Do dogs play tennis?

Yesterday Leo and I played with my Moon Dog that I got at Crufts. It squeaks, which makes it one of my favourite toys, and it has bits we can grab and play tug of war.

Leo had one leg and I pulled on the other. It was fantastic fun, we did it for ages. But eventually, we moved onto tennis balls. This was largely in consideration of the welfare of Moon Dog.

These weren't ordinary tennis balls but doggy tennis balls, complete with paw prints decorated on the side (I guess so you can tell the difference before you go out for a game). These are interesting because they are absolutely useless for bouncing, which to be quite honest is the best part, so Leo and I proceeded to take them apart instead, as this is the most fun you can have with a ball that doesn't bounce.

So anyway, if they really think dogs are interested in tennis, then they have to start making balls that bounce. If you don't make for dogs tennis balls that bounce, then they are never going to play tennis are they?

Oh yes, and also, they should make balls that Leo and I can't dismantle in a 15 minute sitting.

Summer time!

Last night the clocks went forward which means instead of it being 5pm right now it's 6pm. This is so we get up earlier and don't waste the daylight. They call it summer time! Unfortunately, no-one told me so it just meant that I slept in very late today.

Apparently in Australia they call it daylight saving.

That makes it sound like it's all about work. How much time can you bank in a day? I like the name in the UK - summer time - it sounds fun and festive like summer should be. See you in the park!

Gosh, is that really the time???

Daffodils

I am now officially 5 months old! Happy birthday to me. I am also now 25.6 kg. I'm not quite sure how tall I am, but I am much bigger than Leo these days. I can't believe how small I used to be. I could drive Leo's car! (Look at me on the right when I was about 9 weeks old). Now I can't fit in it at all. But he doesn't really want me to these days since I chewed it underneath ... just a little. He was not happy about that, but it's being fixed!

This morning I watched "Bewitched" on the television and I am certain that the dog that was on today was an Otterhound or cousin. He was smaller than the Otterhound grown-ups I know, but his tail went up in the air like a flag (like mine!) and he had long ears, and a wiry coat. But I'm sure he was an Otterhound or an Otterhound relation, because he could also talk. He said "I want Perfect Pizza too."

I am growing out of collars as well. So I got a new one for my "birthday" (well, 2 collars actually). I have a new brown rolled collar (so it doesn't mess my hair) which I don't quite fit yet so I have a black one in the meantime. But I don't wear my collar all the time, just when going out, like to the park. Speaking of which, Leo and I were in the park today smelling daffodils. I met a very nice lady on the way who wanted to know what sort of dog I am. Leo gets a bit irritated by this as he used to get all the attention and now they ignore him or call him a poodle, which I think rather infuriates him (or worse, they call him a Labradoodle). But he is a Bedlington!

You can probably see that I am quite a bit bigger than he is now. But he is still much faster so for games we are pretty evenly matched. The good thing about the park today is that there has been a bit of rain, so it was really good and muddy. There was also such a large puddle I could get my paws properly wet. I fell over loads of times when we were chasing, so now I smell like a pot plant. Yummy!

But I did get to smell the daffodils. They are my first daffodils and apparently it means spring is finally here. That sounds promising. I've heard there's a dog pond in Hampstead Heath so we are going to investigate soon!

Anyway, after lots of play we met a very handsome 12 year old Afghan Hound called Max and his friend. I'm embarrassed to say I don't know his friend's name as I was distracted at the time by a group of teenage boys standing in a circle talking about the girls at school (not very nicely! I think girls are much nicer than that!). So I went and sat in the middle of their circle as they seemed like the sort of people I could convince to be my followers in a pack. But I don't think they got it and I was "retrieved". I do like things that stand in circles though.

On the way back we met some more dogs and chatted again for a while, including a very pretty Corgi who really wanted to play ball. I really wanted the Cardigan Corgi to win at Crufts. She is an endangered breed like me! And she really was rather beautiful.

Anyway, on the way back we met a lady who knew Leo was a Bedlington and fussed over him. Which seemed to make him very happy indeed. And then we bumped into two of his favourite neighbours (two little Miniature Schnauzers), and they had a little play.

We got home just before it started to rain and rain, so I settled down with some doggie treats and continued to eat my family out of house and home. It's amazing how tiring running around after Leo in the park can be. All I want to do now is snooze!

Welcome to my new blog!

Welcome to my new blog! I am Finnegan the Otterhound, one of the rarest of all the great British breeds. We are so rare that in fact we are endangered (only about 50 of us new puppies were registered in 2009). Which is a big worry, since we are the backbone of lots of other great breeds, including the Bedlington Terrier (my favourite! see me sleeping alongside Leo the Bedlington Terrier when I was just 8 weeks old). But our numbers are going up and I am one of the new Otterhounds of 2009!

We are scent hounds and, as I live in London, I thought I would call my blog "Scents and the City." I am a bit of a socialite and I love smells, so it seemed appropriate. People wonder if such a big dog can live in the city. But I hope I am proving that we can, as long as we have a happy home with lots of love (and lots of Leo!).

We're strong and smart and very very friendly. So once you meet one of us you can't help but fall in love.

In fact, that was my job this year at Crufts. It was my first time at Crufts. I hope to be in the ring next year! But this year, I was on the Discover Dogs stand. This was fantastic fun as I got to meet 100s and 100s of new people. I got lots of cuddles from lots of the little kids (I love kids!). Here I am greeting all the visitors to the Otterhound (there were very many indeed!). I also met lots of other Otterhounds - Chaucer, Charity and Wrangle. And lots of fans of Otterhounds.

And my Uncle Hugo came along for a bit too (Ch Keepcott Connoisseur). He is very handsome and everyone says I will grow up to be just like him.

Here we are going "head to head." He is obviously very much bigger than I am but I am doing my best to catch up.