Confuddled.

Oakley to the rescue!

Silly Mummy got herself well and truly confuddled and lost in this Bumingham city centre this morning. We left Daddy at home and set off to do some of that blimmin browsing stuff (it seems that browsing also entails quite a lot of 'find the checkout' too!!). We wandered into, around and out of several shops. I did my duty and steered Mummy around obstacles while she was looking at the shelves. I also managed several times to 'find the stairs' then take her 'upsteps' and 'downsteps' and 'left' and 'right' and 'find the door' and 'find the way out'......... Several of the 'way outs' brought us to different doors than the ones we went in. Well.... I just found the quickest way out. Mum didn't specify otherwise! I think this was what confuddled Mum. She was all disorientated.

She got out her talkybone and I heard Daddy's voice come out of it! He gave some directions and that got us to a place that was a bit more familiar to Mummy, but she still wasn't sure of the rest of the way. She then finally gave me the instruction I was waiting for: 'Come on then smartypants. Find the way home'. Yayyhayy! At last, I was in charge! Along the pawment, across the road with the rails in it where the funny trainbus things rumble along, then up through the no-cars shoppy places, round a few corners, then through the maze of paths through all the temporary walls where the big machines are doing big noisy diggy and buildy stuff, then around some big buildings and back across the double road to the parkybit where home is! Phew! I did it. Pawperfect!

I think Mummy was a bit impressed with me: impressed enough to give me a bone that I then spent the afternoon chomping on out on the bouncy-decking by floatyboatyhome.

Now, it seems to be a tad chilly this evening, so, if you will excuse me, I think I will snuggle off to bed.

2 photos:

 

Me lying on the wooden slatted pontoon, beside several narrowboats, with a small bone between my paws.

Me asleep on my bed. Mummy has snuggled me with a towel.

Floatyboaties.

Workywalkies - 'Let's go find the station'.

Train ride.

Workywalkies - all very new territory - some through towny bits and some along towpath we haven't been on before.

Floatyboaties - gazillions of them!

We went on two of them. One had several humans aboard and so there was the inevitable oooooooodles of yacketying. The other one only had two humans on it (besides Mummy and Daddy). They were workyhumans - something to do with building floatyboatyhomes apparently. There was a doggybed on this one though. I got all excited. I sniffed and hunted for my new buddy but there was no buddy. How miffing! I just laid down on the floor next to that bed while the humans did yet more yacketying.

Car ride - with the nice workyladyhuman driving. I had to ride in the front, between Mummy's paws.

Big noisy building with a naked floatyboat inside it. It was kind of handsome because it was all black like me, but it had no windows or doors or anything else. There was a lot of loud bang bang banging and drrrrrrrrrring and vrrrrrrrring going on. I was not too impressed.

We went into a little room at the back and it was much more peaceful in there with the door shut. I got a big bowl of water and Mummy and Daddy had little bowls with handles to slurp hot brown water from. Then I got to snooze on the carpet while a whole load more yacketying went on.

Another car ride - this time a different car, driven by a nice manhuman from the noisy boatyplace. He took us back to the station.

Another train ride and then finally another workywalkies home across Bumingham.

Now, my bed seems to be dragging my head downwards.....I don't seem to be able to resist the pull.......zzzzzzzz

Snoozing.

We seem to be back in that Bumingham place again!

It was a journey of threes to get here: 3 miles of workywalkies along the towpath, 3 locks, 3 hours in total. After doing my duty workywalkiesing and lockworking with Mummy, I got to enjoy a relaxing cruise on the back deck with Daddy while Mummy did some of her domesticals inside floatyboatyhome, then did some crowshaving. Keeping Daddy company was much more interesting!

This afternoon brought more workywalkies - this time into and around town. This Bumingham shoppy centre is now very familiar territory. It was good to be back to check out the old weemail sites. The workywalkies main destination was a shop called Pawmark or something and I had to take Mummy and Daddy into that magic box that changes the world outside it when the doors close and open again. When they opened, we were in a world of tiny weeny fursubstitutes and lots of microhumans around. Mummy and Daddy bought some of those tiny weeny fursubstitutes - mainly blue ones. I have no idea what they want them for but I guess I will find out sometime.

Tonight, we are moored right next to a familiar floatyboat. It is dark green and Mummy says it is called Sonflower. This was the very first floatyboatyhome I ever set paw on. It was the one that we borrowed from friends to test out whether or not Mummy and I could cope together working in floatyboatyworld. I think we have proved we can do it now!

Photo shows me asnoozing on the back deck.

Clipclop Beastie.

Yep! I was right! Most of today has been workywalkiesing to guide Mummy around this Black Country Living Museum place. Daddy came too of course!

I have to admit though, that this is much more exciting and interesting than some of the other dusty fusty musty places we have been. At least this one has lots of outdoors walkiesing to do and bumpety old buses and trams to ride on, and lots of things to sniff while waiting for Daddy to read all the squiggles to Mummy.

There was a big clipclop beastie at one place there. It was wearing a huge collar and lots of lead-things attached to a sort of mini train box thing. It clipclopped along between the rails and the trainbox thing rolled along behind. Mummy made me do a 'sit stay' while she was listening to a manhuman yipping on about all this. That was OK, but, when the clipclop beastie moved on again and got a bit closer I shouted to it to stay away from me and my mummy. For some reason, Mummy wasn't too impressed! She told me off! Harrrrumph! I was only trying to look after us! It seems that Guide Dogs are not supposed to woof at beasties! Hmmmm.....

When my work was done there, we headed back to floatyboatyhome. This was just a short walk along the towpath and then through a gate. When we got through the gate and Daddy was locking it up again, I spotted humanpals by floatyboatyhome. I may have got just a tad excited and I may have let out a bit of a squeak of joy! Mummy then removed my harness and lead and let me go race off to greet my pals Tim and Lindsay! Ooooooohhhh!!!!! The fusses!! It has been far too long since we last met! Fusses and kisses and doggysnoggies! Woohoo!

Initial greetings done, I then simply had to race off back to the people by the gate. They were sitting there on the towpath with long sticks hanging out to the water. They also had all sorts of yummies just there on the floor. Well, it would have been rude to have ignored that open invitation wouldn't it? I don't understand though; That invitation acceptance got me another telling off! Oh well..... back aboard floatyboatyhome, I let Tim and Lindsay sit on my bed but I had to give them more loves!

3 photos of me with Tim and Lindsay aboard my bed:

A bit of a cruise.

Oi! That was MY pattay! Daddy ate MY pattay! Harrrumph!

I guess I failed to chew my paw enough! Huff!

A soggy workywalkies to a church got me a lovely towelrub on arrival. Mummy went prepared with a towel in her backpack. I then got to enjoy a fabulous self-massage session on the carpet. That got me nicely prepared for a snooze through all the humanhowling, followed by some great fusses from oodles of minihumans.

Another soggy workywalkies got us back home via a Wilko shop. Then, after Mummy did some choppy sizzly stuff, including dropping a morsel of sausage for me to go over, it all got noshed before setting off on a bit of a cruise. Now we are back on familiar territory at the Black Country Living Museum. I guess I will be guiding Mummy around in there tomorrow!

Wooferhampton.

Three and a bit miles. Twenty one locks and a few doggy meetings and greetings today.

It all started with a nice towpath toddle with Mummy, then we had to 'Up and over the bridge' and then 'find the beam'. That was when all the walk-a-bit.....wait-a-bit....walk-a-bit.....wait-a-bit..............started. To and fro, up and down, there and back again. All that hard work (with a few nice bits of freerunning and good sniffing for some of the bits), has brought us to a little parky area next to a very noisy road with lots and lots of vroomers and nee-naws going on it. It is peaceful aboard floatyboatyhome though. Mummy says we are in some place called Wooferhampton or something.

2 photos:

 

Me wearing my towpath working bra and standing watching as Daddy brought floatyboatyhome into the lock below me.

Waiting by the end of the lock beam while Mummy did the windy-uppy-windy-downy-pushy-pully stuff - and a whole load of yacketying too with another lockyladyhuman.

Auntie's Hiss Tameens.

Hmmmm....I wonder how long I can string this out....

Mummy noticed me chewing my paw. She disappeared into the warm rain box room and made some crackly noises. Then she came to me and offered me a tiny white disk to eat. It didn't smell nice so I backed away. Then she opened the white chilly cupboard and got a little tub out. I only got a little blob of it but I really do rather like that pattay stuff (Shhhh....don't tell Daddy!). Mummy says the tiny white disk was another one of Auntie's Hiss Tameens. I didn't fancy that but it seems to have disappeared.......

My paw is nearly alright again. I do have to give it a little chew and good shake from time to time while I'm walking but it didn't get fat like Mummy thought it might. It has got me out of working today though!

Beastie!

OOOOWWWWW!!!!

There I was happily trotting along with Mummy and my paw suddenly did a nasty ouch. With a bit of a yelp, I did a quick hop-skip-jump and gave my back left paw a big shake but there was a yellow & black stripey buzzy beastie on it. Mummy came to my rescue and flicked off the beastie but my paw was mega-ouchie! This all cut short our walkies because my paw didn't want to work properly after that. Daddy stopped floatyboatyhome and picked us up.

Mummy gave me a blob of yumminess. Daddy said 'Oi! That's my pattay!'. Mummy said it had Auntie Hiss Tameen in it. Well, I have no idea what any of that means but I think I rather like Daddy's Auntie's Hiss Tameen pattay! Mummy says it should help to make my paw better and to stop it getting all fat.

All that came after a day of lots of bits of towpath toddles workywalkies, cruising and lock workings. Up to that point, it was all nice and relaxed and good. At one of the locks, I met one of my fans; Ann Johnson. It is always nice to meet fans and Anne had lots of other blue-topped humancolleages with her, so I got some delectable ear rubs!

This evening we went out - along the towpath and up lots of steps to a human yummyery. Mummy said I had to be a good ambassador for Guide Dogs because we were there to meet with the people who own the pub. Well, I am not sure how to be an ambassador but I think I managed to be a good hoover! I dutifully removed an abandoned morsel from under the sofa! Job done! Actually, what I really had to do was simply to lie down in the corner beside Mummy while lots and lots of munching and yackety yacking went on. Oh.....and I had to soak up some admirations too - from a minihuman called Imogen and her mummy, and from Maddie and Mike, the owners. It is a tough job but it has to be done!

2 Photos;

Fusses and admirations from Imogen who sat on the floor next to me in the Bridge Inn, Brewood.

Meeting Ann Johnson who was wearing the blue top and red collar harness that all the Canal and River Trust workyhumans wear.

Got to go to Specsavers!

Just five locks today followed by a nice longish workywalkies along the towpath with Mummy. I had to hurry - Daddy nearly got away from us with our floatyboatyhome! He overtook us and just kept going! I thought I would never see him again! I had to get Mummy to 'Huppup' so he didn't escape completely!

Mummy and I have come to a good arrangement now: When we are towpath toddling, she doesn't put my proper Guide Dogs white harness on me. I get to wear my swim bra instead and she then hooks my lead onto that. I walk ahead of her but I still take care of her by making sure she goes around the stickyout greenery and lumps and bumps and trippy treetoes, but I do get away with a bit more sniffing and weemail exchanging than I do when I'm in fully official working mode! I think I like this arrangement!

This afternoon, after we had moored up, I got to take Daddy for a walkies into this town's shoppyplace. Mummy stayed at home to do some tippetytappetying and weeemails of her own (I suspect she doesn't do the wee bit though!). I had to 'Find Specsavers'. It was one we went to before. It seemed a bit odd going without Mummy, but apparently it was to try to get Mummy's eyewindows sorted out for her. There were some very nice fusses to be had from the very nice workyladyhumans in there. I even had to do a 'sit' with them while Daddy pointed his talkybone at us all. Here is the evidence:

Me and the lovely ladies in Specsavers.

Walk the Plank!

Fifteen locks. Three and a half miles. Lots of waiting. Quite a bit of fusses and admirations. Two 'walk the planks'. A loooooong wait while squirtysnake gave floatyboatyhome a big drink. Some great play opportunities. Oh.... and a massive grooming session. (Mum said she got another dog off me but I didn't get to play with him!).

2 photos; 

Playtime on the towpath while floatyboatyhome gets a long drink from squirtysnake. Mummy sat on the edge of the bowdeck and kept throwing my ball so I had to run and rescue it.

A great playtime with a passing longhaired GSD girlie. They're not all scary!

Superfusses!

'Tart! Complete and utter Tart!'

That was what Mummy called me this morning. Just because I was enjoying a rather scrummy bellyrub time from a whole succession of humans and minihumans this morning....... Ooooooooh! That was a welcome superfuss! A seriously good reason to go to church methinks!

It was a good workywalkies to church - all the way to the other side of town. There we met fellow floatyboatyhumans Barry & Brenda and James & Hazel, then, after all the humanhowling (there was a lot of that this morning!) in the room where they all had their hot brown slurps, I seemed to end up on my back for most of the time.

Rusty Fusty.

Errrr..... we went on a workywalkies, then a bus ride ..... to get on a train that didn't move!

Daddy wanted to go to a place called Kroo, to look at fusty rusty old trains. The one we went upsteps and into smelled all dusty fusty inside and I didn't have to do the usual 'Find a seat' for Mummy. All the seats were empty and some were missing. There were lots of rectangles on the walls with all sorts of squiggles and pictures on them. We went walking along some of the tracks that took us to right beside some other big beastie trains. They are hugenormous when we're not on the highfloor beside them like in a normal trainkennel place.

After guiding Mummy around all this dusty rusty fusty stuff, I got to guide her on the streets again and to the bestest place: Pets at Home!! Yippeeeee!! Hoovering time! This was followed by a few other shops before the 'Find the bus-stop' and then the journey home again.

2 photo:

Me 'hupped' at the front of the train that went nowhere. Maybe, when I re-tyre I could be a train driver?

Me sitting in front of the train that went nowhere. Daddy says it is called the APT and it was all wobbly when it went around bends.

Nan Twitch.

Four locks - over and over and over again...... Mummy must really like doing all that windy-upppy-windy-downy-pushy-pully stuff! She did it all so many times for other floatyboats before it was our floatyboatyhome's turn. Even then, we got Daddy and floatyboatyhome into one lock, started him going down inside it, then walked on to the next one to do the windy-windy stuff, then back again to let Daddy out, then down again to let him into the next one....... and on it went. I didn't know if I was coming or going or on the way back again! It was probably all of them! It was fun though - and yummy! Mummy seemed to be pleased with me for doing all the 'find the beam', 'find the bollard' and 'find the paddle'. I got a yummy at each and every one of them! The fusses and admirations from other floatyboatypeople were good to have too!

After all that work, ti was just a nice easy towpath workywalkies to find our new home for tonight. We are back on familiar territory. Mummy says it is called Nan Twitch or something. She says we will be staying here for a couple of days so we can go shopping tomorrow and church on Sunday. I think this will mean I will get some downtime to do some more work on that bone!

Zizzzzing!

This is the only way to spend a chilly evening: Sofasnuggles with Mummy!

It has been another day of towpath workywalkies, liftyuppy bridges and locks. Then, after we moored up, a visitor arrived. It was our humanpal Chris. He spent most of the time he was with us, with his head down a hole in the pointy bit of floatyboatyhome. He was using a strange toy with a long spike on it to make all sorts of loud and scary zizzzzing noises. I stayed well hidden under the table! I didn't fancy getting zizzzzed!

2 photos:

 

Me snuggling on Mummy's legs on the sofa.

Waiting patiently by a lockbeam while Mummy was helping with all the windy-uppy-windy-downy-pushy-pully stuff to make floatyboats go up and down and in and out until it was the turn of our floatyboatyhome.

Maximum Strength.

Ten locks today - some of them over and over and over again - and about five miles of workywalkies along the towpath. I think I have earned my bone-session today! I did need to take a bit of a nap before I attacked it though. Well.... I had to make sure I had maximum strength to do it justice!

2 photos:

 

Close up of me lying on the wooden floor with my paw on my bone and my jaws in action working on it.

Mummy and me in action on the towpath.

Bone O'Clock!

LUNCH!!!! Where do I start?

Meanie Mummy says I can't have it all at once though!

Photo shows me sitting on the bow deck of floatyboatyhome looking at the most enormous bone I have ever had! Mum says it is a beef pelvis section. I say it is seriously yummy!

Gnawing on that bone made my eyelids far too heavy. When they got lighter and I was able to lift them again, my bone was gone! A while later, Mummy opened that white chillycupboard and I caught a sniff. That was a mean trick Mummy! That bone is mine. The mouthdrippy shopman gived it to me!

This morning, Daddy abandoned us! Apparently he went off on a trip on a train to go point his one-eyed-clickybox at some old buses. So I had to take Mummy into town. I remembered the way. No problem! Most of it was a bit tedious; Mummy got me to do several 'Find the door' to shops with all sorts of old fusty stuff in. Apparently she was trying to find something called a T-pot. None of them had one. Then we went down the street with the mouth-drippyshop in it. I managed to direct Mum into there without even being asked! Heehee! It worked perfectly! The evidence is in that photo posted earlier. Yummmyscrummmy. Then, after a bit more wandering around, Mummy stopped me and said 'Hang on a moment Oaks. Let me get my bearings...... errrrr..... where are we?' Well, I soon sorted her out. I turned her slightly to the right and took her around the corner. There was the door of Boots! My bum bounced super triumphantly! Mummy laughed and told me what a clever boy I am. A quick nuzzle of her 'good boy pouch' got me my due edible proof! That got me the admirations of some onlooking ladyhumans whose mouths all turned way up at the corners!

Next, Mummy was asking 'Ooh....which way is home from here?' I sorted her out again! No problem! No hesitation! Of course, that gave me the perfect opportunity to gude her home via the nicer route; the one that just happens to go through the park and the woody track! Heehee!

i think I earned that megabone....... I had better get it back again tomorrow!

No Soggydoggy!

Yayhayy! We are on the move again! Ellesmere was very nice but I was geting a tad bored with the little place! Nothing personal - just not many streets to explore!

So, today has been all about towpath walkies with Mummy and cruisin-and-a-snoozin on the back deck. Oh - and a couple of lifty-uppy bridges too. That was after a final workywalkies taking Mummy to Tesco's first. She was a good Mummy - she got some huge carrots!

The towpath walkies was a lovely leisurely wander. It was all on territory we have walked before, so Mummy knew it was all good surface, the light was good and Mummy's eyes were behaving quite well today, so I got ot enjoy exercising my new bright yellow flexilead. I tried my bestest to stretch it far enough to go for a swim as we walked by the giant puddle, but Mummy seems to be able to shrink it and stifle my efforts! She said 'Not today. No soggydoggy today'. Huffff!

As we were walking along, there was a humanyip from a floatyboat that was coming towards us. It was a nice ladyhuman, Angela; one of my fans! Her manhuman drove to the bank, so she could come fuss me (Always welcome of course!) He then pulled the floatyboat in by its long lead. Off hopped a poochpal too, but she didn't want to play. I tried very hard to get aboard to check out this floatyboat, but that lead-shrinking act of Mummy's stymied my attempts to carry out my inspection work! Harrumph!

This evening, we are moored in a place Mummy says is called Whitchurch. After my dindins, I took Daddy for a walkies to refresh my memory of the route into town. I suspect I have work to do tomorrow......

Photo shows me and Mummy on the lifty-uppy bridge, just after Mummy had done her windy-uppy-windy-downy thing to lift it up and put it back down again.

Mutual Sniff!

Mummy says today is our last day in this Ellesmere place. Well, it has been a good last day! A walkies with Daddy this morning (Mummy was still in bed feeling a bit sorry for herself), then a relaxing snoozy time. The bestest bit came next; a FREERUN!!!! Yippeeeeee! I even found a paddling pool in the field! Heehee! It was only a little field but it was great to enjoy a romp around. We then went on the round town route that took us to the giant puddle (no chance to swim though - boo!) and back along the towpath.

After my dinner, we set off out again - this time to a church service. There, I found some familiar humanfriends to meet and greet. We came back home via a different towpathy route and, just as we got back to floatyboatyhome, I found a little buddy; a basset puppy called Axle. He was all growly and scared of me! Scared of ME!!!! I don't think I am scary really. I just stayed really calm and gave him my bestest waggy tail patient greetings and, after a long while, he got brave enough to join in a mutual sniff. I would love to get to know him better and teach him how to have fun with a doggypal, but that was not to be. He is on hollibobs on a floatyboat, so it seems we are unlikely to meet again. He had lots of very nice humans with him though and they clearly love him very much. They certainly gave me some very nice fusses and ear rubs!

Shoppyboats.

Well! That was a nice surprise today!

I took Mummy out for a workywalkies and we discovered a Guide Dogs flappyroof thingy in amongst lots of other flappyroof thingies at the end of the canal, on the wharf. Under that flappyroof was a colleague I have met before; Declan the yellow lab x retriever, plus another yellow lab girlie colleague whose name I can't remember (Oops! Sorreeee!). Well, actually, names really don't matter to us doggies. We just sniff butts and get on with playing and kanoodling! We don't need each other's names to do that! We all three had a great time chewing ears and biffing each other while our humans did all their yacketying.

I did have to tear myself away eventually to take Mummy on this wander around town, then, after a wrong turning and therefore an about turn, onward to the round trip past the giant puddle and back along the towpath. I was a bit miffed that Mum refused to allow me to guide her to the beach bit of the giant puddle where I could have enjoyed another swim, but it was a nice longish workywalkies anyway.

A bit later, I had to take her back out again. This time it was to Tesco's via the canal where lots of floatyboatyhomes were with all sorts of delectables outside. I didn't get to sample anything but I did manage to get myself some lovely fusses. We are getting to know some of the humans on these shoppyboats and many of them are at my shnozzle-height when they pop their heads through the little doors on the sides of the boats! Heehee! I do like to be at shnozzle level with humans who appreciate kisses!

Washed Away Weemails!

Soggy Doggy!

Big leakyskies today. Mummy and I got very drippy working the locks, and Daddy was a tad damp driving floatyboatyhome too.

It was all OK though - it all started with a great game of chase and romp with Jasper, the black lab that I met a couple of days ago. Waiting in the queue to work the locks has never been such fun!

We are now back in that Ellesmere place, so back to the same streets again, but this leakysky stuff has washed away all the weemails! I have some replacement work to do!

Photo of me (on the left) and Jasper checking out the long tufty grass beside the towpath while waiting to go work the locks.

Fantabulous Playmate!

Towpath workywalkies, 8 locks and a lifty-uppy bridge. All on brand new territory. Yesssss!!! Team Towpath back where we belong doing what we do best! The rest of the day has been all about snoozin-while-cruisin on the back deck.

Oh! I nearly missed a bit out! We moored up for Mummy and Daddy to have lunch (none for me of course. Huff!). There was another floatyboat there with a fantabulous playmate; a fellow black labrador called Jasper. A good game of chase-romp-and-roll with him was just what a hardworking guide dog needed on a cruisy day!

Photo of me in harness at the end of a lock beam, waiting while Mummy did all her windy-uppy-windy-downy stuff.

Me helping Mummy to push the big heavy lock beam.

Eternal Freerun.

Lying under the table at a human yummyery is always better when it comes after a nice long wander! Even when Mummy fails to yield to my bestest efforts to guide her to the lake for a swim. Instead, she insisted most insistently on 'Not today. Straight on'. Huff!

A good bone-munching session on the towpath this afternoon was fair compensation and a nice leisurely walkies this evening to take Daddy away so Mummy could stroke the floor has been a nice round off to a pretty relaxed day.

Mummy has had an email (she doesn't have a clue about weemails!) to tell us that Chrissie pup, (the pup we raised all the shinydisks for to sponsor her in memory of Nanny) has gone off to Guide Dogs Big School today. This made Mummy's eyes all leaky because today is the anniversary of the day that Nanny left us to go for her eternal freerun.

Chrissie pup in her crate in the back of the Guide Dogs School bus.

When we got to meet and play when she was diddy. She isn't the ickle ear-chewer that we first met any more!

Catching Up!

Coooeeeeee! I is back!

Well, actually, I haven't been away but phweeeessshh! What a week!!!!

We have been doing something called the Boats of Hope mission in this here Ellesmere place. It seems that this 'Mission' thingy involves lots of humanhowling in all sorts of guises, lots and lots and lots of yacketying in all sorts of places, and megamegamegalots of noshing! Human noshing! Not woofy noshing! How mean is that? They have had noshes in human yummyeries, noshes on the towpath, noshes inside floatyboats, noshes with lots of other humans. On most of the days they were even giving away nosh! Hundreds of sausages and burgers - big, mouthdrippy meaty disks......... and cheese n biccies and pupcakes and creamteases and biccies and brownies and and and...... oh it was torture! They didn't give any of it in the right direction! All those meanie humans - and two starving Labradors left with drippy jowls!

Lilly and I had to resort to hoovering the grass in the evenings - just to get a hint of the yumminess that we had been deprived of!

Even, on the occasion that I tried to rescue a pupcake from the binbag, Mummy was mean enough to force my mouth open and confiscate it! She said it was not good for me! She said it was full of sugar and with added sugar on top too. She said she didn't want to face the consequences the next day.

Haaarrrrruuuuummmmppppphhhhhh!

Starvation aside, it seems that mission for me has been simply to be handsome and gleaming and adored! Well, I think I can manage that! Mind you, I even got corrected on my interpretation of 'handsome and gleaming'. I had taken Mummy for a lovely long walkies along the towpath, through a dark tube of doom and out the other end to find a glorious giant puddle to swim in. It was fantabulous!! Just perfect on a hot afternoon! When I sploshed out again onto the towpath, I did a rather spectacular job of drying myself off by rolling on the dusty gravel towpath! I think the golden tones rather suited me! I think Mummy disagreed though: when we got back to flaotyboatyhome, I got frothed! Huff! Then, when I was dry, I got puffed and buffed and polished.

It has been a great week really! It is lovely to be with all our floatyboatyhumanpals, plus my girliefriend Lilly too. There has been oodles of hard work to do, plus lots of fun too. One evening, I got a bit miffed though. We went to a big building where there were lots of humanpups. Some of our floatyboatyhumans were playing football with them and Lilly got to join in but Mummy wouldn't let me. She said I would pop the ball! Well.... surely that is the idea of the game isn't it? I simply didn't get the chance to demonstrate my ball skills! I squeaked and woofed and cried but to no avail. Mum had me firmly clamped to her chair! Huff!

On Saturday, the day of the hundreds of sausages and meatydisks, Mummy wasn't feeling too good. I knew this. I looked after her. It was a really bad, bad eyes days, so I took her for a lovely long walkies along the towpath. Then I spent the rest of the day lying right next to her on the rug on the towpath. She was sitting on the rug on the floor, doing something she called 'Rag-rugging' and getting minihumans to join in. This meant that, even though I was pressed right by her side, making sure she was safe, I got lots of fusses and admirations! It was a very nice way to spend the time doing my duty.

On Tuesday, we went to a humanboozery place for the evening, where humanpals James and Hazel, plus Roger and Miriana did all sorts of humanhowling into black lollipops and they had various noiseboxes too - some with a hole in the middle and a long stick on one side with whiskers along it, some really peculiar things that had little buttons on both ends and a ziggyzaggy squeezy-in-and-out middle bit. I just enjoyed the carpet and kept tucked into the corner out of the way.

On Wednesday evening, it was Mummy's turn to use a black lollipop. This was in a different building and there were people sitting on rows and rows of chairs. Mummy was telling them all about her sightloss and about me and about something called miracles that have got us to be living on a floatyboatyhome. Of course, I simply had to do my bestest job; I had to soak up all the fusses and admirations! It's a tough job sometimes!

Yesterday was a day of unwinding after all the busyness. For me that meant another fantabulous swimming opportunity. I took Mummy and Daddy for a leisurely walkies and that got us to a lake where I found pooch pals to swim and romp in the giant puddle with. This evening, Daddy wanted to go back there when it was almost dark, so he could play with his one-eyed-clickybox. I was happy to accompany him and to demonstrate my swimming in the dark skills! Now, I am nice and soggy and Mummy says she wants a shower.........

 

I shall leave you with a few photos of the week's adventures.

Swimming in the giant puddle. I got quite a long way out.......

......but I swam back again!

Meeting a colleague is always good. This fellow Guide Dog was on hollibobs with his blind ladyhuman mum and dad on his wheeliebuzzer.

Looking after Mummy at one of the humanhowling sessions on the towpath.

Lilly tried on my working harness. I think it rather suited her! She didn't do too badly at guiding her daddy but she went in a bit of a zigzag line across the hall!