Muggy

Oh, all day it's been so muggy! I've got this lovely great fur coat and it's just too much; I wish we were at the seaside! I'd be in like a shot.

Actually, I say that but I'm not too sure about the sea as it runs back at you when you're trying to only (ONLY) get your paws wet (which is a big concern when you know that you rolled in some decent fox doot and don't want to wash it off). Plus, it tastes odd.

I became unwell once from drinking too much sea water - a warning to all you dogs out there who're thinking about trying to drink the sea. Poorly tummy and a trip to the Scottish Vet.

Note: not all vets are Scottish

Despite my name on this blog, I'm not a big fan of thunder and tend to become distracted and nervy when it's in the air. The fact that I am still able to blog means that there is no break imminent in this muggy weather. If thunder were in the air, well, let's just say that I'd be sitting in the bath tub because it's safe in there...

Cricket

I've been listening to the cricket...Not so good, really.
You'd think I'd have something better to do with my time but today's been so hot that I just flaked in front of the radio and let the news wash over me. Must be tough on cricketers and I can see how they'd lose focus in the heat. I must talk to ST about going out earlier for our walk (it's his as much as mine, although I am in charge once we're in the park). I feel like I could target more squirrels if it weren't for feeling so sluggish in the warmth.
On the up side, I have a bonio buried in the garden and later on I'll dig it up and eat it in the evening's cool. Yes.

Good owners

FP did notice and my food is coming. Tops! Plus, I had some really good Kong Wubba-ing with ST last evening - they are Good Owners.
I have heard on the grapevine (although grapes are bad for dogs) that there will be a meeting soon of all neighbourhood dogs re the squirrels. There's a leggy Dalmatian organising the whole thing and I'm to keep up my surveillance activities and bring what I have to report to the meeting. It's good to know that we're all working together on this. The neighbours have apparently been driven from their home and I'd like to think we will have forced the squirrels out by the time they return.

Running low!

I hope FP's noticed that I have only 6 days food supply left in the cupboard

A few tips

Finally my contact showed up and I was able to come indoors and get some kip.

Some of you might need some tips for helping in the fight against squirrels living in roof spaces:

• Always know who's behind you by checking in a casual, non-obvious manner (see photo of me looking nonchalant)


• Fit listening devices in flowers (see photo of 'daisies')


• Try to look like you are not doing anything suspicious by just slightly closing your eyes (see photo of me in zen-like trance on a step - wasn't I just meant to be there doing that?)


• Work out where all the best hiding places are in your garden, then pee on them to make them yours (no photo)

Cheers.

Been standing here for ages

I'm whispering because right now I'm standing at the back fence waiting for a contact to meet me with info about the squirrels who're living in the roof space of a house down the road.
Obviously it's difficult for me to give too many details as the squirrels have their own intelligence network and were they to rumble my operation...Well, all I'm saying is that things could get serious.
What I can tell you is that my contact is not (NOT) a cat, although there has been a lot of cat activity in the neighbourhood recently. I believe the cats are as nervous about the squirrels as we dogs and there may be occasion in the not too distant future when we put aside our traditional differences for a time and work together in the common cause of ridding roof spaces of squirrels forever.
Forgive me; I often become prone to emotional outbursts when I've been standing at the back fence for hours (HOURS, I tell you). The night is cool and there are one or two interesting things happening fox-wise but I must remain focused.

Not a single nibble

They must have been hungry that lot because I got nothing off them, you know. Not even a tiny taste of crust. Pizza crust...like pizza crust.
But they did play KongWubba with me and I can't really hold the non-pizza-crust-giving against them when I did have some truly legendary KongWubba-ings.

So much work to do

I'm having (HAVING) to supervise ST and 2 of his friends, whilst simultaneously keeping an eye on FP who's in a different room. The reason for this scrutiny is that they have ordered pizza and since I have no past information on how close to my mouth they are likely to hold their slices, I am monitoring their regular non-eating habits so that I can be sitting by the right person when the time comes.
Planning, sigh, it's hard work.

Rosemary

There is a patch of grass in the garden here that I find very tasty. Can't resist munching on it whenever I get the chance but it is being gradually taken over by a rosemary bush. Several dogs in the park have commented now on the 'new perfume' I'm wearing and asking if I think I'm posh, or something. I try to explain but they don't seem to believe me.
If only I could find some nice fox doot...

I'm still here

My non-attendance over the past few days is not (NOT) because the squirrels have dog-napped me. It is true that I have been up a tree but it wasn't because I was being held against my will in a squirrel house.
In fact there's a tree in the park that is climbable by any dog fit enough to withstand a decently long run-up. Boy, did it ever cause a stir amongst the squirrels when I first followed them up that tree!
No, over the past few days I have been conducting a covert survey of the local area and have discovered that there are other houses affected by squirrels in the roof space. I'd go as far as to suggest that they are organised. Take action people, QUICKLY!

Cheese

I love cheese. My current favourite is Lanark Blue which we found in a super farm shop in Scotland:
http://www.ardrossfarm.co.uk/
Awesome place, selling really good cheese.
I perform tricks in exchange for cheese, you know. Stuff like rolling over, one-paw-two-paw, just taking it quickly whilst Human is sitting there trying to think up another trick.
Now that I am back patrolling the garden I have resumed my careful sniffing of the winds for tell-tale signs that there are squirrels living in next-door's roof. If it weren't for some bothersome magpies I might have had a breakthrough earlier...

Suspicions - I just can't help myself

Once I was abandoned (FP found me in a re-homing centre - I'm over it) but to this day I cannot climb willingly into a car without committing the route driven to memory. Some Journeys, though, are longer than others and a dog gets tired with paying close attention to every sign that flashes past, so I've developed a Technique.

This is how it goes:

• make a great deal of fuss initially. This should take the form of running back and forth in the back of the car which looks like excitement but is in fact making absolutely certain that all (ALL) local street names are noted


• lick the driver's right ear. This seems like affection but in fact means the mileage of the vehicle can be noted at the start of the Journey


• once the journey is well under way, be certain to be watching out for key landmarks from the window. Never (NEVER) be lying down at this stage of the Journey. You can also look out for people or dogs you know


• once you know you are not in Kansas anymore, relax a bit


• whenever the car slows, sit up and take note of whether you take a left, right or go straight on at junctions, roundabouts or motorway forks. Some of you may have a sat nav with a demented human voice instructing your driver. Although these are sometimes wrong (especially near Edinburgh) they are nonetheless vital for clues on VERY long Journeys


• always (ALWAYS) pee on the first thing you see when you leave the car so that you can find your way back to where it was parked the last time you saw it

There are no guarantees with owners and I have been lucky with ST & FP so far (in fact sometimes I cannot get a single moment to myself). This simple technique should help make sure that no owner can forget you when they drive somewhere without you being able to find your way back.

Twitchy paws

Ohhh! I just woke up from one of those dreams where my paws and nose twitch and I whimper a bit.
I was chasing a rabbit but squirrels were sitting up in the tree tops and they were telling the rabbit which way to run so I never got close. Then, just as I was wearing the rabbit down, it turned into a hedgehog and all the squirrels were laughing.
Horrible.
I'm going to wake up FP and see if she'll make me some cocoa so that I can get back to sleep. If I play this right, I'll more than likely secure half the bed for myself too...

Scared

I hate the sound of rain on a plastic roof! I also don't much like the way the sea runs at you when all you did was dip your tippy toes in. Hedgehogs, don't like those either.
The weather has turned bad on us and we're confined to barracks and the plastic roof torture so I've decided to whinge.
Actually the sea is quite funny and what I like to do is take my toy out until I'm up to my collar and then drop it so that ST has to strip off his shoes and socks, wade into the perishingly cold surf and retrieve it! Makes me laugh. I try and splash him too by jumping up and down.
Last night I struck gold with the relatives and managed to snaffle some roast beef scraps, a bit of potato, some sticky toffee pudding and (AND) a lick of ice cream! Am thinking of booking a holiday with ST's sister.

Esteemed Friends

There are several people to whom e-mail alerts are sent whenever I up-date on this blog but the time has come when I need to re-direct my alerts, so, to you select few it's time to bookmark my blog or save it to your Del.icio.us page! You'll find me at:
http://NunuThunder.blogspot.com
On to other matters...Today we walked about 6 miles along a path absolutely jam-packed full of wildlife. First thing that cropped up was a butterfly who landed on me and stayed there whilst I did all the hard work of walking. Cheek, if you ask me but then it was very, very light and what with the breeze, you know, in the end I was fine with it.
After that rabbits were my main preoccupation although it was vexing that they choose to live in gorse bushes because yet again I got the prickled nose! It's not that I'm an accident prone dog but I do have a slightly sore rear paw, aching hips from all the skidding about on the beach chasing Toy and the tender nose of one who has been in close contact with hedgehogs and gorse. Dog's life? Not a bit of it!

Who knew?

So last night we were walking back from our third (count 'em!) walk of the day and I saw a movement just by the hedge. Well, any dog knows that sort of thing needs to be checked out without delay so I shot over there (despite still being on a lead) only to discover the hard way what a hedgehog is.
Why is there an animal made entirely of prickles? I cannot work it out at all and my abrupt introduction to this little fella last night meant that once we were home FP had to tend to my nose in a gentle manner. I made out it was no problem and that I was fine but deep down I was seething. Prickles! I ask you.
I also have to bring to peoples' attention the fact that I am a Dancin' Queen. Nothing wrong with Abba; very jolly music.

Collie Corner

Look at this:
http://www.colliecorner.com/oth_a.htm
It's me on Collie Corner! That piccie was taken a while ago but I'm still that beautiful - honest. Today we heard about another brindle collie in the area but we haven't found him yet. And I was interested to notice that The Mayflower Sanctuary where FP found me has a new website:
http://mayflowersanctuary.com/
When FP came looking for a dog she couldn't resist my appealing little face. TBH, what I really wanted to know was whether she had any treats on her but I'm not one to look a gift horse in the mouth and she's been pretty good about treats since I let her take me home!
Anyone else out there bothered by the sound of rain on a conservatory roof? Sigh.

Stressful day

I had an early start, had to wait for my walk and now it's hammering with rain and we're late for dinner.
Do you think I can get ST & FP to hurry up? No.
Do I want to go out in the rain? No.
When's the optimum time to assess scraps coming from a table? Early on during the preparation, that's when. You need these chances to encourage people to eat lots more than they really want to by showing your own appreciation and then you the first to help out when they discover they can't eat another scrap. Scraps!
Oh, what's the point? They're still not ready!

Stocked up!

Excellent, that's what I like to see...My cupboard has been filled up with food, ST's cooked a ham and today I managed to snaffle what I believe is known as a jelly baby on the quiet!
At first I thought "Ugh!" but I'm not the type of dog to give up easily on what I have seen my human friends enjoying. It was an orange one, which amongst humans seems to be 3rd only to red ones and green ones. Yellow and white ones are not so good. To begin with I couldn't work it out at all - swallow it whole or chew? I spat it out so I could have another look (risky, since I had 'liberated' this jelly baby from the very edge of the table where it had rolled from the open packet and I might have been discovered at any moment). It didn't seem to have any obvious parts I could chew off and assess without taking on the whole thing. I tried the old tactic of bowing down and nudging it about the floor with my head as this always helps me when I can't decide what to do with oddly shaped or textured food (take note though it can be a messy method with, say salmon). In the end I went for it and bit into the whole thing but damn me if FP didn't walk in at that very moment!
She'd have had it out of my mouth except that by the time she got to me it was stuck in my back tooth. I did extreme licking for a while and eventually emptied my tooth of jelly. It took a fair amount of time so I can see how jelly babies have a function for people who're waiting for something to happen or on long drives. For me though, I'd have to say that if it came down to a straight choice between a jelly baby (red, orange or green) and a bonio (or a jumbone, or gravy bone...or a piece of ham) then I wouldn't take the jelly baby first. If it was still there after I finished off the other snacks, however...

Breaking off main task

Evening. Currently v. busy as next-door Neighbours have reported strange noises from the roof. I suspect a squirrel has moved in and is intending to make trouble for us all...But not if I have anything to do with it! Oh no. I simply will not stand for squirrels keeping potential snack providers awake all night with their skitterings and carrying-on. It's just not on.
I've started a programme of surveillance which includes regular high-speed blasts through the house and standing on the lawn looking for all the world like I'm a harmless dog when in fact I am sniffing the air for tell-tale whiffs associated with squirrels. Additionally I am rounding FP downstairs and making her aware of my activities re the whole squirrel threat, which I think is appreciated although, TBH, she hasn't said as much so far.
It was ST who first let on about what the Neighbours had said and just as well too. Luckily I was able to pick up some tips from the other dogs in the park. Ziggy was v. helpful even though Barney was being a real pain in the neck what with his constant jumping up on Ziggy (Ziggy being taller by about 3-4 stacked food bowls). Barney, in fairness, was attempting to rip the tennis ball they share from Ziggy's mouth and it must be frustrating to be a short dog living and sharing toys with a leggy beast like Zig.
Scout is taller again than Ziggy and surprisingly uninformed about the Squirrel issue. Scout has dreamy owners and is probably encouraged to embrace Squirrels in case one day they manage to dominate the world. Can you imagine? There'd be buried piles of acorns all over the place...Where would we dogs manage to fit in the bonios we have to bury, eh?
I didn't get to ask Timber what he thought of Neighbour's predicament but I have heard that he has a blog running too so I'll run a search after lights out during one of my newly scheduled patrols.
Right, time for my next foray into the garden...

Hot again

Pant, really. It's warm which means I can't chase my toy in the park which means I'm not getting as fit as I need to be for the chicken left-overs-pinching-off-the-plate scheme.
Foxes are out and about though so I am belting about in the garden (when not writing blog) in the cool(ish) of the night. Nice, like that.