Day 7 - Friday 10 July

0 miles. 0 locks. 0 swingbridges today but LOOOOOOOOAAADDDDSSSS of meeting and greeting and kanoodling and fun!

We started with a bit of a lie-in, then, after breakfast, Dan, the one-eyed-whirrybox Man arrived, followed by another Dan, who had ear covers and all sorts of techystuff. After a bit of yacketying and hot brown liquid, we all set off down the towpath. As usual when Dan is around, we had to keep stopping and starting while he pointed his whiirrybox at us, but not as much today as sometimes. We went to a human yummies place part way down the locks. We passed it yesterday. Mum says it is called the Caen Hill Locks café.

Mum and Dad did some yacketying stuff while Dan pointed his whiirrybox at them and the other Dan wore his ear covers and twiddled with some toys with buttons and knobs on. Dan got down on the ground and pointed his whiirrybox at me sometimes too! I did my best to look handsome! He also attached a tiny whiirrybox to my harness while we were walking. I guess the back of my head must be good looking!

After a little while, the bestest bit happened: Three humans turned up wearing that familiar blue fur substitute top, like Mum's. They were nice enough humans but, more importantly, they came with friends! Oakley-friends! One of them was a big red Labrador named Norman (he is a bit oldish and needs a new home as his old human family put him up for something called adoption when he started having something called fits). Norman was with a nice man who was doing something called fostering him. I don't know what this is but Norman seemed to like him so I guess fostering must be nice. The other two were little puppies! Barney and Maisie, both about three months old. Barney is a yellow lab x retriever Guide Dog Puppy in Training and Maisie is a yellow lab pet who is being trained to know Guide Dogs commands so she can be a friend and helper with future Pups in Training.

Barney is a bit shy and very quiet. He played a little bit with me, but he preferred to just snooze. Maisie, on the other paw, was my kinda gal! We had a fab couple of hours rolling about on the ground enjoying a blissful load of kanoodling, ear-chewing, boxing and just generally loving each other's company!

Oh! Errrr! Apparently we were supposed to there to meet and greet lots of humans! Oops! Well..... They all enjoyed watching us having fun! Mum says that lots of people came to talk with her and the other humans (Maisie and I kinda missed all this - we were enjoying our own conversations!). Lots and lots of shiny disks and floppy rectangles were put into the little Guide Dog statue thing!

After everybody else had left, Mum and Dad packed up their stuff and we set off home back along the towpath. I was treated to a freerun most of the way! Yippee! That gave me the opportunity to greet a few more doggy pals and to seek out a tasty bone from the bushes! I enjoyed gnawing on that for quite a good while. I am puzzled though......it disappeared while I was eating my dinner......I left it carefully on the floor to go back to for afters.......it only takes me 30 seconds to gallumph my dinner.......in that short time my bone vanished........Daaaaaad??????

Me greeting a Bull Terrier who Mum rather admired! (How dare she!?) we are both being fussed by Alice, the nice lady who let us be here today. 
In the background are two minihumans with their Mum waiting to admire me.

On the towpath outside the café. The puppies arrived! 
Dan, the whirrybox Man is crouching down with his big whirrybox pointing at us all. Four humans wearing blue Guide Dogs blue fur substitute tops. Four waggy rails belonging to me, Barney and Maisie, the puppies, and Norman the rescued red Labrador.

Shy sleepy Barney. Yellow lab x retriever puppy lying down on the gravel ground, between the paws of his human.

Norman getting a fuss from Dan the whiirrybox man

What a gorgeous line-up! The humans don't look bad either!
From left to right; me, BArney, Maisie and Norman. Ssitting on a bench behind us are our respective humans, all wearing blue Guide Dogs fur substitutes tops.