ahead of me. No, we do not go out in the early morning dark any more. Sunrise is now our time.