Author Archive

Mr. T you speak with such authority!  Let me remind you that you were working crazy hours…..waking in the afternoon when all the fun and games were 1/2 over.  Your start to the day was the search for your massage shoes that invariably ended up in the backyard behind the bird cage (Versace had no interest in our housemates’ cockatiels thank goodness), at around 3pm.

It was I, who after broken sleep from taking little Versace out to the toilet at ...

Oh Mr. T, you’ve muddled up some things….again!!

We took Versace to puppy school before all of his injections were finalized.  They encourage that, for early socialization.

Mrs. Alpha explicitly made a point of no interaction with anyone – human or animal- before the injections had  been completed at 16 weeks (and you’re supposed to wait a week so that the vaccinations have taken effect, so I was told on our first visit to the park, the day of the 16 week ...

Just back up a bit Mr. T!

We had thought hard about the perfect name for our little boy……many came to mind, but we settled on Hugo, or Versace (black and gold) as the two front runners.  Mrs. Alpha had asked me on the phone what names were we thinking of, and she didn’t think Versace was practical enough to shorten.  On the other hand I am sure she was reassured that we hadn’t set our hearts on Rambo ...

We arrived filled with mixed emotions.

We met Mrs. Alpha and her husband, and they were lovely.  As Caeser Millan would say ‘calm and assertive’.  They were leaders, and the depth of passion Mrs. Alpha had for the breed was evident.  Her features were Dobermann – like!

We met the maternal grandmother of our soon to be puppy, an 8 year old playful girl in mint condition.  She ran out and bowed down on her front legs as an invitation to play!

The ...

Firstly I had some conditions for Mr. T.  He had to commit wholeheartedly to parenting, training, exercising, and loving our new puppy.  This was going to be a 50/50 deal.  He agreed.

I painted a very unglamourous image of parenthood to test his commitment.  He was unwaivering.

I called a local pound and they put me straight onto Mrs. Alpha.  I called Mrs. Alpha and told her our story, we had a long conversation and she ...

Firstly adopting a puppy had come in the form of an ultimatum from Mr. T.  I was reluctant at first, because I didn’t feel we were settled enough, we enjoyed travelling, and I knew myself better than anyone – if we were to have a pet, my life would be devoted to that pet as if it were my own flesh and blood, and like a cassowary with chicks, you come between me and my baby and whammooo.  Yes, I ...

Our beloved Versace departed last Tuesday and it has been a painful week adapting to the deafening silence.

Since moving to his new house (yes, there is no doubt this was his house – 4 heated beds, 3 doonas, several fluffies, and two blankets within a stones throw of each other, meant that wherever he decided he wasn’t to be he was comfortable!) and the  pancreatitis that followed soon after in October the year before last (2010) he had been quite ...