Jasper's diary

[Josie]

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A couple of days ago, at the end of our walk, I bumped into an older woman with her very arthritic lab. She was in a bit of a state, as she'd lost her car keys and didn't have her phone on her. She'd already done an extra lap of the woods retracing her steps and the poor lab was really struggling - she's at the stage where you really wonder if it's a kindness to keep her going at all

The woman asked if I could phone her grandson, but I can't get any signal in the woods, so I took his number, and said I'd go straight home and phone him from there - also that on my way back to the car I'd keep an eye out for her keys. I got to where our cars were parked, had a look round her car, had a look in the ignition - and wasn't at all surprised to see her keys dangling there So I nipped back into the woods and told her - she was so happy

Yesterday as I was going to go onto Upton Heath, there was a group of people with about 6-8 dogs coming off the heath. Gateways can be a bit of a trigger for J so I pulled him off to the side of the path, but they let their dogs through the gate off lead, and a bouncy young standard poodle came over to him. Gateway - bouncy young big male dog - J on a tight lead - so of course J snarked at him.

One of the women came over to us as she recognised us, saying she hadn't seen us for ages (I didn't remember her at all). She started making a fuss of J, while all the dogs were milling round him, and I warned her that he wasn't happy - I could feel the vibrations of growl coming down the lead. But of course she ignored me, and then he snarked at her. Being a typical Englishperson I apologised, but then she launched into telling me about how it was fine, because he was muzzled, and so he couldn't hurt anyone, and I was a responsible owner and doing the right thing, yada, yada, yada...

I should have told her that she was very much doing the wrong thing by allowing a horde of dogs to mill around a dog who is muzzled and on lead and has been led to the side of the path, and then going and trying to pet him. STUPID person But of course I'm English, so I didn't

Some people are just so clueless!

Good that you found that ladies keys though!

 

[Caro Perry]

That's the sort of thing I'd do - leave my keys in the car! I feel your pain though about the dogs milling around. We're finally starting to get somewhere with Harri and his excessive friendliness but it really doesn't help when we meet people like her.

 

[Josie]

I left my car keys in the door of my car (I’ve broken the sensor so can’t do it with the bleeper thingy) the other day then got in my car without them.

I was searching for ages!! Really panicking

 

[JudyN]

I once locked myself out the house and when I finally got back in discovered I could have got in easily as I'd left the back door wide open....

 

[Josie]

I once locked myself out the house and when I finally got back in discovered I could have got in easily as I'd left the back door wide open....

 

[Flobo]

That whole thing drives me mad, when you have a dog on the lead, muzzled or not, and you are obviously standing to one side or trying to avoid a dog or group coming towards you, that the humans just disregard all those signs and come over or allow their dogs to approach anyway! I am sure its not rocket science or is it? I just don't get it..

 

[Josie]

That whole thing drives me mad, when you have a dog on the lead, muzzled or not, and you are obviously standing to one side or trying to avoid a dog or group coming towards you, that the humans just disregard all those signs and come over or allow their dogs to approach anyway! I am sure its not rocket science or is it? I just don't get it..

I’m so shocked at how many owners I encounter that cannot read the signals. Most times I say ‘just a warning, this dog isn’t friendly’ and they reply ‘Oh it’s ok, mine is!’

 

[JudyN]

Or 'It's OK, my dog needs a good telling-off now and then'

 

[JudyN]

I met three women I know in the park yesterday - two with their respective lurchers, and one who doesn't have a dog but still brings treats. Jasper made an absolute pest of himself, mugging, whining, headbutting, pawing the whole time to beg - almost demand - treats off them. And they basically drip-fed him treats the whole time. If one let up, one of the other two would start.

I really could not be bothered apologising, dragging Jasper away, and trying to persuade them not to keep posting treats into his mouth. Given his size & metabolism the treats don't do him any harm, and he only pesters people he knows it will work on. I've told them that if they insist on rewarding his 'bad' behaviour he will continue doing it but they still do it. If one day he knocks one of them over with his exuberance they will only have themselves to blame.

 

[JudyN]

What sort of ridiculous dog, when walking past a friend's garden and seeing her in the garden, steps over her 2-foot wall with his front end to say hello - and then can't work out how to extricate himself?

Jasper, of course Having got his front end in the garden, he tried to step over with his back legs but they just floundered, his paws not quite reaching the top of the wall to gain purchase. He's not that good in reverse gear at the best of time, and particularly so when he'd have to lift his front paws so high again. I did suggest he jumped, but he didn't seem to know how to jump his back legs over independently of his front legs. And I know how he'd react if I attempted to lift his rear end over...

Eventually he managed to scramble backwards over the wall but I can't think of many more pathetic ways for a big athletic dog to get himself stuck

 

[JudyN]

Sunset over the (reclaimed) landfill... I was quite pleased with these photos seeing as the low sun meant I couldn't see what I was taking!

Walking Jasper has been a bit of a struggle recently - thanks to (probable) bursitis I've been hobbling since before Christmas. I've been referred to a physio but I'm not holding my breath. I've been trying to rest it as much as possible but not walking J is not an option! Dogs are meant to empathise with their humans and comfort them, not say 'Come ON Mum!', 'I wanna walk all round the landfill,' and 'I don't WANT to go home yet'

Still, today was better than yesterday. Yesterday, my apple turned out to have something rotten, blue and furry inside, which I didn't notice till I had the disgusting taste in my mouth. Then the geriatric cat had a litter tray malfunction, kicked poo all over the bathroom, even up the walls, and walked it everywhere in the airing cupboard. It's not easy bathing a cat and cleaning up poo in a confined space when you can't kneel! And just when I thought I could relax, DS1 offered me a sweet which turned out to be one of those sour toxic waste disgusting ones that teenagers pretend to like and offer them to their parents and younger, gullible, siblings. You'd think he'd grown out of that at 28...

 

[Josie]

Oh no @JudyN - why do things like that always happen all at once!?

I hope physio can help you out.

 

[Mad Murphy]

@JudyN If it is bursitis is there any chance you could try the shockwave therapy like I had for my heel spur? Its supposed to work really well in such cases.
Hip Pain — Shockwave Therapy

 

[JudyN]

Thanks, @Mad Murphy - when I get it diagnosed for definite I'll ask about that. I would go to a private physio to get seen sooner, but I don't want to pay to be told to keep up with the rest, ice, etc. and come back in 6 weeks if it's not better...

 

[arealhuman]

Oh wow, hope you get it sorted @JudyN

 

[JudyN]

Knock-on effects of bursitis... When standing up awkwardly in the confined space of the walk-in airing cupboard (I say 'walk-in' - it's under the eaves and 5' at the tallest point, but conveniently I'm 5' at my tallest point too), I twisted the middle toe on the foot on my good leg under and heard a loud click It didn't hurt anything like as much as I expected, but it went a very impressive purple colour!

And I think I've developed chilblains in my toes. Never had them before, but the symptoms seem to fit, and I guess they were brought on because I'm walking in the cold so much more slowly than I normally would.

Still, at least I can still limp round for a couple of hours with J. Whenever I tell fellow dog walkers about my afflictions they usually reel theirs off and leave me thinking that I'm quite fortunate really!

 

[arealhuman]

 

[JudyN]

This is a rare sight in Dorset - SNOW!!!

Jasper did some lovely playbows but unfortunately didn't hold them long enough for me to catch.

I'm so glad the paths aren't icy this morning - with my gammy knee, walking a large dog used to going rather faster than I can walk at present is a bit risky But I do now have a diagnosis - patellar tendonitis - and some exercises so hopfully I'll be firing on all cylinders again soon

 

[Mad Murphy]

Ouch, but at least you know know whats wrong which is half the battle. Have they suggested taping? It can give extra support and help speed the healing.


Jasper looks really lovely in the snow BTW...

 

[JudyN]

No, he didn't suggest that, and when I tried a support bandage and a knee brace a while back they didn't feel comfortable - they just put pressure on the tender bits. The exercises should strengthen my quads which should hopefully help support the knee. Which reminds me, I need to get on with them... Two different exercises, 100 repetitions of each a day, repeated for both legs. I shall end up with lovely toned quads!