Wednesday 18th October 2023, 11.00am (day 4,437)

We are all waiting for something. Perhaps….. well, I was going to say ‘death’, but in the case of this patient creature it is more likely ‘snacks’.

This little cutie was clearly taking its first steps into the world of modelling. “Should I run and hide? Should I move in for the purr and rub? Or should I just pose?” Do the latter, that’s just fine.

What better things are there to do on a Saturday than watch some footie? The dog may or may not agree but it looks interested enough. Taken at Penicuik Athletic FC, and Penicuik, just south of Edinburgh, thereby becomes the 435th different place to feature on here; expect a few more new locations to turn up over the next week…

The group of humans and dogs who, on sunny afternoons like this one, generally are to be found occupying the seats out the front of the Railway Inn, are very much a pack. And for the canine members, like Diamond (in black livery) and Hugo, this is just fine, it fits their view of the world and each other. I like this portrait, it seems to sum up their character. I am letting it off the blob of flare on Diamond’s neck, too, which does not seem to detract too much.

It’s approaching chucking out time on Monday night in the White Swan but Hugo doesn’t want to go anywhere. He’s quite comfy, thank you.

The house pooch of the Star Inn, Penzance, doesn’t necessarily take his guard dog duties all that seriously, at least not where the breakfast buffet is concerned. Then again I was the only guest, so presumably he’d decided I was legitimate.

After booking the second set of flights to and from St Helena, and a couple of airport hotels, the travel budget was well and truly spent: there is literally £5 left of the £5,000 we were granted back in 2021 to do this project. So over the next two weeks I am crashing with these two good individuals, Mr. Gareth Drabble and Moonlight the cat, to whom I must defer. The guitar case is representative of both of them too: Gareth plays. Moonlight sleeps in it sometimes.

Bella becomes the latest animal to make a definite second appearance on the blog, following her debut on Christmas Day 2015. Seven years on, little has changed about her, including this, her main tactic for persuading humans to give her food; if dogs know about the concept of a raison d’etre, the acquisition of food is Bella’s.

Thora is, of course, not a mogwai — the creature that spawns the Gremlins in the movie of that name — but she sure looks like one.

With no posts for ten days perhaps you thought I’d finally given up the ghost, or at least the blog had — but no, ’twas that old staple, “computer problems”. Not entirely solved now, so bear with me, but I shall start on the catching-up process at least. This encounter seems quite a while ago now, but one can see the basic curiosity-mingled-with-sheer-terror that this little dog exhibits, faced with this giant Newfoundland. Yes, they are the same species. That’s genetic engineering for you.