Dogs to Stay

No, we haven't left the planet

2011-08-04T13:24:00.000+01:00

But have decided to use facebook as an easier and more effective means to update owners of what their furkids are up to whilst guests at Dogs to Stay.

Please go to the Dogs to Stay facebook page http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dogs-to-Stay/346579877322?ref=ts to find out more.

See you soon.

2011-04-23T12:24:00.002+01:00

The pack have been joined by Kanto, Kiva's brother and Wheeto's uncle and despite a walk across the fields around the village still have energy left to burn.

Didier plays with Oreo, Wheeto plays with Mylo, Kiva plays with Wolfie

Bundle..............................

Wolfie plays ball

Mr Chill

Mr Chill Too

The 2 Fur Boys

Mr Chill Too Two

Dog Tired

Wheeto and Oreo 'Schnuggle'

No - You Shouldn't Be There, But ...

You're Just Too Cool

Half The Dog That He Was

2011-04-16T18:16:00.038+01:00

Yesterday (Friday) saw Wolfie take a trip to the local dog groomers - following a conversation last weekend with another Keeshond owner we took their advice to get Wolfie's undercoat stripped out. The groomer is one that we use for our own dogs and sometimes our guests and he is familiar with dealing with double coated dogs. We had tried stripping Wolfie out ourselves but it wasn't a particularly successful exercise so, with the authority of Wolfie's hufamily the dog groomers it was.

The village where the groomers is based is just a short drive away and Wolfie happily leaped into the Jeep for the 10 minute trip - John, the groomer, said he would give us a ring when Wolfie was ready to be collected. Though Wolfie would miss out on his morning walk it did mean that walking the 4 guests left, Kiva and Mylo could be done in one shift.
As things transpired Wolfie wasn't ready to be collected until 2.30 - 5 hours after being dropped off. On my arrival to collect him I saw a somewhat smaller but very smart looking Wolfie - next to him were 4, yes FOUR, carrier bags filled with his stripped out undercoat - what a transformation.

The difference really is amazing - to the uneducated eye Wolfie still looks like an incredibly fluffy dog however when he walks and runs his coat now bounces and gets caught in the breeze - I think that Impi approves too.

Of course we must remember that we don't just have Wolfie staying at Dogs to Stay as Wheeto and Oreo are with us 'till early May as well as Stig and Impi being with us for the weekend.
Impi has settled in remarkably, we were, at first, concerned that she and Kiva might not get on, we have past experience of them not being sisterly, however the 2 of them are no trouble at all. Impi is very taken by Wolfie, the expression "joined at the hip" springs to mind. At just 8 months Stig is a hooligan, in the nicest way of course. He has tried to dominate everyone, with the exception of Wolfie; Wheeto was the focus of his attentions at first - Wheeto was NOT impressed, then it was Oreo, sadly for Stig to no avail, at just 5 months little Oreo is more than able to look after himself.

Stig then turned his attentions to Mylo - not the wisest decision as Mylo doesn't tolerate being harassed, one bark from him was all it took for Stig to know who was boss, lesson learned. With just one dog left to try to impress he turned his attention to his mum, Kiva - another lesson quickly learned; Kiva, like Mylo, doesn't like being messed with - however she is quick to forgive.

The weather has been fabulous, more summer than spring like, so the dogs have been able to enjoy the free run of the garden. We still have a full compliment of flowers, bushes and shrubs and have no new holes in the lawn or flower beds. OK the trellis has a few more holes in it that it did before Oreo arrived but hey ho, what's a trellis without a few holes?
Just another day at Dogs to Stay.

The not so Secret Seven

2011-04-15T11:40:00.002+01:00

4 Lapphunds and a Keeshund has been no trouble at all so we wondered what it would be like with 6 Lapphunds and a Keeshond.

Our new guests, with us for the weekend, are Stig, one of Kiva's puppies born last August and Kiva's sister Impi.

Stig has become infatuated with Wheeto - Wolfie and Impi seem to be joined at the hip, Oreo is maturing by the minute under the influence of the pack and Kiva and Mylo are as chilled as ever.

Suffice to say that everyone is getting on and the dogs all seem to be enjoying their holidays. As I write Impi and Mylo are at my feet, Kiva and Oreo are lying in the shade, Wheeto and Stig are playing and Wolfie, conspicuouis by his absence, is at the dog groomers - pictures to follow.

Stig admires Wolfie's rear end

Wolfie and Impi in chill pose

Wheeto, Stig and Oreo

Wheeto and Stig

Busy, Busy, Busy

2011-04-12T13:54:00.026+01:00

On Saturday Louise and I took the pack of 5 (Lapphunds Kiva and Mylo, Wheeto and Oreo and Keeshond Wolfie) to Milton Keynes for a Dogs to Stay reunion walk. Some might question Miulton Keynes as a venue for a dog walk but trust me if you haven't discovered the walks around Willen Lake you really are missing out.

The weather was gorgeous, the company perfect and the dogs amazing, 12 Lapphunds, a Keeshond and 2 German Spitz Mitels are quite a sight. Wolfie attracted a lot of admiring glances and through him we met another Keeshond owner who gave us some advice as to how best deal with Wolfie's thick coat. Wheeto and Oreo enjoyed the day as it gave them an opportunity to meet up with their hufamily and, in Oreo's case, a litter mate, the lovely Kai.

After the walk we went to some friends, for a barbecue, where the dogs were again impeccably well behaved and where Kiva and her brother Kanto had a further opportunity to play.

On our return home all of the dogs crashed out for the evening - who could blame them, a whole day spent with other dogs and a 5 mile walk ... now that's what we call a Lappy day.

Sunday morning so us enjoy the luxury of a lie in as the dogs slept, or made no noise, until after 7.30 - a huge improvement from the 5.00 am awakenings. We took Wolfie, Wheeto nd Oreo to the pub at lunch time and spent a relaxing afternoon chatting with friends old and new about the benefits of sharing one's life with a canine companion, or 2.

Unfortunately Monday morning saw Wheeto and Oreo wake early - after being let out into the garden for a toilet break they settled down again in the kitchen ... for a while. It really is amazing what one can get done whilst the rest of the village sleep.

We enjoyed a lovely morning walk across the fields - especially Mylo who found himself a dead rabbit to latch on to, prising it out of his jaws was no mean feat. On our return we collected doggy day care guest Didier the working cocker spaniel who kept Oreo and Wolfie entertained for much of the day.

This morning was, again, an early start - I am trying everything to get Wheeto and Oreo to settle back to sleep (Wolfie, btw, is exemplary and is more than happy to chill to the 2 legged people are up and about). This morning rather than leaving them out of their crates I decided to put Wheeto and Oreo away in theirs ..... Wolfie came into the lounge with me. Silence :-)

With Wheeto and Oreo safely tucked up I was able to enjoy a nice doze on the sofa - Wolfie enjoyed it too as he snuggled up next to me.

Chilled @ Dogs to Stay

Cute @ Dogs to Stay

"OK - where have my back legs gone?"

"You looking at me?"

Bones - glorious bones.

Wolfie Joins Wheeto and Oreo

2011-04-08T21:07:00.004+01:00

On Thursday Wolfie, a 1 year old Keeshond, came to join our other guests, Finnish Lapphunds Wheeto and Oreo. We had already met Wolfie as a few weeks ago he and his family came for a visit to introduce Wolfie to own dogs Kiva and Mylo - the meeting went well and we were confident that he would fit in with the pack - the earlier than expected arrival of Wheeto and Oreo could have thrown a spanner in the works - as things transpired all of the pack have been getting on like a house on fire.

The dogs have been enjoying each other's company and wearing each other out with their non-stop playing (see above) - don't worry if you think you see a black spaniel - it is a black spaniel, Didier a Dogs to Stay doggy day care guest - and no the dogs haven't learnt to stop barking there is no sound to the video.

As a result of all of the fun and games we had an excellent night with Oreo waking an hour later than he had been - almost a lie in ;-)

Tomorrow we are off to Milton Keynes for a walk with other Lappy owning families - I hope that Wolfie remembers to bark in Finnish rather than Dutch.

New photos and words to follow.

Lappy days.

Wheeto and Oreo

2011-03-30T08:40:00.022+01:00

Our last entry saw Wheeto as our guest and he left us in the middle of January. We have had a number of guests since then however rather than do a daily blog we offered their owners a web cam facility instead - check out ww.com/dogstostay.htm if you would like to see it for yourself.

Wheeto is now back with us but he's not alone - a few days after he went back home his hufamily collected a new puppy from Irene Green (Iolair kennel) and since then Oreo has been Wheeto's best mate.

The pair of them are with us for a few weeks whilst their hufamily move home ... they arrived yesterday and have settled in superbly. Wheeto is already known to Kiva and Mylo and is an established member of the pack - 5 month old Oreo is a a newbie however he quickly understood who was pack leader and already knows his boundaries. Their first night here was uneventful and though they awoke a little earlier than our 2 dogs normally do it just meant I could enjoy an extra cup of coffee before beginning the day.

Pictures and videos will be posted regularly throughout their stay, perhaps not everyday, but there will be regular updates.

Spoilt - As If

2011-01-13T15:16:00.005Z

We do like to make sure that our guests feel comfortable at Dogs to Stay so we give them a choice of seats to sit upon.

We have the 2 seater sofa as modeled by Kiva and Wheeto

The 3 seater sofa as modeled by Mylo and Wheeto

Or the single seater reclining armchair as modelled by Wheeto

And Now There Are 3

2011-01-11T16:33:00.001Z

After returning from Sunday's walk we were 1 Lappy less as we handed Roise back over to her hupeeps, Bob and Sue who had returned from their holiday earlier that day - in fact we handed 2 dogs over as Bob, and sometimes Sue, very kindly walked Wheeto for us - don't worry we did remember to bring Wheeto home.
Since we have been down to just one guest things have been much calmer at Dogs to Stay, especially Wheeto. Now, rather than chase after Millie, Rosie and or Saffi he spends most of his time licking Kiva or playing with Mylo (who just about tolerates him doing so). He continues to enjoy his walks - now in the company of Fat Sal the black lab and thanks to Louise as I am currently unable to put any weight on my right leg after a fall on Sunday.
Wheeto has developed into a very different dog to the Wheeto that first visited us - he is respectful of the rest of the pack, well trained, obedient and very, very loving. We have even managed to cure him of the little whines he used to make - it wasn't hard, we just don't exclude him from anywhere - including our bed.
I'm not sure when Wheeto will be going home - it might be on Friday, it could be on Saturday, if it's the latter then he will have the chance to meet Magic, his great great auntie, and Norppa as they will be our next 2 guests. Watch this space for updates and pictures.

Lappy days.

Five Alive

2011-01-08T11:33:00.002Z

It's like Piccadilly Circus here - no sooner does one dog leave than another arrives. Yesterday Saffi the Springer Spaniel arrived for the weekend - she is sister to Hector (who has stayed with us before) and lives in our village and she is with us whilst her hupeeps visit family in Scotland. Wheeto loves her to bits - he has a new playmate who is, in many ways, very similar to Millie - it must be the Spaniel in them.
I had some concerns as to how the night would go as Saffi is obviously used to sleeping by herself however my concerns were unfounded and things were a lot quieter than I had feared - Saffi actually slept in the kitchen with Wheeto and Rosie - I'm not sure if they slept in their own beds or each others - but, hey ho, isn't that what sleepovers are all about?
As I write Saffi is fast asleep under my desk - Wheeto relaxing on the sofa, Rosie on the rug in front of the hearth and Mylo and Kiva at Lou's feet.

And Then There Were 4

2011-01-06T16:53:00.003Z

Milie has been gone for 4 days now and during that time I have been laid low with a stinking cold - lesser men would call it man flu - to me it was a cold. The pack, however, have been fine; just less manic without Millie to chase them around all day. To be honest Rosie and Wheeto have been very chilled - Wheeto has been a nudnik a couple of times; he really doesn't like having to wait on the other side of the dog gate whilst he dries off, Rosie, on the other hand just lies down on one of the dog beds knowing that as soon as he is dry she'll be allowed back into the lounge.

Chilled at Dogs to Stay

Rosie Isn't Allowed On The Furniture

Wheeto Isn't Either

So He Lies At The Foot Of The Stairs

The pack have just been fed, they've had their mad 10 minutes and, at the time of writing, Roise is chewing on a bone she just found in the ~~graveyeard~~, sorry garden and Wheeto is on the sofa .... for a change. Kiva and Mylo are as chilled as ever, it never ceases to amaze me just how accommodating they are of our many visitors, we really are very very lucky to have 2 such lovely dogs - then again our visiting dogs make it easy for them as they are all so well balanced too.

Tomorrow sees the arrival of a new guest, Saffi - a springer spaniel and sister to Hector a former guest at Dogs to Stay. She will be accompanying us on Sunday when we travel to Milton Keynes for a Lappy gathering and to hand Rosie over to her hufamily who will have just returned from their holiday in Australia.

Now that I am back in the land of the living I will make sure that this blog is updated more regularly - however both Wheeto and Rosie's hupeeps can relax, your dogs are absolutely fine.

Lappy days.

Sunday - Farewell to Millie

2011-01-03T20:32:00.001Z

Arrangements had been made for me to deliver Millie back to her hufamily in the morning so I again left the pack in the capable hands of Wendy and Lou and, by all accounts, the Hapmi 3 and TabanyaRuu 2 had a blast being walked through the village and across the fields. It was sad handing Millie back but to a true delight to see the pleasure on her family's faces when I handed her over - no ransom, though I was tempted - however I was, very kindly, given a bottle of champagne by Millie's hudad to say thank you for looking after her.
On my return home it was time for a rather lovely roast lunch before Wendy left with Arttu - it was lovely seeing the 3 siblings together and see how well they got on with each other - as we say at Dogs to Stay it really was a case of 'Lappy Days'.

Sofa so good for Rosie

Kiva and Mylo

Wheeto c/w bone

With the pack down to four a sort of normality could return with the dogs all returning to their favourite spots.

Happy New Year

2011-01-03T20:04:00.006Z

For some obscure reason I can't remember much about new year's day - it has been suggested that it might be a sign of old age, then again it might be because I didn't get in 'till 5.00 after having worked in the local pub all evening. I knew that the pack would be in good hands as Lou and Wendy were in charge of the dogs and there wasn't a sound from them when I came in. Then again I knew that they were OK as I had been monitoring them (the dogs not Wendy and Lou) using our web-cam facility (ww.com/dogstostay.htm).
In the morning Lou and Wendy again walked and looked after the dogs whilst I returned to the pub to pack up my gear. A huge thank you to you both.

New Year's day was a quiet one for the humans - the dogs had a blast continuing to play with each other in various combinations.

During the course of the day we received a call from Millie's owners and arrangements were made to take her back the next day - she would be missed, not just by us but also the rest of the pack.

Friday 31st - Farewells and Hellos

2011-01-03T16:57:00.022Z

Once again, apologies that this is late - technical problems alas.

It was a case of saying goodbye to Mary and Ilo today. They had been with us since the 27th but had to leave to attend a posh New Years Eve do at TabanyaRuu Towers (breeders of Kiva and Wheeto).

Of course before anything happened the dogs had to have the breakfasts.

Time for our next guests to arrive - Wendy and Arttu.

Wendy has been to us many times before but this would be the first visit for Arttu. A few months ago Wendy had to say goodbye to her wonderful cream male Oskar (Honeybears Barleycorn & Mylo's half brother - same mum, different dad) - taking the painful decision to let him go to Rainbow Bridge after suffering with epilepsy for a long period. Arttu is Rosie's brother - and therefore Mylo's 1/2 brother and came to Wendy unexpectedly after she was asked if she would like to be a forever home for him - she said yes of course.

Arttu didn't come with no strings attached however - he had been very much a man's dog and had a reputation of being a handful around other male dogs - it would be interesting to see how things went with Wheeto, Mylo and him.
As is always the case when a first time visitor arrives at Dogs to Stay the guest and house dogs go for a walk around the village to get them used to each other so off we set with 5 Lapphunds and a cockerpoo - in the final stretch home, after a walk round the village Arttu had been introduced to the rest of the pack and was walking alongside Mylo politely, hopefully peace would remain when they all got home.
To be honest the day passed smoothly with all of the dogs - 3 male Lapphunds, 2 females and a cockerpoo getting on fabulously.

Mylo and half brother Arttu with, probably, Kiva's rear end

Arttu with new best mate Wheeto and Millie

Mylo, Kiva and Arttu hoping for some vegetables

The pack waiting for food

Rosie in her favourite spot

Arttu and sister Rosie with Wheeto

Arttu and Rosie

After 5.00 I have no idea as to how they all got on or what they got up to as I was out for the evening leaving the pack in the more than capable hands of Louise - hopefully she will update you as to what went on.

Thursday 30th - Wheeto Comes to Stay

2011-01-03T14:46:00.007Z

Better Late Than Never ... We Have Been a Tad Busy Recently

We had some technical problems and couldn't update the blog.

A trip down the M1 for me as it was time to collect our next guest Wheeto who would be with us for a couple of weeks whilst his hufamily enjoyed a winter break in Miami.

Wheeto is Kiva's nephew and has visited us before - he also lived opposite one of our other guests, Millie, so I was confident that he would again enjoy his stay with us. Upon his arrival he immediately knew where he was and made himself at home ferreting out his favourite bones and toys. Wheeto also knew Rosie - they had enjoyed a number of walks closer to home, however Ilo was a new face to him - he wasn't bothered at all, she was just someone else with whom to play.

Auntie Mary grooms Wheeto

After grooming Wheeto decides to escape to the crate - well actually it's Millie's overnight crate but no matter.

Whilst Wheeto was making himself at home Rosie made sure that she got her fair share of attention and playtime - when not being chased by Millie she was enjoying the attentions of her half sister Ilo (I know - it's all complicated but Mylo, Rosie and Ilo have the same dad but different mums). She also made sure that she was spending enough time relaxing.

Whilst all this was going on Millie continueed being Millie - totally adorable and full of love and energy.

Another Day Another Lapphund – well actually 2.

2010-12-29T14:02:00.001Z

With Christmas behind us we can begin to look forward to a new year – helping us fill the time between now and 2011 is a houseful of dogs.

Millie, the cockerpoo, who arrived in the 2^nd week of December has made herself at home and has been busy ingratiating herself with all of our visitors and most people that she meets whilst we are out walking. She is a bundle of energy and has been constantly playing with Rosie, Kiva and sometimes even Mylo.

Millie eyes up Wheeto's bone whilst Mylo watches on

Rosie – Mylo’s half sister who joined us just before Christmas now prefers sleeping upstairs rather than on her own in the kitchen – thought it is a little unnerving to feel a wet nose nudging me in the neck in the middle of the night encouraging me to reach down and stroke her.

Ilo – another of Mylo’s half sisters (same dad, different mum) is with us for a few days with Mary, her humum. They arrived on Tuesday, the day that the snow started to melt away meaning no long walks across crunchy snow, we had to make do with treks across muddy fields.

Yesterday Wheeto, Kiva’s nephew, arrived for a 2 week stay. He has been to us before but this is the first time that I have seen him as a fully grown male – and what a handsome chap he is. Unlike his last visit he is also very calm – though he does like to play with Mylo, in, on, around and even under the coffee table and Millie, whom he knows from home as they are walking buddies in London. Last time Wheeto was with us he slept in the kitchen in his crate - last night he decided that he wanted to be treated the same as Rosie, we could hardly say no - this is his holiday after all.

Sadly all of the snow has now gone meaning that the roads and lanes around us are wet and dirty and the fields muddy - does that stop us? Does it heck - it just means that when we get home that the dogs have to be dried off and left to play in the yard for an hour before crashing out in the lounge and kitchen.

Chistmas Day at Dogs to Stay

2010-12-25T18:45:00.002Z

Rather than writing loads I thought I would post a couple of videos of the day. The first is a compilation leading up to present opening time, the second sees the dogs enjoy their christmas dinner.

Lappy Christmas from Dogs to Stay

Our Standards Have Slipped

2010-12-22T14:07:00.002Z

After the trials and tribulation of getting home with Rosie on Friday things have been decidedly white at Dogs to Stay - in fact it wasn't until Monday that were able to get out of the village.
Things hadn't been much better further south and Rosie's hufamily had their flight to Australia delayed by over 24 hours. Lou had been going a little stir-crazy and was worrying that we might not be able to stock up for Christmas so the decision was made that we would try to go to our nearest town (for town read Tesco). Having warmed the Jeep up, scraped the snow and ice from it, loaded up the dogs, shovels and grit off we set. The hill on which we live had seen many a vehicle unable to climb it but I was confident that we would be able to do so thanks to the new tyres fitted a month or so ago - time to find out.
To be honest the journey wasn't as bad as I had feared - the 20 minute journey only taking 35, we didn't see any stranded vehicles and the roads, though still snow covered, were passable with care. I dropped Lou off at Tescos and parked up in town so that I could do some banking and shopping of my own - I lost count of the number of people who said "all you need is a sledge" as we walked through along the high street - Millie loved showing off her pink coat and the Lappies did what they do best, smile and wag tails.
It took a while to get back into the Tesco car-park but when I did I met up with Lou and loaded up enough food to keep us going till next Christmas - next stop Pets at Home where we stocked up with enough food to keep the dogs well fed before heading back home.
Now might be a good time to say that I do hope that Millie and Rosie's hufamilies are enjoying the summer in South Africa and Australia ;-)
Since Monday we have had more snow - the village isn't yet cut off again and have enjoyed some fabulous walks across the fields with Rosie and Millie, Kiva and Mylo - they have been loving the weather but also enjoying the comfort of lying in front of the fire.
Millie and Rosie continue to be best of friends - I'm not sure which of them enjoys having the company of the other the most. Millie is as good as gold at night time, I am most impressed with her being crate trained, Rosie is happy in the kitchen but has, due to a certain someone forgetting to shut the kitchen door properly, spent the odd night upstairs next to our bed.
So to Millie and Rosie's owners - your dogs are fine, I would like to think that they could tell you so themselves - perhaps they will when you return from your sunny holidays.
Lappy days.

Let it Snow

2010-12-17T15:13:00.003Z

But preferably not until I get home (see below).

Millie has made herself at home and thinks that she is top dog, that Mylo and Kiva know otherwise is besides the point - Millie thinks she's top dog so in Millie's mind she is, Kiva is there for Millie to play with - Mylo is there for Millie to lie next to, Kiva is also there for Millie to lie next to.

Fire Dogs

The observant among you might notice the decorations above the fireplace - yup, you guessed it, Dogs to Stay is now ready for Christmas. Millie was a great help with dressing the tree - OK, she wasn't a great help but she did like playing with the baubles.


Millie and Mylo (it only looks as though they are on the sofa)

Oh - Millie has worked out how the dog flap works - it's only taken her a week but now she can let her self into, and back from, the dog run whenever she chooses - and she does choose to a lot!!

Ah - now the snow bit

We had a sprinkling of snow yesterday and the Jeep this morning was still covered. After warming it up and clearing the snow, and ice, from it I set out to collect our next guest. Rosie, who has been with us several times before, is Mylo's 1/2 sister (same dad, different mum) and she is to be with us until early January as her hupeeps are off to Australia (can someone please explain why the owners of our guests are all going to the southern hemisphere whilst we are in the middle of winter?).

The journey to the collection point was no trouble, 18 miles in 25 minutes, Rosie happily got into the Jeep and we headed home. Five miles before we reached home it started to snow - within 10 minutes traffic had slowed to a crawl and it was becoming difficult to see. I decided to leave the main road that I was on thinking it best to avoid traffic and travel along quieter roads - all went well until I hit the last stretch - a couple of miles from home and on joining a main road the traffic ground to a halt. Cars, vans and trucks had brought the A361 to a halt - the last thing I wanted to do was to get stuck in the snow for a couple of hours - cue 'cunning cross country plan'.

Shifting into low ratio I negotiated by way past the stranded traffic to what, to those not in the know, appeared like a farm track, well it was a farm track but one that led one across country and almost home. I'm sure that the stranded motorists thought I was mad but knowing that the track was a fully maintained, and little used, road I felt confident that I could get through the ever thickening snow. Had I met any oncoming traffic things might have been different but as it was my cross country route eventually got me home safe and sound where I was greeted by the pack - cue play in the snow in the garden;

Millie in the obligatory Dogs to Stay pose

Rosie enjoying the snow (she is still there an hour later)

Things To Do Whilst On Holiday

2010-12-15T11:36:00.009Z

Go to pub and make friends with locals.

Check. Two hours in the pub at Sunday lunchtime winning hearts and making friends (including time spent sat on bar stool so that people could see me). Even better because Kiva and Mylo had to stay at home.

Stay up late and get up late in the morning.

Well this goes without saying - not only to I get to stay up late I also get to lie on the sofa with Kiva (see below).

Eat wellCheck. I eat at the same time as Kiva and Mylo - though I do take longer than them, why do they get bits of raw chicken and i just get dry boring kibble?
Chew bones
Check. Lots of bones in fact, this place has more bones than a graveyard.
Play ball
Check. I do this a lot, sometimes Mylo plays with the same ball as me - then it becomes really interesting.
Play with the other dogs.
Check. I do this a lot, especially each morning with Kiva.

Wag my tail

Check. I do this a lot too - apparently someone said "does that tail ever stop wagging?".
Look cute
Check. The people in this village like me I think.
Look stupid
Check. Though I was kind of hoping that this photograph hadn't come out.

(no animals were hurt in the taking of this picture)

Go upstairs and play on the bed with Kiva and Mylo
As if I would do something as mischievous as this ;-)
Go for nice walks

Check. Always with Kiva and Mylo, sometimes with Sally as well.

Be spoilt rotten

Check. Well what else would you expect.

Easy - Just Like a Sunday Morning.

2010-12-12T12:53:00.003Z

Millie is the first guest at Dogs to Stay that has been fully crate trained in that she happily goes into her crate at bedtime and doesn't make a sound until she hears people up and around in the morning. To be honest I didn't think that she would be as good as she is in that she allowed us the luxury of a bit of a lie in this morning.
As a result our day began at 9.00 - Millie, Sally, Kiva and Mylo were let out into the frost covered garden to do the necessary before being given their breakfast - and yes, Millie does eat it straight away now.
Yesterday Lou went of to a dog show for the day leaving me (in peace) for the day with the 4 dogs - we enjoyed a couple of nice walks in the slush, black dogs get just as dirty as one's that aren't, they just don't look it, so much of the day was spent cleaning the dogs and kitchen floor.
On Lou's return it was a case of all of the dogs settling down in their favourite spots, Sally either on one of the sofas or in front of the fire (unlit last evening but I didn't have the heart to tell her otherwise), Millie on, or next to, Lou's lap, Kiva lying on her back wherever she fancied and Mylo in his kennel.

Millie has quickly become part of the pack - she loves playing with Kiva and seems besotted with Mylo. I think we might take her to the pub in a bit.
Lappy days.

Meet Millie, our guest 'till the New Year

2010-12-10T17:26:00.012Z

Yesterday saw the arrival of Millie, an 18 month old Cockerpoo (Cocker Spaniel x Poodle) and what a darling she is. Millie belongs to friends of Wheeto's owners (who will be with us over the New Year too) and will be enjoying the wonderful countryside around us for the next 3 weeks.
She quickly settled in and got on with Kiva and Mylo from the off - she has endless energy yet loves nothing more than sitting on someones lap. Boy can she jump ......
Here she can be seen playing with Kiva during her first afternoon with us - don't worry about the noise, that's just Kiva being playful.

Oh - the black lab, that's Sally - a regular visitor to Dogs to Stay.
Millie, apparently, cruises her meals - that's to say she doesn't eat it all there and then. That sentence now needs to be rewritten as "Millie used to cruise her meals" - obviously she doesn't want Mylo or Kiva to devour it before she does.
Millie came with a rather fetching pink coat - fortunately as all the snow has now melted she didn't need to wear it today so we were able to walk through the village in daylight ;-)
As I write this blog Millie is asleep next to my chair - I daren't move for if I do she will follow me everywhere, bless.

Rain Rain Go Away

2010-10-26T16:01:00.002+01:00

Yesterday was blue skies and sun shine, bloody chilly, but still very nice - almost a perfect autumnal day.

Sadly today is somewhat different - it was raining at 7.15 am, we know because Taavi wanted to be let out for his morning ablutions, why he won't use the dog run is beyond me as the others are more than happy to.

It was still raining at 10.00 - the time we normally walk the dogs, 11,12, 1, 2 and 3 were no different, to say it's wet would be an understatement, the hill on which we live could be used for white water rafting. Suffice to say that today's walks have been somewhat misreable so I hope you're having a great time on holiday soaking up the sun.

Right now Taavi is to my right with Kiva to my left - after some of my ham sandwich maybe - Jaaka is chewing on another bone and Mylo is in the kitchen (kitchen = room with very muddy floor).

Just another day at Dogs to Stay.

And Then There Were 5

2010-10-26T15:46:00.000+01:00

Kanto, Kiva's brother, came to stay yesterday (Monday) and fun and games ensued for the first 15 minutes of his visit.

I think that Kanto, a regular visitor, was a little annoyed to see 2 other dogs in, what he sees as, his second home then again Taavi was a little taken aback to see someone come running in to "his" territory, Jaaka just wagged his tail in a "Oh look, someone new to play with" style.

We kept an eye on them as they jockeyed for status and with quarter of an hour the pack had sorted itself out and the day passed very quietly. The weather was beautiful, chilly but with blue skies and sunshine, and the 3 walks that the dogs enjoyed were glorious - tiring too.

Having 5 well behaved Lapphunds in one's home must be one of life's great pleasues, the fact that 4 of them are males, 2 entire and 2 neutered, says a great deal about how they can be managed and integrated.

We are very lucky to have 2 cover boys within the pack as Mylo's was the cover picture used on the first (2008) SFLS calendar and Taavi's is the one chosen for the 2011 calendar. Autographs copies are available, please send an SAE to;
We're Too Handsome For Our Own Good
Dogs to Stay
W00F L4P

Kanto went home in the early evening and we enjoyed a peaceful time in front of the open fire as we decided who would sit on which sofa and next to whom.

Back From A Walk And The Pub

2010-10-24T15:07:00.003+01:00

Find enough to do on a Sunday morning and it means that the dogs get walked a little later than normal - it also means that the walk home coincides with the pub opening.
Once again it was a sunny autumn Sunday and though it had remained yesterday it was still dry enough under foot to be able to take the dogs out across the fields - meaning that they got the opportunity to enjoy running free off-lead. Taavi and Jaaka are both excellent with their recall so we felt confident allowing them to play - and play they did.
The walk home, with 4 tired dogs, took us past the stable and yard that is home to Tony the pony, actually Twinkle the Shetland pony but I have always liked the alliteration of the former. Kiva and Mylo are well used to Twinkle ambling to get a carrot or mint imperial - Taavi is less than impressed and Jaaka looks up at Twinkle with an expression that suggests he is thinking "OK - same colour, same number of legs but it's bloody big".
Walking back through the churchyard meant a glance at the clock - 12.05, great the pub would be open but not too busy, time for a Guinness for me and a Smirnoff Ice for Lou. Small problem, the pub was busy - busy pubs mean can mean waiting to be served and a complaining Mylo, not today however as, with me at the bar Lou was busy with the dogs and all of the admiring looks and compliments - about the dogs of course ;-)
Taavi and Jaaka were as chilled as always, Kiva as quiet as a mouse and even Mylo was pretty chilled, meaning that out time in the pub was an enjoyable one.
With the log fire now burning and Sunday dinner cooking the dogs are all perfectly relaxed - not that we would expect the pack to be any other.
Lappy days.

A note from a broad

2010-10-24T14:45:00.004+01:00

It has been a week of mixed emotions here. When we curtailed our Dogstostay activities because of Kiva and her pups we always assumed their leaving date would be the weekend of 9th/10th October 1-2 days short of their eight week birthday.

We already had Taavi and Jaaka due back with us for half term holidays (bizarre they should be last out, first in) but we were thought our timings would allow us five days with our pack of two, a bit of time for loving, fussing and regrouping…

Well what happens when your new puppy owners have a significant wedding anniversary (am I allowed to say 30?) which involves a most fantastic holiday cruising around Canada and the North East coast of the USA

What it means is that you get to keep one puppy for an extra 9 days which is great in itself and then you have a few sleepless nights before the posse returns to wonder how it’s all going to work….. sleeping, eating, breathing notwithstanding (just me obviously, because Simon is as cool as a cucumber at this point while I’m chewing off what nails I have left)

All of you that have watched Miika a.k.a. Dylan know he’s been the apple of Simon's eye from day one, and of course we all guessed he would run rings around the elders, well didn’t he just!

Taavi and Jaaka were fantastic with the pup from the moment they arrived, they didn’t even really mind that Alison coo’ed and billed and tried to make him fit in the exceptionally large handbag she brought with her ;) They accepted the tail tugging, mane hanging and to watch this mini-pack going on in our kitchen was a joy.

Since Flo left on the Sunday, Dylan had spent his nights with Kiva and Mylo having the complete run of the kitchen. When the two boys arrived we thought it might be prudent to have him in his pen with Kiva close by while Taavi and Jaaka had their normal run of kitchen/lobby/yard.

Mylo would be upstairs with us, lapp(y)ing up the attention and peace would prevail… or not, Dylan didn’t want to be confined and yes he soon alerted us to that fact! So having wrapped us around his little fluffy tan paw, we let him loose in the kitchen with everyone else, and THEN there was peace. Not a murmur from any of them, back to puppy times and waking them all up to make sure they were awake….

We only had four nights with the 5 of them but time and time again Taavi and Jaaka showed the softness of nature of a Lappy, not a grumble from either of them and always ready for playing with the puppy, I did wonder about all males together but I needn’t have worried at all.

It’s all been a bit quiet (in lappy speak) since Tuesday, the pack of 4 have reformed, we are now able to take longer walks without rushing back for the pup so everyone is more chilled and as always we’re having the most wonderful time looking after the most wonderful dogs….. Lappy days indeed

Taavi and Jaaka Are Back

2010-10-16T17:43:00.009+01:00

It was at the end of July when I last updated the blog - I do have my reasons, not least the fact that on August 16th Kiva gave birth to a litter of 5 puppies, the Magic Roundabout litter as we called it. Sadly Dougal and Ermintrude faded away in the first week and are now running free at Rainbow Bridge. Florence and Zebedee are now with their new forever homes whilst Dylan is with us until Tuesday. The whole experience has been one of highs and lows and it is my intention to write an article about it and to provide a link to it from this blog.

As we were busy raising puppies we didn't have any guest dogs - Taavi and Jaaka, who arrived yesterday are therefore our first visitors since July and are with us for 2 weeks.

Today is Jaaka's 1st birthday and a while ago he shared some of his birthday chicken liver cake with Taavi as well as Kiva and Mylo, little Dylan had to have a slice too.

Earlier today they all enjoyed a hearty breakfast - yes even Taavi.

Yesterday and last night passed smoothly, Dylan (proper name TabanyaRuu Karuselli Miika) is totally unfazed by the bigger dogs and they are all considerate towards him. We were woken at 8.00 by Dylan wanting his breakfast - a new day at Dogs to Stay had begun.

2010-07-30T19:57:00.000+01:00

Not the most exciting video and also not the most professionally filmed - it's a tricky job feeding 5 dogs with 5 different meals whilst filming it. Hey ho we got there in the end.

Dogs to Stay Can Do Languages

2010-07-26T16:02:00.002+01:00

привет вам в России and alo untuk Anda di Indonesia - life at Dogs to Stay is great, just look at these videos to prove it:

And then a little later in the evening the dogs chill out.

And Now - A Different 5

2010-07-23T17:06:00.004+01:00

Thanks to BT I had problems uploading yesterday's blog - by problems I really mean that we had no broadband, again. So apologies for the lack of update, suffice to say all is well with the pack.

Today we were joined by Rosie, Mylo's 1/2 sister and a regular walker with Jaaka and Taavi - she is with us whilst her hupeeps holiday in Russia.

The video above was recorded earlier this afternoon and demonstrates just how well a pack of Lapphunds can get on.

Come back tomorrow for a further glimpse into the world of Dogs to Stay.

And Now There Are Five

2010-07-21T11:12:00.001+01:00

Well, 4 and a black lab - then again if you included Kiva's pups to be it would be 10 :-)

Fun and games at Dogs to Stay as Fat Sal's humum managed to lock herself out of the house meaning that Sal is with us a little early, not that it's an issue as the pack met up with Sal yesterday and enjoyed a romp in the fields with her.

Other than yesterday's walk with Sal, Taavi and Jaaka enjoyed an early evening walk before having their supper and chilling for the evening. The night passed quietly, though one of the boys did start doing an impression of a wolf around 6.00, oh joy. We know that it wasn't either Kiva or Mylo because they are enjoying the experience of spending their nights upstairs.

Breakfast was served earlier than normal however I don't think that Taavi or Jaaka minded at all as they both tucked into their kibble, nature diet and chicken (whoops, that was supposed to be a secret.)

As I write, post walk, Jaaka and Taavi are lying on the kitchen floor, Sal is to the left of my chair, Mylo to the right whilst Kiva is busy nesting under the ivy.

Lappy days.

And Then There Were 4 (and 5 little grape sized ones)

2010-07-20T15:17:00.012+01:00

Yesterday saw the arrival of Taavi and Jaaka - 2 males that live together in Hertfordshire that are staying with us for a couple of weeks whilst their hupeeps "do" Indonesia. Well whoop de do hupeeps, you get to spend ages on a plane whilst the furkids have fun ;-).
The 4 have settled in superbly, Taavi is continuing his love affair with Kiva - we haven't told him that since their last meeting she has "met" another lappy - and he is contentedly licking her ear (amongst other bits) until she lets him know when enough is enough.

Despite our concerns that Jaaka might not sleep in his crate their first night passed well - Taavi (well we think it was he) did make a few "please pay attention to me" noises throughout the night but in the main I think we all slept well. Hopefully today Taavi will understand that when is food bowl is put in front of him it means "eat your breakfast" rather than "go for an amble round the garden".

Jaaka is gorgeous and does everything he can to get a loving stroke
it works, could you refuse him?

At the time of writing the dogs are all relaxed - I on the other hand am doing cartwheels (well metaphorically that is) as we have just had it confirmed that Kiva is pregnant with 5 puppies.

On Friday Mylo's 1/2 sister is coming to join us - 5 lappies should be enough for anyone however we are hoping that Kanto (Kiva's brother) might come and join us for a walk on Sunday.

Watch this space and as always, Lappy Days.

Salivating Sal

2010-07-06T13:47:00.001+01:00

When not busy devouring the odd bone or 3 Sal is more than happy giving herself a good wash. We know that she does so even if we aren't in the same room as her as she does like to make a meal of it - a loud meal. At least she's clean though ;-)

She enjoyed her romps across the fields yesterday - coming back as she does when called makes for better behaved Lapphunds.

We are slowly but surely running out of "indestructible" dog toys - a labs jaws seem to be able to gnaw their way through almost anything - balls seem to be the flavour of the day today. No matter, Sal is happy, the weather's nice (cloudy but warm) and everyone is calm.

Lappy days.

Oh Blogger!!

2010-07-05T12:03:00.000+01:00

Things aren't what they have been at Dogs to Stay because yesterday we got a phone call from Sal's hufamily asking if she was OK as they hadn't seen a blog update. I had written one on Friday and thought that I had uploaded it - obviously things went awry as upon checking it was no longer to be seen.

Suffice to say that all is well with Sal and she has once again made herself perfectly at home.

She has found almost every bone that Kiva and Mylo have accumulated over the years and is steadily munching her way through them (does she have a volume button?) and the lawn is scattered with them.

Walking the 3 of them can be a nightmare however Sal's behaviour is improving as we run the gauntlet - hey ho.

As I write I can hear the sound of birds singing in the garden - well I would be able to if Sal wasn't lying next to me devouring yet another bone.

Running the Gaunlet

2010-06-30T13:50:00.001+01:00

Always an interesting time - however today we managed to complete it with nary a bark or a lunge despite the distraction of Tinkerbell (damn stupid name for a dog, sorry, rat that barks, if you ask me). The secret, ha, all will be told upon Sal's hupeeps return.

We did off-lead in Church's field; Sally and Kiva running along together Mylo, how seems to have had a personality transplant, happy to walk along beside me.

On the way home we managed to find and take home a lost dog - Sally being most agreeable and even enjoyed a quite, yes quite, chat with Lulu and her owner.

Not much else to report - Sally sleeps, Sally eats, Sally jumps up onto the sofa - Sally sleeps, Sally roots around in the toy basket, Sally chews on a bone, LOUDLY, Sally sleeps, Sally washes herself VERY LOUDLY.

Hope all is well in the land of far-far away.

Lappy days

Sal Latest Holiday

2010-06-29T09:49:00.000+01:00

After getting over the after effects Kanto's "I want to hump Sal" episode (Mylo had to remind Kanto that Sal if anyone was going to hump Sal it would be him) things quickly settled down and the rest of the evening passed calmly - in fact it's been pretty calm ever since.

Walking the 4 of them was a bit of an issue on Monday (Kanto liked it here so much he wanted to stay another day) however with me taking Sal and Mylo Louise was more than able to manager brother and sister Kiva and Kanto. Kanto went home yesterday evening and since then Sal has rediscovered the toy box, the sofa and how to make the most of the dog-flap.

Pictures, maybe even a video, will be added later, but for now rest assured that Sal is as chilled as ever - now if I can just do something about her snoring .........

Hector Gets Wet

2010-06-02T13:20:00.005+01:00

A beautiful day here meant for an enjoyable walk. Out of the house for 11.00 and home for 1.00 - not all walking I hasten to add as we did stop off for coffee at Nina's on the way home (Nina being the Munsterlander with whom we have been walking).

The nice weather meant that the dogs could enjoy the garden:

And the pond:

Especially the pond:

Fortunately a hose was at hand to give Hector a good wash down before coming home. As I write the dogs are all sleeping, Kiva and Mylo in the shade, hector in the kitchen and, hopefully, drying off.

I Kind Of Like It Here

2010-06-01T21:22:00.000+01:00

Dogs to play with, company at night and all day, access to the garden (though I can't suss the dog flap thing out), walks with other dogs, lots of things to chew (and ruin .... tee hee) and lots to eat.

This is one of those rare occasions when I am actually lying on my bed - most of the time I'm dragging it round the lounge or the garden with Kiva chasing me.

Hector has settled in well and is a wonderfully well behaved 10 month old boy - rumour has it that he might be back with us in August - if so it can't come soon enough.

Hector's In The House

2010-05-31T16:33:00.003+01:00

On Saturday Hector came to join us for a week, he is a 10 month old Springer Spaniel, one of Louise's favourite breeds and one that we did consider before deciding on Finnish Lapphunds. He is a very well mannered dog and quickly settled in to life at Dogs to Stay - he found where the toy box was and proceded to empty it, the lounge floor quickly getting covered with bones, chews and toys.

Mylo watched on with disgust finally deciding that pretending to sleep would be the best option.

Talking of sleep; Hector's first night passed quietly, I think he enjoyed the company of Kiva and Mylo.
As I write the dogs are still sleeping off today's earlier walk, the best part of 5 miles in nice weather and good company as we were joined by Sally the black lab and Nina a black and white Munsterlander. Lappy days indded.

It's A Weekend So It Must Be Raining

2010-05-08T12:41:00.006+01:00

Fortunately we missed the rain when we walked the pack - they are all now totally relaxed ... right, that's enough words let's allow the pictures to tell the story:

You might like to turn the sound off before playing the video clip - the breathing sounds as though it belongs in a horror movie ....

The Secret of Scrabble's Unbroken Night

2010-05-08T09:04:00.000+01:00

will remain a secret ... suffice to say that it worked again last night. As a result we almost overslept which would have been embarrassing as Fat Sal was due to arrive for the weekend at 8.00.

Fortunately we were up in good time, just as well really as Phil was early delivering Sal. No matter, all is well and, following breakfast, the pack are now well settled. Smuu to the right of my chair, Tuukka on his bed, Sal on the sofa (no change there), Scrabble busy emptying the toy box, Kiva in the kitchen and Mylo in his kennel..... all is calm at Dogs to Stay.

Sadly yesterday's blue skies and sunshine have gone, it's grey, damp and miserable - hopefully it will have brightened up by the time the dogs get their first walk.

Mad Dogs and Englishmen ....

2010-05-07T13:23:00.004+01:00

We had a busy day at Dogs to Stay yesterday as we played host to a couple from Wales who came to meet Kiva with a view to maybe having one of her puppies when she is mated this summer. Sue and Ralph are long term Samoyed owners but they are looking to downsize to a Lappy. They turned up with a bag full of treats - the dogs were most impressed - and spent a couple of hours with us interacting with the pack - Scrabble making his presence known, Smuu and Tuukka as chilled as always (I think that they were rather taken with Tuukka), Mylo being Mylo and Kiva winning hearts.

After they left we met up with Fat Sal for a late afternoon walk. I think that Scrabble found it all a bit tiring :-)

I have just got back from a walk with the 5 dogs and with them all chilled am able to get down to writing today's update, not that there's a lot more to say ....

The day started late, Scrabble sleeping through the night - I think we have found the secret to a good nights sleep ;-). Breakfast was served, the dogs were walked, I checked the election results :-(

Now that we have discovered how to ensure Scrabble sleeps through the night I can safely say that our guests really are no trouble, Smuu and Tuukka are 2 of the most chilled guests we have ever had and I'm so glad that Smuu left her bark at home. I am delighted with the way our own dogs get on with our visitors - though they are normally well behaved Mylo and Tuukka did have a minor set to when they first met some 3 years ago - I think that must have forgotten all about it as they are best mates now. Kiva enjoys being with her granny, I think that the feeling is reciprocated and Scrabble is, for a young puppy away from his humum for the first time very well behaved, he can be a pain in the butt sometimes - he seems to delight in trying to trip me up when we are out walking but he has grown on us, he's also groing up ... he can cock his leg now ;-)

2010-05-06T21:49:00.015+01:00

A short clip of 4 of the 5 dogs at Dogs to Stay.

Smuu - asleep at Lou's feet
Tuukka - asleep on his bed
Kiva - chilling
Scrabble - doing an impression of a cute dog

Mylo - sleeping in his kennel

Oh Joy - A Lie In

2010-05-06T09:34:00.002+01:00

Well, a sort of lie in if you can call 6.45 late - Scrabble, you just have to love him don't you !! ???

After his early start and excursions (it must be very tiring making all of that noise) and after his morning walk and breakfast Scrabble is now asleep - an hours respite for me ;-)

I managed to get the grass cut yesterday - the guest dogs weren't bothered at all, maybe because they stayed indoors - planting up the tubs was another matter, Scrabble was desperate to help. When the time came to hoover the living room - a daily job with 5 dogs, it was a different matter with Smuu and Tuukka seeking solace in the garden, yup, on the freshly mown lawn.

Smuu is happy to join in every walk and is showing no signs of aching joints, perhaps little and often is the answer - she certainly appears to look forward to the walks as does Tuukka.

Right - must get on as I have the house to get ready for this afternoon's visitors - a couple are coming across from Wales to meet Kiva as they are hoping to have one of her puppies (fingers crossed) this summer.

Lappy days

2010-05-05T09:45:00.002+01:00

If there are any typos in this entry I do apologise but it will be due to me being incredibly tired. Scrabble decided to make himself heard at 3.00 am and so as to not annoy the neighbours, or those living in the next village, it was necessary to come down stairs to placate him. To be honest it wasn't that hard as he soon settled, so it was back to bed for me. I later discovered that it is still dark at 5.15 am, yup, Scrabble made himself known again; same procedure, same results - peace, well at least until 7.15 am.

The little darling is asleep right now, he's had his walk, enjoyed his breakfast and is now in what was once mine and then Mylo's chair.

Smuu was as eager for her morning walk as any dog we have had stay however I think that she was a little disappointed that she didn't see a squirrel in the churchyard like she did yesterday. The picture below was taken 5 or 10 minutes ago - suffice to say that she is chilled.

Tuukka has sussed out where his food is kept and can be seen in the picture below loitering with intent - he is now sleeping on his bed.

Regular readers will have read that Mylo doesn't do beds or crates, unless, that is, they belong to our visitors - here he can be seen enjoying Scrabble's crate - how he got in there and turned around is beyond me.

Though bright and sunny yesterday was cold and the dogs were more than happy staying indoors - they enjoyed their walks and meeting the other canine residents of the village including Fat Sal, who will be with us at the weekend. Today is again bright and looks as though it might be quite warm - time to do some gardening maybe. I wonder how our guests react to lawnmowers - they sure don't like the Dyson.

Later today we will be meeting up with Fat Sal again for an afternoon stroll - this time I just hope that Scrabble doesn't try to trip me up ;-)

Lappy days.

When 3 Become 5

2010-05-04T07:11:00.012+01:00

woke at 6.25 this morning, an amazing stroke of luck because it was only one minute after Scrabble awoke - hence the blog being updated so early today.

Yesterday we said goodbye to Zomba - his hufamily have now got themselves pretty much organised in their new home so after breakfast we headed south to drop him off.

The day coincided with a prearranged gathering of Lappies in St. Albans and the collection of our next dogs; Kiva's grandparents Tuukka, Smuu and German Spitz Klein Scrabble. In addition to the 3 new guests 3 other former guests at Dogs to Stay were also there; Taavi and Jaaka and Kiva's nephew Wheeto - we were pleasantly surprised to also see Finlay there (sadly no photos yet) - a rather wonderful wolf sable male.

It was typical bank holiday weather - we had sun, cloud and rain, we even had hail. However bad weather does NOT deter the committed Lapphund walker or their dogs; 8 Lapphunds and 2 German Spitz Klein. Apart from Kiva falling in the lake; a classic "Ooops TV2 moment and Mylo going walkabout in the restaurant it was an enjoyable way to spend a bank holiday. The journey home wasn't too bad - however could someone please explain why the motorway has a 50 mph speed limit and signs saying "50mph to protect the workforce" when no one was working.

Once home the dogs quickly settled in, and down, Smuu and Tuuka finding their beds the perfect place to lie after their strenuous day, while Scrabble decided that he couldn't decide between one of the dog beds or the sofa.

Mylo being Mylo he too wanted to try out the beds;

I was delighted with the way that all of the dogs had integrated; the day's earlier walk had served to reinforce the pack philosophy as well as tire them out.

As I write a video recorded yesterday evening is being uploaded, Mylo is in the garden, Tuuka and Smuu are on their beds, Kiva is on the lawn and Scrabble is once again eager to jump up on my lap.

Lappy days indeed.

An Unexpected Pleasure ....

2010-05-02T13:53:00.003+01:00

Yesterday I took Keksi and Ismo back home leaving us with just Zomba who was, according to the booking, due to be going home today.

The dynamics have again changed, though Mylo and Kiva still rule the roost Zomba has more space to play, without stepping on Ismo's toes, OK, paws, however it is evident that he misses Keksi who was much more willing to play with him than Kiva.

Zomba doesn't seem perturbed though as he has discovered the contents of the dogs' toy box - Father Christmas seems to be popular as do all of the tuggy toys.

I mentioned that Zomba was due to go back home today ... well he's here for another night :-) and will be dropped off tomorrow en route to a Lappy reunion walk in St. Albans and the subsequent collection of 3 new guests.

It's a busy life at Dogs to Stay but I wouldn't have it any other way.

Mayhem starring Keksi and Zomba, supporting cast includes Mylo, Ismo and Kiva

2010-05-01T14:55:00.002+01:00

For a Short While 6 But Now Back to 5

2010-05-01T09:47:00.001+01:00

After a day spent being walked around the village by the pack of 5 I had to nip out to collect Zomba, our next visitor. Zomba is with us for a couple of nights whilst his family move from Leicester to Milton Keynes - we're located about mid way so we are a convenient place for fellow Lappy Zomba to stay.

Introducing a 6th dog into the pack was an interesting experience; Fat Sal was blase - well she is a labrador, however Ismo and Keksi were not impressed. Perhaps having spent the past week with us they were upset that another Lappy might upset the dynamics - however after keeping a close eye on everyone they soon integrated and behaved themselves.

Sally left us about 10.00 and after her departure there was space for the 5 Lappies to relax.

Those of you who are on facebook may well have seen these pictures already - I will post some others later. The image below, however, is one that had to be posted again - Mylo who liked the expensive bed that we bought him so much that he tore it up has a habit of claiming the beds that our guests dogs bring for himself - I don't know if he spent all night in it but he was there when we came down this morning.

We have just returned from our 1st walk of the day - 5 happy Lappies - exercised, fed and now chilling, well apart from Zomba and Keksi who seem to have become an item.

Lappy days

And Then There Were 5

2010-04-30T16:02:00.004+01:00

It's a hard life at Dogs to Stay - the guests obviously don't feel at home at all.

Well until 8.00 this evening when Zomba joins the pack .... watch this space.

Lappy days

Aplogies and Reasons, NOT Excuses

2010-04-28T20:17:00.024+01:00

last entry was on Sunday, I had intended to update the blog of Keksi and Ismo's stay yesterday (Tuseday) however the gremlins got into our BT Home Hub (wireless router for the uninitiated) and as a result had no internet until Wednesday afternoon. What happened to Monday's entry? I hear you ask - well sorry about that but having a wisdom tooth extracted that day was more painful than I thought it would be.

Anyway - enough of me and my problems, lets talk about the guests.

Kiva and Keksi Relax in the Lounge

Other than Ismo's fondness to impersonate a seal our 2 guests really are no trouble at all. Coming downstairs in the morning is a true joy - Ismo and Keksi make it quite obvious how pleased they are to see us - though trying to stroke 4 dogs at the same time can be an issue.

Kiva and Keksi in the Kitchen
(the grout should be lighter btw)

The shot below is indicative of how the dogs get on - angst is most definately not on the menu with these pack members.

Keksi and Mylo .... ahh, bless

I tried to get all 4 of them in this picture but ismo was being stubborn and refused to leave the lounge.

3 Happy Lappies (Ismo was camera shy for this one)

Oh, if you would like to see where we walk why not check this link out: http://www.endomondo.com/workouts?w=p2jT44urURQ though I'm not sure about the 80mph max speed.

As we say at Dogs to Stay "Lappy days"

Keksi and Ismo's Return Visit

2010-04-25T16:33:00.014+01:00

It was over a year ago when Keksi and Ismo were last with us and, until Thursday, it wasn't definite that they would be coming to Dogs to Stay because of the flight disruptions due to the Icelandic volcano. However they are here and have been since Friday - and what a pleasure they have been.

We have enjoyed some glorious walks - little and often, well not so little for some of them, being the order of the day - and, when not walking or playing the dogs are all very relaxed. The chemistry between them is a joy to watch - Keksi and Mylo seem to have become an item with Keksi paying particular attention to Mylo's ears - Kiva is almost ambivalent to the guests and Ismo is as good as gold, helping Louise in the kitchen (ever willing to wash any vegetables that might inadvertently drop on the floor) and, contrary to what I expected, remarkably quiet - well, fairly quite, until I pick up his lead.

I have just upgraded my mobile phone and as a result now have one of these fancy "smart" phones onto which one can download "apps" (no Luddite me) one of which allows me to track my walks. I now know that the "round the village" is 1.9 miles and the longer "across the field" walk is 2.5 miles - when I have worked out how to do so I will post the links to a web site which allows you to see the actual route. As I write Louise is preparing Sunday lunch with Keksi, Ismo, Mylo and Kiva at her side hoping for some more dropped carrots - having dogs underfoot whilst cooking certainly makes the job more interesting. Not long now before lunch is served - the dogs will be getting theirs too.

Lappy days.

Now THIS is a Husky

2010-04-17T14:32:00.004+01:00

For the past three and half years we have had to deal with people we meet whilst out walking the dogs who ask "Are they Huskies?" or "Look at those gorgeous Huskies" to which we have to explain that the aren't Huskies but Finnish Lapphunds.

The Husky was the first dog that we considered getting before eventually deciding to go for Finnish Lapphunds - I had always wondered what having one of the Lappies relatives would be like - now I know. Dogs to Stay were asked to have a 6 month Siberian Husky stay overnight - and who am i to say no? Viggo joined us at 1.00 and since then has played with Kiva, played with Mylo, played with Kiva and Mylo, drank lots of water (much of it whilst lying down) been for a walk and is now ..... playing with Mylo.

A Day Tinged With Sadness

2010-04-14T10:39:00.008+01:00

As well as having 2 lapphunds, and looking after many others, we have also spent the past 7 years in the company of 2 cats. Brother and sister Sam and Lucky came to us from the RSPCA as three year old cats that had never been outdoors. They quickly settled themselves in and have been part of the furniture for 7 years. Their noses were put out of joint a little by the arrival, back in 2006, of Mylo, but since then have become dog tolerant.

Four weeks ago we discovered a lump on Sam's shoulder and around his chest - a visit to the vet saw us informed that he had cancer. We discussed the options open to us, one of which was spending a small fortune with no guarantee that he would be any better. We decided to make Sam's last weeks as comfortable as possible and have been amazed at how he had stubbornly refused to give in to his illness. Yesterday, however, we decided that the time had come to do the right thing and give him a dignified end to his full life.

It wasn't easy for Lou and I, lots of tears were shed, however Sam is now pain free. Run free in Rainbow Valley - Milly will have been waiting for you.

As well as saying goodbye to Sam we also said cheerio to Wheeto - leaving us with Obi as our only guest. Dogs are remarkable creatures because they have been so calm since Louise's and my return from the vets - it's almost as if they new something was remiss. Accordingly yesterday evening was very relaxed and, perhaps more importantly, this morning was very quiet.

With no invalid on the bed the decision was made to let the dogs upstairs. I think Obi appreciated it and will hopefully look forward to his next visit - he goes home today and he too will be missed :-(

Lappy days

And Owners Stay Too ....

2010-04-13T14:49:00.007+01:00

Yesterday was Wheeto's last day with us as Laura, his humum came to collect him - she arrived in the early afternoon and left this morning; she appeared to like it so much that she wanted to stay too .... all part of the service at Dogs to Stay. We enjoyed a nice walk with the pack through the village and across the fields and a very pleasant evening talking dogs, well actually talking Lapphunds - there is a difference you know.

Louise and I walked the dogs before breakfast whilst Laura enjoyed a lie in - before leaving she and I took a few final pictures of the pack, we tried to get a shot of all 4 on the top step, sadly they did not cooperate.

After Laura and left with Wheeto I, along with Mylo, Kiva and Yoda, sorry, Obi, met up with Phil and Fat Sal for a hike across the fields and, for the first time this year, was able to walk without getting muddy - I could get used to this warm and dry weather.

Obi and Kiva post walk

Damn - No Pictures So I Better Do Some Words

2010-04-12T19:19:00.002+01:00

I no longer need to write about Wheeto as his owner, Laura, has come to visit - apparently her husband, Michael had to curtail their holiday for work commitments - pft, I think Laura was missing Wheeto. Laura is with us for the night and will discover more of the village and the walks around it tomorrow.

Yoda, sorry Obi, is with us 'till Wednesday and he is, as always, Mr Chill - or as Yoda would say - "Mr Chill I am". I am seriously thinking about not being in on Wednesday when his hufamily come to collect him ... We shall miss Obi, he is rather special.

Pictures Speak Thousands of Words

2010-04-12T09:12:00.001+01:00

The Joys of a Lie In

2010-04-11T16:08:00.005+01:00

Wheeto woke us at 8.30 ..... nuff said, today is going to be a good day, even the weather looks like being kind for us and our visitors (Oskar, with Wendy, making the trek from far flung Malvern).

If you are wondering how it went see below ....

Lappy days :-)

More Sun ....

2010-04-10T15:56:00.004+01:00

Another beautiful day that, for a change, didn't start that early - thanks Wheeto. However we have managed to pack loads into it.

The dogs have enjoyed having the run of the garden - it looks as though the care we took of it over the winter will ensure that we have something green to look out on this summer :-)

Life with the 2 guests has become almost a routine - there is no angst, everyone gets on and everyone is chilled - if Obi was any more chilled he'd be an iceberg.

We have just returned from a walk through the village and across the fields - all perfectly calm until we saw a whippet running alongside a cyclist - not something you see everyday and certainly a new experience for Wheeto. He has certainly been introduced to some interesting sights during his stay.

I should have taken lots of photos but for some obscure reason the battery on my camera wouldn't charge - fortunately that problem has no been fixed so .... watch this space.

As promised

More Blue Sky; Thanks Gordon.

2010-04-09T09:04:00.008+01:00

Is it just me or has anyone else noticed that ever since our unelected prime minister announced a general election that the weather has taken a turn for the better :-) So, at last, I have something to be grateful to the Labour (sic) party for.

Anyway, enough political satire - you came here to read about dogs and we have plenty of those, so many in fact that I can't escape from my desk. I would take a photo of them all but unfortunately to get my camera would mean disturbing them - and that would be cruel.

Wheeto woke us at 6.45 again, that dog is either smart (knowing Lou had to leave early today) or Obi isn't playing with him - let's see what happens tomorrow.

We have done the first walk of the day; Obi calmly walking alongside with Wheeto at the front eagerly hunting out sticks to pick up, carry, chew, discard. Home for breakfast, yup, you guessed it; 4 dogs = 4 different diets. Obi having his raw mince and kibble, Wheeto his "Fish for Dogs", Kiva and Mylo a mixture of kibble and, in Mylo's case Nature Diet and for Kiva 1/2 a pouch of Butchers tripe - fussy buggers.

They all enjoyed a treat last evening being allowed to lick clean the pot used to cook my speciality ham and mushrooms in creme fraiche served with pasta.

After dinner Kiva decided to make herself comfortable.

Last evening whilst updating the Dogs to Stay Facebook page I got into conversation with a fellow Lappy owner living in the Lake District (lucky for some eh?). She was keen to find out who "the big boy with the good coat" was, when told it was Obi and that he had been neutered Sara responded; "He does look lovely. Typical, every time you see one with a good coat it's always because they have been neutered." Obi; you have another fan.

Thursday Part 2

2010-04-08T20:36:00.004+01:00

Blue skies prevailed - it was even warm enough to go out without a coat, it looks as though spring has finally sprung. The dogs have loved being able to have the run of the garden and the ground floor of the house.

They have also enjoyed their walks especially being off-lead in a secure field - fortunately I had another pair of hands, and eyes, to keep watch on them - hardly necessary as they were all reliable with their recall.

Much of their afternoon has seen them totally chilled - playing in the garden and 4 mile walks seems to be wearing them out .... until after dinner that is.

It's all part of the fun at Dogs to Stay - Lappy Days

But It Didn't Work Today

2010-04-08T09:16:00.004+01:00

Lappies - you have to love them don't you, especially at 6.30 in the morning!

Memo to Wheeto - if you can't see us in the morning we're still asleep - so please, no more noise in the early hours.

Rant over - the sun is shining, the sky is blue, the dogs have been fed, watered and exercised and as I write they are all sleeping - which is nice.

Though chilly yesterday we enjoyed 3 walks, a pre-breakfast amble, an hour's trek across the fields after lunch and a stroll round the village before dinner - the dogs loved it but it all this exercise is beginning to tell on my right knee, bizarrely one of the few parts of my body I have never injured but that is now giving me some gip - old age I suppose :-(

I spent some time yesterday going through my photo archives and uploaded some of the better (sic) ones to the Dogs to Stay Facebook page; you don't have to be a member to see them so why not click here; http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dogs-to-Stay/346579877322?ref=ts

I will be uploading some more today but in the meantime here are some I took yesterday:

Wheeto in what used to be Mylo's chair

Three in a row

Obi looking stunning whilst Kiva looks on

Obi and Wheeto on the kitchen floor, Obi assures me that he is really comfortable

The Cunning Plan Worked

2010-04-07T09:22:00.002+01:00

Obi's presence has had the desired effect - Wheeto didn't wake us at the crack of dawn :-) Obviously having someone new to play with tired him out and amused him this morning.

First walk of the day saw Louise and I take the pack round the village - a great opportunity for them to do their business under various bushes and hedges. Wheeto, rather amusingly, had klingons which saw him take a few steps - squat, a few steps more - squat, before we took pity on him and removed the offending article. It was probably very cruel of us to laugh but it was amusing.

Breakfast has been served - all is calm, Mylo under the kitchen table, Obi asleep to my right, Wheeto to my left and Kiva behind me (OK - use your imagination here please folks; I am at my desk, my chair can't be moved either left or right - I can't move it back - I am stuck).

Oh well, if I can't get away from my desk I better get some work done.

Lappy days

And Then There Were Four

2010-04-06T18:09:00.009+01:00

Firstly: "Hello to Laura's mum and dad" - Wheeto's biggest fans.

Secondly: Laura, what do we need to do to discourage Wheeto from waking at 5.30am?

Actually I think we have the answer to that as the wonderful Obi has come back for a stay and the way he and Wheeto are playing suggests that they might just tire each other out.

Obi is a wonderful boy and this is his third, or maybe fourth, visit to Dogs to Stay - he has, as you will see, the most magnificent coat and a wonderful temperament. He also has a rather bizarre diet; a golf ball size ball of raw mince (now mixed in with a handful of kibble, I think his hufamily are spoiling him) for breakfast whilst for dinner he has a layer of kibble covered with milk topped off with a carefully measured quantity of cooked chicken. Pft, some dogs do get treated well.

Earlier this afternoon we met up with Fat Sal for a walk - my cunning plan being that another pair of hands means I only had to hold 3 leads, and enjoyed a stroll around the village and across the odd field - all good, and surprisingly, rather clean fun.

The untypical Bank Holiday weather meant that the lawn has had a chance to dry out and, after a quick cut, the dogs have been enjoying playing outside - hopefully this will mean a relaxed a chilled evening, then again maybe another walk might be in order - past the pub maybe .... now there's a thought.

Mad dogs and Englishmen etc.

Mylo, who doesn't "do" crates does a crate

Wheeto admires Obi's tail thinking "when am I going to get one like that?"

Now That's What I Call a Bank Holiday

2010-04-05T19:26:00.004+01:00

No rain, good company, enjoyable walks and well behaved dogs.

Well, almost well behaved dogs as Wheeto decided to wake us at 7.00 - somewhat earlier than when Zack was with us - maybe he was bored and wanted someone to play with. Oh well at least it meant I could read the paper in peace whilst Louise enjoyed a lie in with a cup of tea and Sam who, thankfully, is still with us and was busy purring when I took her Louise's up.

As it was a nice morning, nice = no rain ;-) I decided to take the pack out for an early stroll round the village - I didn't see a soul - it was beautiful. At 10.00, Lou now being up, we took the dogs out to join in the village Fun Run - a 1.8 mile charity fun run between the 2 Priors villages - well it would have been 1.8 miles but we decided to walk there and back - we didn't win however we did walk further than most (well that's our excuse).

With the dogs well and truly chilled it has been a very relaxing day for all of us. Tomorrow Obi comes to join us for a week - Wheeto will be pleased because our new guest, like Zack, does enjoy his jiggy jiggy. Hopefully it will mean that we don't get woken to early again.

The pack have had their tea and Wheeto is currently chewing on Lou's slipper - she asked me to ask if this is normal procedure or does he normally wait 'till you have taken them off? ;-)

No Rain - it Can't be a Bank Holiday Surely

2010-04-04T19:15:00.007+01:00

It's Easter Sunday - we have enjoyed 2 walks, and it hasn't rained !! Now that must be a Bank Holiday weekend record. As result the dogs have been able to enjoy the whole garden as opposed to just the all weather areas - and boy have they enjoyed it.

Sadly Zack has gone home - he'll be back though in May, it might not be the same though as Wheeto will have taken his vet bed back home and Zack did get rather attached to it.

In Zack's absence Wheeto has had to encourage Mylo and Kiva to play with him - Mylo kindly obliged - I think Wheeto might be regretting it though because Mylo is somewhat older, wiser and more experienced at playing with puppies than Zack - Wheeto is now shattered.

Sunday being Sunday the dogs were fed their very own Sunday Roast - Lamb being the order of the day, and rather nice it was too, the dogs agreed.

All is quite at the moment, Mylo lying at my feet, Kiva in the kitchen and Wheeto, after a couple of amusing sliding off incidents is under the coffee table.

Guess What - It's Raining

2010-04-03T18:52:00.004+01:00

However we did manage to enjoy a couple of nice walks - the latter in the company of Fat Sal. The dogs have all enjoyed their dinner, though I am not convinced that Wheeto enjoyed the chopped cabbage that much, and, as is customary post-dinner = play time.

As I write peace has resumed; Mylo is in his kennel, Kiva asleep in the lounge, Zack is in the crate (from choice I hasten to add) and Wheeto is on Mylo's (formerly my) chair.

I would like to think that Wheeto quite likes it here :-)

Keeping the Hund's Apart

2010-04-03T10:14:00.002+01:00

Having a selection of dogs in the house is always interesting and watching them interact is an education, well it certainly is with Zack here as he is besotted with his nephew. Because of this I made the decision to keep him and Wheeto apart during the night; Wheeto slept in the kitchen with Kiva and Mylo, Zack slept on my bed !! That wasn't the plan - I had wanted him to sleep on the floor, however turning over during the night was made somewhat difficult with Zack's presence - no matter, a good, and safe night was had by one and all.

Breakfast was served - well the dogs' was, and then it was time for their walk in blue sky and sunshine, wait - it's Easter, that can't be right :-0

Wheeto continues to amaze us with his maturity and behaviour, oh, and his endearing habit of walking through the village with a twig, branch or half a tree hanging out of his mouth.

Lappy Easter folks - it is here.

Good Friday - Part 2

2010-04-02T20:34:00.010+01:00

Unfortunately it's been typical Bank Holiday weather - yup, rain. However we have managed to get out in between showers. At midday we met up with Fat Sal and her hufamily for a walk through the village and across the fields - an opportunity for Mylo to go walkabout, Sal and Kiva to play and Wheeto to collect sticks. One of the downsides of living here is that any walk involves passing the pub and, after an enjoyable walk what could be better than a pint?

Wheeto was as good as gold - once again the quality of his training was a credit to his owners, then again he might just have been tired.

Later in the afternoon Zack arrived for a weekend stay - for those of you not in the know it is Zack who is responsible for Dogs to Stay as he was our first guest - Zack is also Kiva's brother and therefore Wheeto's uncle. I think Zack likes having a nephew - well he likes licking his ear and trying to do (as Ranbir, Zack's hudad would say) jiggy jiggy with him.

We made the decision to take the dogs out for a walk before feeding them so it was Louise and I and the pack of 4. On our return it was dinner time, well it was for Kiva, Mylo and Wheeto - Zack declined his delicious looking kibble - maybe later.

As write the dogs are all calm, for once Zack isn't licking Wheeto's ear or pestering him, Kiva is asleep with her head sticking through the dog flap, Zack, Mylo and Wheeto are sleeping on the lounge floor.

Lappy days.

How's Italy? It's Great Here :-)

2010-04-02T10:42:00.004+01:00

All is well with Wheeto who has quickly settled in to become part of the pack. He slept through the night waking at 7.30 - went out to be busy and then began his new day playing with Kiva and Mylo.

Breakfast was served and enjoyed by all of them - does Wheeto have carrots? Well he does now and boy does he enjoy them.

All is quiet at the moment - 3 dogs sleeping after their first walk of the day. Wheeto met some of the local characters; black labs, a gaggle of terriers, a sheltie and a spaniel - totally unfazed and impeccably well behaved. Later we will be walking with the black lab Fat Sal (I must stop calling her that as she is now quite slim) and if things go according to plan we might just have to call in to the village pub, well it is Easter, the sun is shining and the sky is blue (knowing my luck as soon as I press "Publish Post" the weather will change).

Wheeto is very well behaved and the training his hufamily have carried out with him has been to good effect - now if only I could get Mylo to behave as well as our 5 month old guest I will be happy.

Jobs For The Day

2010-04-01T17:38:00.008+01:00

9.30 - take Kanto home (done)
11.00 - walk Kiva and Mylo (done, c/w Fat Sal and Phil)
12.00 - leave home to drive south down M1 to collect Wheeto (done)
1.00 - meet Laura and Mikey to collect Wheeto (done, though it took longer than expected because Laura didn't want to say goodbye).
2.45 - get home (done, though it took longer than expected due to 50mph speed lmits being enforced through roadworks to "protect workforce" - what bloody workforce?)
3.00 - watch Wheeto play with Kiva and Mylo (done, finally finished playing at 5.30 when I started writing this entry, when not playing he has spent most of his time exploring the toy box; bones found to date - 15)
5.30 - start writing blog and upload a few photos (done).

Mylo and Wheeto Compare Teeth Whilst Kiva Looks On

When I started writing this entry Wheeto was sleeping on the kitchen floor.

However he soon woke when he realised that it was dinner time at Dogs to Stay

And after dinner it's time to wait to go into the garden and be busy

All is good at Dogs to Stay it would seem, Lappy days indeed.

Easter = Guests

2010-03-31T18:27:00.006+01:00

Easter seems to bring out the desire to travel for many of us - as a result Dogs to Stay is fully booked - we have Kiva's brother, Kanto, with us today, tomorrow their nephew; 5 month old Wheeto comes to stay for a fortnight, and on Good Friday one of Kiva's other brothers, Zack, joins us for the weekend. Lots of pictures will be taken and they will be published both here.

The only cloud on our horizon is Sam, our 9 year old black tom cat - last week he was diagnosed with cancer and rather than have him go through umpteen medical procedures we have decided to make his last days with us as comfortable and as pleasurable as possible - he seems to be thriving, maybe it's all the fresh ham and sardines he's being fed - if you can spare a moment to pray for him please do.

Just checking in

2010-03-10T12:03:00.002Z

Not a lot to report - Elliot's day has become quite routine. We get up, Elliot greets us with a wagging tail - he has breakfast, sometimes standing, sometimes whilst lying down - we go for walks, sometimes with Fat Sal, sometimes just with Kiva and Mylo, sometimes he pulls, more often than not he doesn't - he plays with Kiva (and Mylo sometimes), his tail wags - he has dinner, normally prone (probably tired after the playing, walking and tail wagging) - he settles down for the evening, sometimes with his head on my lap, sometimes whilst lying on my feet (note; toe protectors needed) - he goes to bed.

Suffice to say; all his well.

Sunday means breakfast, papers, crosswords, walk, pub and roast dinner

2010-03-08T14:23:00.008Z

Well - that's what I normally get up to - with guest dogs the routine is pretty similar except that the dogs don't get to read the papers or do the crosswords.

An overnight frost meant that the fields were nice and dry to walk across so that's what we did - the dogs got 2 good walks across the frost covered fields, the first seeing a quick visit to the pub - well, it is Sunday after all.

Sunday being Sunday a roast dinner was in order - roast chicken today with roast potatoes, parsnips, seasonal vegetables and broccoli cheese (think cauliflower cheese) - well that's what we had, the dogs had theirs with a little added kibble).

Food + walks + good company = after dinner nap.

To be honest I didn't expect to be able to get pictures like these, though Elliot and Mylo get on I couldn't believe it when I saw them snuggled up together.

Wondering what the dark spots on the carpet are? They're the remains of Elliot's slobber - all quite endearing really.

Lappy days.

"You Can Keep the Caribbean" says Elliot

2010-03-06T10:26:00.007Z

It's much better at Dogs to Stay.

The food's great - so great I take time to savour every mouthful ...

I eat at the same time as Kiva and Mylo - though they have to stand ...

The company is great - I like Kiva ....

In fact I like Kiva a lot ...

It's like a holiday here - really chilled ...

In fact it's a dog's life ...

Elliot seems to be enjoying himself, quickly becoming part of the pack. He enjoys his walks, normally 3 a day, one of which is with Fat Sal. He is eating well, still drinking loads, is quieter that the resident dogs and didn't make a sound this morning when the papers were delivered.

Any downsides? Well, his farts have a distinctive bouquet and our carpet is continually spattered with slobber - would we have him any other way? Not a chance. We kind of like having Elliot at Dogs to Stay.

Elliot Comes to Stay

2010-03-04T17:09:00.004Z

Dogs to Stay was recommended to Elliot's owners by Jill and Phil, Fat Sal's (one of our regular guests) owners and as a result nine year old Elliot arrived this morning and soon made himself at home.

Watching how new arrivals affect the dynamics of the pack is always an interesting spectacle and one would have thought that Elliot would have decided to assert himself as top dog. However it has been Kiva who has been calling the tune with Elliot more than happy to follow her round with his tail wagging.

He has just had his tea (and it did include his meds btw) after enjoying his second walk around the village. His first saw us meet up with Phil and Fat Sal - 2 labs and 2 lappies walking across the fields in glorious sunshine - lappy days indeed.

First impressions of Elliot - he slobbers, a lot - he wags his tail, a lot, he gets on with the rest of the pack - he doesn't bolt his food - he drinks, a lot (probably to replace the slobber) - he has a lovely disposition and character.

Watch this space for more updates.

We Do Dog Shows

2010-02-20T21:55:00.004Z

Up with the larks saw me walking the dogs at 8.00 whilst Lou did the weekly shop - and the benefits of early morning walks were soon evident with the sound of footsteps on the still frozen ground. Frozen ground = no mud, no mud = clean dogs - now that was an enjoyable walk :-)

Lunchtime saw us take the short trip to Ryton where many of our friends were attending a dog show - we hadn't entered but thought it would be nice to go and watch so with Kiva and Mylo left behind enjoying some peace and quiet Taavi and Jaaka were taken out for the afternoon.

It was nice seeing old friends, furry and human, again as well as making the acquaintance of some new lappies - Jaaka succeeded in doing what puppies do best - making friends and winning hearts - he, and taavi, were stars, impeccably well behaved and great ambassadors of the breed.

Back home it was a walk round the village with the pack of four before settling in for our last evening as a pack of 4 - tomorrow Jaaka and Taavi go home :-(

When Snow Becomes Slush

2010-02-19T18:19:00.016Z

We do like to make our guests feel at home and with Finnish Lapphunds happy with temperatures as low as -40 a little snow only serves to make them feel very much at home.

Snow might look nice however it all too sadly turns to slush and walking 4 lappies can be somewhat mucky - today was no exception and walking across the fields was probably not the best idea - the dogs might have loved it but I got cold, wet and muddy - hey ho, that's what it's all about isn't it :-)

Taavi and Jaaka will be leaving us on Sunday - they have been such easy dogs to care for that we will truly miss them - though I am sure that Kiva and Mylo will enjoy the break before our next guest arrives.

Each dog has its own little quirks and ways that have seen them endear themselves to us:

Taavi is such a delicate eater, chewing on each kibble before he has the next; if he were human I am sure that he would have a napkin clipped under his chin.
Jaaka has a wonderful habit, when we are out walking, of sitting down as soon as we stop - all very admirable and a credit to his training - a bit of a nuisance when he doesn't bother to check what he's sitting in - there are times when he has looked more like a panda than a lappy.
Taavi really doesn't like being the other side of a closed door - how do we know? Simples, the very faint whine that one can hear from behind the door whenever the dogs are banished from the lounge.
To say that Taavi is discrete when it comes to doing his business would be an understatement - how he manages to squeeze his rear end into some of his favourite bushes is beyond me.
Jaaka is unfazed by anything - he takes everything in his stride and every new experience is a new lesson to be learned.
The way that Taavi picks up a toy and carries it round in his mouth when I first walk into the kitchen in the morning - something that we have encouraged Mylo to do since a puppy - it's quite hard to bark when your mouth is stuffed with a toy (apparently).

Fortunately Taavi and Jaaka (who as I write is busy cleaning Kiva's ear) will be back with us in the summer - I don't know that we can promise them snow but I bet the walks will be drier.

Dog City

2010-02-18T10:46:00.006Z

Jaaka and Mylo are forced to endure the snow, actually it was their choice

With about 100 properties in the village and around 500 souls it would be a fair bet that one would meet other dogs whilst out and about, today was no exception. On our walk today we met a new golden Labrador brood bitch for the Guide Dogs for the Blind, 2 more golden Labrador brood bitches (Guide Dogs for the Blind once again), a Munsterlander, a Shih tzu, a Springer Spaniel x Border Collie, 2 Clumber Spaniels and a brown Lab, a GSD and a Golden Retriever, another chocolate Labrador, 2 Jack Russels and finally a heavily pregnant black Labrador brood bitch (yup, more Guide Dogs on the way). I make that 15 other dogs - all of which were Jaaka's new best friends - he's a tad fickle ;-) - later today we will be joined by 2 more Lappies who are coming to play - we do like to keep out guests amused.

The pictures below were taken yesterday evening after a hard day's running and playing (the dogs that is, not me).

Lappy days

Status Update

2010-02-17T10:54:00.007Z

All is well at Dogs to Stay apart from the snow that is falling but refusing to settle.

We have only used 1 roll of the kitchen roll provided - Jaaka has sussed out the benefits of the dog flap :-)
Mr Picky Eater, aka Taavi, now eats his meals (well most of them) - perhaps hand feeding him helped :-)
Our Dyson is still working - just, 4 lappies do tend to shed, especially when they are rough and tumbling.
Taavi and Jaaka now understand that walking nicely when on a lead has its advantages
Jaaka likes cats
Taavi doesn't like the fact that Jaaka likes cats
Taavi still doesn't like cats

A short video of the pack playing after their breakfast - as I write they are all sleeping - just as well that they tired themselves out playing because the weather isn't condusive to walking :-( hopefully it will be tomorrow when Smilla (Taavi's sister) and Susi come to play - yay, 6 lappies :-0

Tuesday - making a new friend.

2010-02-17T09:07:00.022Z

Worried about your dogs? Don't be.

Nothing to worry about - all is well, the dogs, and cats, are fine just a case of being a little busy yesterday evening and not having time to add the days blog.

I always seem to be lucky with the weather, well, when it comes to walking the dogs that is and even though the fields are still pretty wet underfoot there are still plenty of places to walk without the dogs getting too dirty - well, except for Jaaka that is. On my facebook page I recently posted; "contrary to popular belief cream dogs don't get any dirtier than any other colour - they just look dirtier" - Jaaka, bless him, managed to prove me wrong yesterday by, whenever we stopped walking, sitting down - all very admirable but when he chooses to sit down in; mud, horse poo, mud, puddles and clay it did make for a dirty little dog.

Post walk and somewhat grubby

Any way - our walk: We started off as four, Mylo and Jaaka on the brace, Kiva walking alongside Taavi - all is good. We encountered a neighbour en route, a local builder working on his house up the hill - I had seen him driving through the village but never walking - we soon discovered why he had left his pick up at home as walking alongside him was a puppy - well it would be rude to ignore him so we didn't. Holly, the German Short-haired Pointer was a gorgeous 10 week old puppy - full of confidence and totally unaffected by the attentions of the pack - and a great companion on our walk - Jaaka especially liked her as, for once, he had something smaller to play with.

OK Wolfie; you live here - what the hell was that?

Having wandered round the village with the pack of 5 as we chewed the fat - its always nice to get updates on all of the local news and gossip ;-) I continued with the pack of 4 for an extension to the walk - I must have lost all track of time as, upon arrival home, I realised that we had been out for the best part of 2 hours. Excluded from the lounge the dogs just had access to the run and lounge - they soon dried off and before long even Jaaka was back to his normal colour.

Me, my bone and my mate Taavi

Just in case you were wondering what happened to Kiva and why she isn't in any of the above photos she was fine but has decided to do her "I vant to be alone" bit and was sleeping in the kennel.

The dogs seemed to have enjoyed their day - they were certainly chilled out last evening;

Jaaka and Taavi on the kitchen floor
(notice the colour of the grout?)

I'm not too sure if Taavi is allowed on the furniture at home,
he's on holiday, so tough ;-)

Mylo, who normally hates crates makes the most of Jaaka's
(notice the colour of the grout - now clean)

Lappy days.

Probably the most boring video ever ....

2010-02-15T11:30:00.001Z

The Dogs to Stay house dogs and guests enjoy their Sunday lunch.

No Pictures - Just Facts

2010-02-14T18:32:00.009Z

WARNING NO PHOTOS

I love my dogs - Mylo will always be the most important canine in my life and Kiva will always be a close second, however today Taavi and Jaaka managed to push both of the house dogs into 3rd and 4th place.

Papers delivered at 9.00 - silence, cats through the cat flap at 9.10 (maybe the headlines were interesting) - up and dressed at 9.30 - walk across the fields and home by 11.15 (damn those church bells are loud - badly rang - and bloody loud) - 12.15 the discussion begins - do we go to the pub or not, and if so with which dogs.

Decision made and we take the short (125 7/8 yards) to the pub with the wonderful Jaaka and equally gorgeous Taavi - 2 hours later, after having won over numerous fans Lou convinces me to come home (Spurs 1-0 down btw) and swap Jaaka and Taavi over with Mylo and Kiva - it's a hard life; back to the pub ... whilst Lou prepares a Valentine's lunch with Taavi and Jaaka looking on.

So far we have managed to find new homes for 4 Lappy puppies - "I want one that look likes him (Mylo) - but is quiet like him (Taavi)" - "I want one like the pretty one (Kiva)" - "look at that the little cream one - how gorgeous - I want one like that". Taavi and Jaaka managed to win over a young (probably 2 year old) little girl who, prior to being introduced to lappies was scared of dogs ....

Spurs have just drawn 1-1 at Bolton, Villa (tee hee) only managed a 1-1 draw at Selhurst Park (smug chuckle) and England have, just, managed to defeat Italy ...

We've just had lunch (late) - the dogs enjoyed theirs too - I am slightly tiddled - life is good ... video to follow (not of me being piddled of course) ...

Living with a lappy - perfect; living with 4 - divine ....

PS - we have a lot of kitchen roll going begging .....

It's OK - we still have 4 ....

2010-02-13T20:06:00.012Z

Taavi and Jaaka adopt the compulsory Dogs to Stay pose

After yesterday's rather lengthy entry I'll try to keep things brief:

It's 8.00pm, the dogs are chilled having all enjoyed their supper, yes even Taavi (the worlds most fickle eater). Fortunately the day was dry meaning that we were able to walk the dogs and get them home without having to towel them dry (and clean) before having them join us in the lounge. The only downside of the walk was trying to prize Mylo's jaws apart to rescue the pigeon he had brought home with him - the pigeon was fine though Mylo was a tad annoyed with us.

As I write they are again chilled - though they have changed places - Jaaka has become one of the pack, he is most definitely not afraid of standing up for himself and he and Mylo have had a couple of rough and tumbles over his toys and Mylo's bones.

Taavi is slowly getting used to the fact that there are doors at Dogs to Stay, he doesn't like them closed and lets us know with a semi-audible whine, and Jaaka has decided that going through the dog-flap into the yard for a wee is actually more fun then peeing where, and when, ever he feels like it.

I really must learn to type quicker - the dogs are having a mad half hour, Jaaka making himself heard, Taavi "loving" Kiva, Kiva trying to ignore Taavi and chase Jaaka and Mylo ..... watching it all go on from the sofa.

Hopefully tonight will pass as peacefully as the last 2 - the dogs sleeping in the kitchen (well I assume that they're sleeping) and only stirring when the cats use the front door cat flap or when the paper is delivered. Tomorrow, if the weather is anything like to today's, may well see us take the pack to the local reservoir for a walk - after that it's me in front of the TV, Italy v England and Spurs v Bolton, before enjoying our Sunday (late) lunch - I'm sure that the dogs will enjoy theirs too.

Talking of enjoying things here are some more pictures from Dogs to Stay:

Kiva asleep in front of the fire - very un-lapphund like (unless your name is Kiva)

Mylo, Taavi and Jaaka watch the world, well the birds, go by

Dog tired (sorry about the dirty floor)

Nuff said really ;-)

Lappy days indeed

And then there were four

2010-02-12T11:18:00.012Z

My last post made mention of Oskar's visits - Oscar being the rather gorgeous cream male. I have always hankered after a cream Lapphund and if our personal circumstances had been different we might have able to take a breeder up on her offer to have Glenchess Jaakarhu (Polar Bear) come join our pack. As things transpired Jaakarhu (Jaaka for short) has gone to live with Taavi (a previous guest at Dogs to Stay) in Herts - I get the impression that they (Taavi and Jaaka) are rather pleased with the arrangement.

Jaaka's hufamily are off to somewhere warm for half term meaning that he and Taavi have come to stay so I get my cream male after all, well for a week or so anyway. On arrival, and after the first manic 5 minutes as the 4 dogs reacquainted themselves with each other, we took them for a walk across the fields - nice walk, nice scenery, nice conversation, well behaved dogs - bloody muddy underfoot :-(

I have a feeling that I will be doing quite a bit of dog and floor cleaning over the next week.

At 4 months Jaaka is still a puppy but I have yet to see a more confident little dog - he quickly made himself at home finding the toy box and sussing out how the dog flap worked, something that a couple of our older and regular visitors have yet to achieve ;-)

In the afternoon we took the 4 dogs into town - Louise's hairdresser is a bit of a Mylo fan (the girl has taste) but, having seen a photograph of Jaaka and Taavi was also keen to see dogs of the other colourways - you know what hairdressers and hair colourants are like - so off we went, 4 dogs in a Jeep.

Walking through any town centre with a Lapphund is always an experience, with 2 even more so, but with 4, now that was something memorable - we lost count of the number of times people said "all you need now is a sled" and "look at those Huskies" - memo to those that are NOT in the know "They're not Huskies - they're Finnish Lapphunds". Entering the hairdressers was an experience too - 4 happy lappies and loads of hands to stroke them.

Once home it was time to get the dogs fed and settled for the evening. I think that what follows says it all:

Taavi and Kiva have become an item

OK half pint - the starfish is mine

Lappy Days indeed

Whoops

2010-02-12T11:09:00.003Z

Even though we haven't been that busy I did manage to forget making mention of a couple of visits by Oskar.

Oskar is Mylo's 1/2 brother (same mum) and is, as you can see a gorgeous cream - he's a wonderful dog, a tad noisy at times, as is Mylo (I blame their mum) but a joy to have as a guest.

Kukko's back

2010-01-09T12:45:00.006Z

The snow fell - the village was cut off - Britain ground to a standstill but we still managed to collect Kukko who is with us for the weekend whilst Jill (Kukko's owner) celebrates her daughter's wedding in London.

As lovable as always Kukko is a pleasure to entertain as these videos will hopefully show.

A quick update

2010-01-09T12:39:00.002Z

Christmas is behind us - a Christmas made more special by having Magic come and stay with us for the festive period. Regular readers will know that Magic has become a familiar face at Dogs to Stay and each time that she spends some time with us she seems to become even more loving and lovable. Her last visit was no exception and she quickly settled in to the routine - a routine made better, for us, through regular trips to the village pub which, since changing hands, has become a better and more welcoming asset to our community.

Christmas was rather hectic and we made sure that Magic enjoyed all of it - we even had an extra visitor for her to play with when Fat Sal joined us for a night.

Rosie's visit

2009-12-11T10:34:00.004Z

Rosie is no stranger to us as she (along with her hupeeps) is a regular on our monthly walks however this is the first time that she has been a guest at Dogs to Stay.

Rosie is Mylo's half sister - they have the same dad - and is, apparently, a black tri - I think she is a sable though as her coat is very different to that of Kivas - no matter, she's lovely.

We had been forewarned that rosie doesn't do cats - of course we ignored that completely; maybe she doesn't do cats because she doesn't spend enough time with them. Rosie's first night was a little disturbed - we had foolishly left the door to the hall open (the dog gate was in place) and she was upset by our 2 cats coming and going through the night - we know she was upset because she told us - and she does have a nice bark ;-) However Last night she was as quiet as a mouse, maybe because she had decided that cats were actually OK to be around.

We had also been forewarned that she doesn't like to eat around other dogs - we ignored that too

We had also been advised to be carefull with Rosie off-lead as she has a tendency to stray - yup, I ignored that too, well yesterday I did when I let the 3 of them run free in a neighbour's 10 acre garden - 3 lappies, 2 clumber spaniels and the worlds most energetic terrier - a sight to behold.

Lappy days indeed

Let's Make That Four .....

2009-10-29T21:17:00.002Z

Apart from him wandering around the house acting as though his throat has been cut all has been well with Kanto - boy does that Lappy like his food - maybe it's because he is spending so much time in the kitchen and watching me cook ;-)

Today saw the arrival of Magic who is with us again for a few days - as I write she is asleep at my feet and Kanto is sitting next to me on the sofa - across the room Mylo is at Louise's feet - Kiva on the sofa - all is good.

If the weather is fine tomorrow we will be setting off across the fields for a walk - if it's raining we will be setting off across the fields for a walk - nothing prevents our guests enjoying themselves at Dogs to Stay.

Lappy days

PS

I have noticed an ever increasing of business trading under the name of Dogs to Stay - who was it that said "imitation is the sincerest form of flattery"?

Family fun

2009-10-26T18:23:00.002Z

Kanto is back - Neil and Milly, if you're reading this he's fine but you must be mad, you're on holiday so enjoy it - and Obi has now gone home so we are still 3 but for a few hours we were actually 4 and walking 4 is always fun ;-)

For those that don't know Kanto is Kiva's brother - sadly sometimes Kanto needs reminding that trying to hump one's sister is NOT good form - fortunately Mylo seems to be more than able to keep him in check.

Updates and picturesof Kanto's stay to follow soon.

Obi the wise one returns

2009-10-25T12:30:00.004Z

But only for a few days :-(

We do like Obi - and by we I mean Louise and I, Kiva and Mylo - in fact Obi is a bit of a favourite of ours. He has a wonderful nature, some endearing traits and is as one of the most laid back Lappies we have met.

He arrived yesterday (Saturday) morning and knew where he was the second he jumped out of the car - Kiva had to go through her normal "OK - this is our house and I am the queen - so behave" routine but once she had asserted her authority all was calm.

We enjoyed 3 walks during the day, the first in drizzle, the second in pouring rain and the 3rd in glorious sunshine - one has to love the British weather.

All was quiet during the evening, the dogs pretty chilled, as it was during the night. The clocks going back isn't something that dogs understand so it was up as normal, breakfast and a walk and all by 9.30 - that's the new 9.30.

Rather than taking uploading of photos I thought that this video clip captures life at Dogs to Stay quite well; Mylo (who was once described as looking like a coffee table) on his new perch whilst Kiva and Obi play tug with Kiva's reindeer.

Obi is with us until Monday morning - his place is being taken by Kanto and on Thursday Magic returns .... lappy days indeed.

Lappy Families

2009-10-05T10:22:00.010+01:00

We had a bit of an house full this weekend with a total of 4 dogs visiting us: Our first arrival was Kiva's brother Kanto, a regular guest at Dogs to Stay and a guarantee that Kiva would have fun.

Next to join us was one of Mylo's 1/2 brothers, the rather gorgeous Oskar who was staying the day and night with his humum, Wendy.

Though the sky was blue and the sun shining Saturday was, to put it mildly, somewhat blustery however this didn't deter us for venturing out with the pack. What had been intended to be an hour's walk across the fields ended up being closer to 2 hours as someone (I hang my head in shame) managed to get us lost resulting in a detour around the local golf course - not that much of an issue until Oskar decided to run off and introduce himself to 3 Japanese golfers.

I'm not sure who was the most tired after the walk though it was the dogs who managed to enjoy an afternoon's nap - Wendy denied dozing off - though we know different.

As well as the pictures posted here a lot more can be seen here; http://dogstostay.shutterfly.com/

Sunday began early - Oskar does like to start the day with a walk, so he, along with the rest of the pack went out at 7.30 to enjoy a crisp morning and a walk across the fields - no golf course this time though they each managed to go off on their individual walkabouts - Lappies really aren't that bothered about recall :-(

Back home and it was time for breakfast - bacon sandwiches for us and normal doggy type stuff for the Lappies. Kanto was collected at about 10.30 in exchange for a nice Rioja - Oskar left not long afterwards leaving us an hour or so before our next guests were due.

Magic and Norppa were to be with us for the afternoon and evening whilst their owners, Andrie and Anne-Marie attended a wedding conveniently close to us. Magic had stayed with us before in February and we knew that she, Mylo and Kiva would get on perfectly - it was Norppa and how our 2 would interact with him that was the issue. Mylo and Norppa, though related, had had a couple of spats in the past - well who could blame them as they wanted to be top dog - though both of these had been little more than handbags.

The decision was made that upon their arrival we would walk all of the dogs around the village so as to get them used to each other and also to be able to bring them all into the garden at the same time. The walk in the autumn afternoon sunshine was uneventful - next; let's see how they all get on in our garden ......

Unfortunately things did not go according to plan - Kiva seemed to be able to sense the tension between Mylo and Norppa and it was she and Norppa who had a minor altercation. Andrie made the decision to bring Norppa's crate into the kitchen - Norppa would have somewhere he felt comfortable and the rest of the dogs could get on with the day, in fact Norppa probably spent little time there - it was only used whilst we had Sunday lunch. Norppa and Magic spent most of the day in the garden whilst Kiva and Mylo, probably still tired after their walks earlier in the day and yesterday slept in the lounge - as a result there were no further problems between any of the dogs. Magic managed to find every tennis ball we owned and would have been quite happy for me to have spent the whole day throwing them for her - memo to Magic; "You're a Lapphund NOT a Labrador - Lappies don't do fetch".

I walked Magic and Norppa around the village later in the afternoon - both of them seeming to enjoy the experience before returning home where they were all treated to a Dogs to Stay Sunday lunch - roast turkey and all the trimmings was enjoyed by them all - Magic finishing hers in the time it took Norppa to chew a carrot.

All change after eating saw Magic and Norppa join us in the lounge with Kiva and Mylo out in the garden - and this is how Andrie and Anne-Marie found them on their return. Hopefully the dogs had enjoyed their stay - I know that Norppa enjoyed the sofa :-)

Happy Lappies

2009-09-18T09:02:00.002+01:00

Sally, our guest Labrador, left us on Tuesday afternoon when she was collected by her hudad. I think she was pleased to see him (though not as pleased as he was to see her) - certainly her tail seemed to wag more vigorously than normal (if that were possible).

As a result we are now just 3, Kiva and Mylo along with guest dog Kukko - certainly walks are a lot easier; 3 dogs are considerably easier to manage than 4, especially when one of the 4 was a 35kg cat chasing one.

It's interesting to note how the dynamics between the dogs has changed. Kiva and Kukko seem to be playing with eachother even more - the times when Mylo and Kukko play are a joy to watch, top dog is not an issue during these moments of fun.

With Sally now gone we have been able to identify which dog it has been that has been reminding us that it's 7.00 and time to get up; just to remind you - Kiva and Mylo NEVER make a noise until we have shown ourselves ;-).

On Thursday I took the 3 dogs out for the day to visit a Lapphund breeder friend - an opportunity for the dogs to make new friends and enjoy the countryside - Kukko is SUCH a good traveller - he even jumps into the back of the Jeep - something I wish that Kiva and Mylo might have learnt from.

Kukko seems to be enjoying his new diet - he may well have lost a little weight - though he is still a little bugger when it comes to wanting to see what food might have been left on the kitchen work surfaces :-).

The dogs are just about to enjoy (I hope) their morning constitutional - I hope to be able to add some more pictures later on today.

A Day at Dogs to Stay

2009-09-15T09:27:00.006+01:00

Today is Sally's last day with us and to mark the occasion she managed to wake us at 6.45 am by managing to turn the TV on with a single wag of her tail - as a result our day started a little earlier than usual, no bad thing really as it meant more time to enjoy the company of the pack of 4. The dynamics between them has been quite amazing to watch - they are all such different characters yet, at the same time so similar - all of them so easily pleased.

As I write Sally is asleep under my desk, Kukko is asleep behind my chair, Mylo lying in the chair to my right (his favourite haunt whilst I am at my desk) and Kiva is, hang on, was to my left - she is now outside in the garden.

Sally does love to play fetch - I had hoped that her enthusiasm for fetching and retrieving a ball might rub off on the Lappies (to them retrieving a ball more than once is a no no) - sadly this was not to be the case especially after Kukko managed to destroy Sally's favourite ball. The picture above shows the 2 of them sharing its remains - Sally looks quite distraught.

On Saturday we heard from Jill, Kukko's owner, and I am sure that she wont object to me posting the some content from her email:

"Thanks so much for all the lovely photos. Came home yesterday and the house is eerily quiet. Frodo ecstatic!! I’ve been very ill indeed with an infection. Having Becky coming in to show me the blog has been fantastic. I don’t know what I’d have done without you and your dogs to look after Kukko."

Jill - it is a pleasure, he is a lovely boy and a joy to have as part of the pack - he will be missed when he goes back home to you.

I posted this one of Kiva and Mylo because I can - they are wonderful in the way that they accept other dogs into their home, accepting the guests as part of the pack at Dogs to Stay without question.

Lappy days indeed.

It's Good To Share

2009-09-12T15:27:00.000+01:00

Kukko, Kiva and Mylo

2009-09-12T14:28:00.002+01:00

Sally Does Like to Play With Balls

2009-09-12T14:13:00.002+01:00

Happy Saturday

2009-09-12T12:42:00.018+01:00

Phil - I hope your gig goes well tonight but don't overdo the Retsina.

Jill - We all hope you are feeling much better and on the road to a full recovery.

This is the first chance I have had to sit down in front of my PC and be able to update the blog - well it was a beautiful day yesterday so I decided to enjoy the weather and the garden with the dogs. Lou took a few pictures of them yesterday - I hope that seeing these shows just how chilled and happy they are here.

Kukko helps Louise update the blog

and licks her hand to say thank you

Sally and Kukko share the sofa Mylo just chills

Earlier in the evening the dogs enjoyed the company of Lucky, one of our cats - she didn't seem to mind.

Kiva, meanwhile, got closer to Sally

Sally Says Hello

2009-09-10T11:35:00.004+01:00

In between sleeping that is .... zzzzzzzz

She has just come back from a walk across the fields and is snoring at my feet whilst I write. How's your weather? The sky here is cloudless and the sun is shining - probably a bit like Corfu.

Sally is fine and has settled in superbly - she even gets on with the cats.

We hope you are enjoying the Greek isles, not drinking too much and rehearsing busily ready for Saturday.

Lappy days