A new Cushion for Pointies!

[SpaghettiTwirlerAndProud]

Pointy hounds include-
Greyhounds (Grunds)
Whippets (Whippys)
Lurchers
Italian Greyhounds (Iggys)
Salukis
Afghans
And any others I have forgotten. If you are a new pointy hound owner, an old and experienced owner or looking into getting one of these fabulous creatures, come and have a seat (that's not taken up with a hound).

Share advice, stories and shopping tips!

I didn?t really want you,
I wasn?t really sure,
And I?ll admit I had my doubts,
When you first came through that door.

Not small, or cute, or fluffy,
With big, soft puppy eyes,
But tall, and thin, and bony,
With bald, pink, bulging thighs.

You weren?t the kind I had in mind,
Not in any way,
?Perhaps it would be better if I took you back today,
Before we know each other,
It really won?t be kind,
To keep you here for one more day,
And then to change my mind.?

But against my better judgement, I decided you could stay,
And quickly I discovered you were kind in every way,
Your gentleness and patience, they really stole the show,
?Why these dogs are wonderful, I must let others know!?

For you?re my gentle giant,
Who just needed the chance,
To show us all what you could be,
To wipe away that history,
And dispel our preconceptions, which put us all to shame,
And so we come to know and love,
What lies beneath that frame.

And now I?ve come to understand,
What I missed right at the start,
That greyhounds need that great deep chest,
To house their great big hearts!
:)

I think you have to meet the dog first; we kept our chap's kennel (not racing) name as he seemed to know it and it suited him in a leggy sort of way. My neighbour has a Staffie called Trojan which suits him well.

I once knew a cat called The Earl of Suave.

I just checked Sprockets dad on GD, he now has 4323 offspring

The Earl of Suave? Poor cat :o

. I think I'll just stick to taking nice pictures of the insides of people.

Nearly ended up with a rescue whippety girl today, she was a stray taken in for 7 days by the county . Madly enough ended up cross phoning with another couple in the village who have three whippets and they are on the way to go and get her now . Hopefully I can be a special auntie.

Love The Earl of Suave btw, that's quite a name to live up too!

I totally heart the Earl of Suave! It's such an appropriately catty name.

Thank you all for the coo-ing over our new Iggy (name still undecided but we are veering towards Juno). One of the many reasons we chose to get an IG was because of this clip (warning: may cause IG and cat related broodiness):

Thanks also for the toy suggestions. I have never thought of myself as crafty but think I could manage a few strips of fleece and a tea-towel! Thank you also to whoever mentioned the Silver Peacock website, there are some stunning collars on there. I never realised that adopting an Iggy would result in so many shopping activities and am very happy about this!

The breeder contacted us today and let us know that our little munchkin has begun to walk around on short wobbly legs, and that she is thoroughly excited by and thriving on the ReadyBrek that the breeder is using as a milk supplement. I am still not sure if she is really an IG - in the photos she looks more like a mole to me!

The breeder has promised us some more photos at regular intervals but in the meantime I can show you her Iggy mum and dad who are both family pets.

Well our Marshes have been fenced off now for the Radio 1 Hackney event thingy. My dog walker friends have found a 'gap' in the fence (this is Hackney after all ) and there appears to be a huge enclosed area with nothing in it yet.

Goooo Billy!!!!! Maybe he'll bump into Rhianna. Or JayZ.

Did they find a gap Betsy or did they 'find' a gap? :o

Very annoyed with Sprocket last night, he pee'd up the hoover I wouldn't be quite so annoyed only the hoover has loads of little ridges in it and it took bloody aaaaaaaaaages to dab out all the drops of pee from them all.

Well, I've had a very uneventful birthday, DP took me out for lunch, I then had 3 visitors, MIL, DPs auntie, and my mum. Everyone else is coming tomorrow for DD's birthday.

Oh, pee in the gaps is annoying isn't it.

It was a bit of both I think. It was a small gap that had been... enlarged? I don't think we were meant to be there but when you've a greyhound and a securely enclosed space the size of about 5 football pitches that contains a bunch of trees and stuff you'll never say no. And as we were there at a disgustingly early hour of the morning it seemed everyone was still asleep in their tents.

Same again tomorrow until the gap gets closed I think!

Happy birthday Cunny. Is today the day you "officially" get engaged?

And HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Thanks :)

Pee in the gap was very annoying. Tbh I think it was our fault he did it, he came downstairs and just wandered around aimlessly, and he normally does that when he wants to go outside, but neither DP or I twigged what he was doing.

Well we officially got engaged last saturday, think the only people who don't know yet are my dad and grandma. For that reason I can't go putting pics of the ring up on FB yet. So we are official, I've even got a fiancèe birthday card to prove it :o it's just not hugely public news yet.

Am liking the "find the gap" approach in Hackney Sounds too good to ignore.

Happy Birthday Cunny! Naughty Sprocket - that will be a bugger to clean.

It was a bugger to clean, I used a lot of cotton buds!

How are you doing now Scuttle?

Hi Magrat, thank you for asking. We've just had a lovely friend to stay for the weekend - a long planned arrangement, and that helped a lot. The saddest thing is how much the other two dogs miss her - I've been really surprised, and it's heartbreaking sometimes to see Andy sniffing her bed. They've both been noticeably a lot more clingy and subdued, though things are now improving. I also found it hard when DH was away during the week. It was v odd being on our walk without her, and also she used to sleep in our bedroom (and quite often on our bed if it was chilly) - I really missed her being there. I had a big lump in my throat earlier today reading an interview with Brian Sewell in the Telegraph magazine - he was saying he will know he's got to heaven when he wakes up and sees all 17 of his dogs (past and present) - it was v obvious that he is a dog person.

On the positive side, I feel very happy about the time we spent with her - I'm glad we made the choices we did about changing our lifestyle to give us more time with the dogs - and this has been a big driver in my decision to set up the business. It's very comforting to look back on a relationship and to feel no regrets about how we spent our time together. I think this is probably a legacy of my having cancer - I am quite ruthless in that respect in making time for people and dogs who are important and being very clear about my priorities being at the top of my list ie. spending time with those I love. Nothing else really matters, it's just details...

You had cancer wow. It is the type of stuff that really makes one evaluate what is important or not (dad has potential for cancer in next 5 years and ds2 has the same condition). Also about the reaction of the other dogs. My dog trainer was talking recently about how his dog missed their other dog when she passed and said he was actually depressed.

These dogs make such an impact on us. When we visited our friends recently I was reminded of this when I saw the huge portrait of his boxer who died over 10 years ago. The ILs have a picture of their old dog over the fireplace in the front room... She's gone but not forgotten and the boys will be feeling the same way.

I love hearing people's cancer journeys. My dad died when I was 13 from brain cancer and my mum nearly died about 10 years ago from AML and while I'd never wish to go through it all again we met some amazing people with my mum who I will never forget. Every moment of life with her now is a bonus; she changed a lot after the illness and is ruthless in sifting out stuff and people she doesn't want/like/need and allowing herself to live pleasurably and in the moment. She's still an old boot a lot of the time but that's just entertainment now instead of an annoyance!

I guess that this time of Boola's passing is a time of reflection then... and I'm glad you like what you see. She's still giving to you, even now.

And YY that's Hackney all over. We're very proud and protective of our green spaces!

Magrat, so worrying for you and your DS - hugs. xx

Yes, Betsy, sounds like me and your mum have adopted a similar stance. Life really is too short to be fannying about with things or people. Hasten to add this does not mean being rude or dismissive just prioritising things which are important.

Betsy you are right about impact - I still think about and miss family dogs who died many years ago. Fortunately, Boola is still very much with us - he and DH and Andy have just gone out for a short stroll, before we set off for DH's 10K race. Their Fathers Day gift for DH was a success (Game of Thrones mug) and Andy very stylishly helped open it (translate this as rip paper, chew bubblewrap and box and leave bed looking like a riot had taken place).

Were the green spaces why you settled in Hackney? One of the things I find fascinating about London is this sense of it being a collection of villages rather than a city IYSWIM.

Sorry for the mix up Scuttle I am a douchebag.

One of the reasons, yes. And they're as wild as any green space gets in London, which I like. There's also something about living facing the city, and seeing lots of the famous skyline to the front of your house and a big old expanse of nothing to the back that feels quite special.

It's like a village where we live; there's a good network of friends old and new and acquaintances. The kids play out up and down the pavement and people have time to talk. Although that's mainly because no one's got a job! It's rough, don't get me wrong, and some grim stuff happens around here but people nearly always pull together and either sort it or fix it. I'm itching for a bigger garden though so I don't know how long we'll be here. DH loves it though and it's bang in the middle of his music industry life so it might be a while.

I hope the 10k went well and you are all pampering the athlete now!

Hello all

Not much to say, just wanted to let you know I am avidly reading and enjoying your posts, just can't elequently say what I want to say...

Sending hugs to Scuttle and Margrat.

Went to the kennels to cuddle the puppies yesterday. Gosh they are sooo cute...
We also saw the 9 month old greyhound J was trying to 'sell' to us. We liked her but she did not make our hearts leap. That was achieved by a hound no one knows anything about... She is not on the website and does not have any form of write up on the facebook page either... Wonder what is going on there. J no doubt knows about her but she seems to have decided not to answere any of my messages. (won't take it personally )
As we walked past her run to get to the pups she came bounding over and I was immediately taken by her beautiful eyes and her white 'blaze'. Later on dh walked past her run and she came over and started 'chattering' at him through the wire bars. I was not there at the time but when we were in the car much later on he mentioned how taken he was with her....
Do you think the dogs choose us?

Ohh I'm not really sure what to say to any of that, I'm a bit crap with sensitive stuff :(
My cousin got cancer when she was 6, a lump on her kidney, they found out it had spread to her lungs, and they got rid of it, then a year later it was back again. They got rid of it again and she totally recovered, she's about 14-15 now, and unfortunately is being bullied horribly by some twats she goes to school with, they hacked her FB account and write disgusting statuses. It makes me really mad that she went through so much shit when was younger and now she has this.

Had a lovely day today, DP the sneaky git arranged a surprise party for me and poppy, all my family and his family! It was pretty damn hectic.

Lock yes I think they can choose us! Exciting!

Sorry to hear about your cousin Cunny. I hope the school and families are on to the horrible little toerags.

So yesterday you were saying you were having a quiet old birthday... how lovely to have a surprise!

And hugs to Magrat

I think my smiley face may have been a bit misplaced in light of the sensitive / sad posts...
So sorry to hear about your cousin Cunny And I hope karma bites the bullies in the bum!

The girl next door in our old house died of leukaemia when she was nine. We used to spend a lot of time with her, taking her out when she was ill, visiting in hospital. Her mum and I have sort of drifted apart now, a real shame.
And of course I lost dad very suddenly and at a young age.

But that is nothing compared to what others go though...

I am desperate to hear back from J about this greyhound girlie... All I know is that she is an ex racer, aged anywhere between 3 and 5. Nothing else...

There was a great online bullying guide we used in my last job at a disability charity. Will ask em tomorrow for the URL.

Have popped the Danson Park charity dog show on the calender for July 8th, after taking Scuttle's advice. Twill be a new experience for myself, dog and sprog - am looking forward to it very much.