Help! The whole world’s gone furry!

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The weather’s turning wintery and both Beanie & Biggles have decided to jettison their warm-weather romper suits. Now I know that Beagles are only relatively small dogs with short hair but let me tell you, their discarded fur is everywhere.

Not so long ago we bought a new vacuum cleaner – one of those extra powerful German things that actually has a power dial on it so you can decide whether or not to leave the floorboards in place. It’s still new enough that I get a slight “new gadget buzz” every time I use it (sad, I know, but that’s me) and consequently the vacuuming gets done pretty frequently. Despite this, little Beagle furballs are still collecting under the radiators and behind the doors. There’s a coating of Beagle hairs on the sofa, on the TV, on all the air intake grills of my main computer, on the insides of my trainers, and on my camera gear (and I’m very picky about keeping that clean). If I blow my nose into a hanky and examine the result, I’ll more than likely find a Beagle hair in there. This is easily the worst shedding we’ve ever had, and the reason it’s so bad is that our two rascals are playing like fuel-injected puppies.

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Look carefully and you can actually see the fur flying in this shot!

I don’t know what’s behind it, but two or three times a day now they’ll launch into noisy, room-shaking, stunt-filled play sessions the likes of which we haven’t seen for three years. Quite often it’s Beanie who starts it. One minute she’ll be quietly snoozing in her special cave-like bed (which we now call simply The Abode), then suddenly and for no obvious reason she’ll emerge, trot straight over to Biggles and gently but purposefully paw-swipe his face. Two seconds later it’s bedlam.

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Biggles initiates some of the sessions too. The first warning sign is his tail – it gets rigid yet quivery as he catches Beanie’s gaze (I call it “tremble-tail”), then he draws back onto his rear legs like he’s about to pounce on a smelly sock, and off we go again.

It’s extremely entertaining if you’re in the mood for it; Biggles takes off on a mad sprint out of the living room and down the corridor. Beanie cold-jumps straight over the sofa to give chase – letting off a piercing hunting cry as she goes – then suddenly they both come barreling back into the room for a friendly punch up, knocking over drinks and sending remote controls flying. Anything that gets caught in the crossfire – a blanket, a magazine, the mail – gets used as a tug toy and destroyed.

The other day Susan came in from making a coffee to find them munching their way through one of our rubbery exercise mats. Beanie paused briefly to acknowledge her Mum, but there was no expression of guilt or remorse, just a look that basically said “well, Mum, you know how it is. The mat was just there, so we did it. Some people climb mountains. Some people run marathons. We do this..”

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The play is lot more balanced than it used to be, and more affectionate too. Sometimes they’re rolling around together and they just stop for a moment to savor the furry cuddle in which they’ve accidentally landed. It’s a joy to behold if you’re not trying to watch the TV, or have a conversation, answer the phone, or hear yourself think. There are times however when a semblance of order and peace has to be restored, and at these times we either give them a short cool-down period in their crates, or send them both out into the garden. The last thing I want to do is discourage them from playing, but if this continues at it’s current level I’m going to need ear-plugs for use in my own living room, and nose-plugs to stop fur-induced sneezes!

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6 Replies to “Help! The whole world’s gone furry!”

  1. Susan in DE

    Amazing photos and wonderful narrative as always, Paul! If you look closely, you can see beagle fur splattered about in EVERY photo. But of course, I think most beagle owners would spot the fur immediately, as we’re all used to the pervasiveness of it. I can vacuum up the floorboards, and there will still be beagle fur remaining. I know friends who lost their beagle over a year ago, and are still picking fur out of their trainers and other footwear. The half-life of beagle fur is about 10,000 years, I think.

  2. Paul Post author

    Thanks Susan.

    Yep them blummin’ hairs hang on for dear life. When the car goes in for a service they usually ask me if I want the valeting service. I always decline, partly because I grew up in Yorkshire (a region renowned for being tight-arsed with money) and partly because I honestly couldn’t put some poor minimum wage guy through that amount of hardship.

  3. Julie, JB & Cassie's \mum

    Wow, the first picture’s incredible Paul! It shows just what they could do with those teeth if they had a mind to! We have so much beagle hair I’m thinking of knitting jumpers with it; something to rival cashmere!! Perhaps if I charge cashmere prices I could retire and have someone in to do the Hoovering …….. !

  4. Paul Post author

    Thanks Julie. I was going to say the jumpers are a good idea but then I realised I’m already so covered in Beagle hair I don’t really need an extra layer!

    You’re dead right about those Beagle teeth. I once got some paddywhack for them that was so tough I had to use a jigsaw to cut it into smaller pieces. Biggles dispatched it in under 2 minutes using just his natural gnashers!

  5. Sue in Texas

    Great pictures and a great story, I love the wrestling pictures…
    My husband would throw a fit if he knew I told you this. He is NOT a fan of Beagle fur and you would think that he’d have gotten used to it by now. They are 11 & 12. Anyway, he was changing out his wallet and there was Beagle HAIR in the billfold. hahahaha
    It is EVERYWHERE, nothing is sacred..
    Thanks again for all the smiles.

  6. Paul Post author

    Blimey, how has your husband survived all those years with Beagles!!? I’m only 7 years in and already my standards for tidiness & cleanliness have been adjusted in the downwards direction more times than I can count :)

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