Paws in the Park

Posted on September 6, 2010 by Susan

It was a long and busy day for the Beaglets on Saturday. Beanie, Biggles and their pal Bundy were all working at “Paws in the Park” (along with their 2 legged assistants – Brian, Carolyn, Paul and I).

Paws in the Park is an annual doggy event in Rouken Glen park hosted by the Glasgow Dog Training club. This year we were asked to run the agility “Have a Go” activity. As seasoned flyball pro’s (well, they’ve done a bit) Beanie, Biggles and Bundy were the obvious choice.

We decided to photograph all of the dogs that took part and provide the owners with a free action shot. This proved to be a big hit and we had people queuing for a go. It was hard work but great fun and we raised £91 for a good doggy cause and lots of people went away with a lovely action shot of their dog.

Here are a few of the mug shots :

The Smell of Death

Posted on August 30, 2010 by Susan

It’s not often that the smell of Biggles’ farts is welcome, but on Sunday we were longing for the heady aroma of overcooked cabbage.

We frequently drive past nearby Loudoun Hill and on Sunday we decided to enjoy the views from the top. We parked up at nearby Darvel to walk along the old railway line to the hill – a round trip of about 7 or 8 miles.

Loudoun Hill from the old railway track near Darvel

While we stopped to take the photo above Beanie and Biggles began frantically rolling in the grass. A closer inspection revealed the reason for their enthusiasm:

The well rotted carcass of a sheep

The smell was vile and we spent the rest of the walk trying to stay up wind of the pups. We tried to get them to roll in cow dung in the hope that it would mask the smell of death but our Beaglets were very proud of their lovely new scent and didn’t want to spoil it.

The old railway closed in the 1930’s and now it’s just a grass track running through farmland. We stopped several times to admire the views.

There were lots of stiles to lift our stinky pups over:

I was half way over this one with Beanie when Paul spotted the notice advising walkers to take a detour to avoid the horse.

We took the alternative route which took us through a field alongside the railway track. Just moments later the meanest, biggest, angriest black stallion appeared on the railway track. Beanie and Biggles barked frantically and the horse pounded it’s hooves and galloped up and down the railway track looking for a way to get through the fence. I’ve never seen a horse look so menacing.

We moved on briskly. Loudon Hill was now getting closer.

As we approached the hill we left the railway track to walk along farm roads. The fields were full of cattle – young males I think. They were all very interested in Beanie and Biggles and came stampeding over to the fence for a closer look.

Eventually we got to the hill. It’s a short but steep climb up and the views from the top are amazing.

The Battle of Loudoun Hill was fought in May 1307 between a Scots force led by Robert Bruce and the English commanded by Aymer de Valence. It took place beneath Loudoun Hill, and ended in a victory for Bruce. There’s a plaque to commemorate the battle at the top of the hill.

This one’s looking back towards Irvine bay (where we live):

Peek-a-boo!

We spent about an hour on Loudon Hill chatting to other walkers. We then retraced our steps back to Darvel and our car. I was a bit nervous about crossing the field beside the black stallion and sure enough, he was lying in wait for us. I was convinced he was going to jump the fence to get to us at one point. And of course, Beanie and Biggles wound him up by barking. A few minute after escaping the stallion we heard a drumming of hooves….LOTS of hooves. A herd of cattle stampeded over to get a closer look at our very noisy Beagles. Fortunately there was a fence separating their field from the railway track!

I’m sure they were just curious, but the jostled and pushed to try and get close to the fence for a better view. Every so often they’d charge away from the fence and then come stampeding back. It was quite unnerving being so close to them. And of course, Beanie and Biggles continued to bark, howl and bay. But there was a fence there. Nothing to worry about. And then…..

….the fence stopped. We were in the field with a herd of large cattle that were hell bent on getting a close look at our noisy hounds. We legged it up the steep railway embankment and fortunately most of the cattle stopped following. One particularly curious one followed us for a while but he eventually gave up.

A lovely walk, but watch out for the farm animals!

Biggles’ Second Birthday!

Posted on August 28, 2010 by Paul

The Biggly Boy is two today!

We had a little celebration, actually kind of an agility party, a couple of days ago when the weather was behaving itself. While we were putting up the balloons and agility equipment, Biggles made himself comfy on a couple of canvas chairs we’d left outside to dry after their thorough soaking at lure coursing on Sunday.

The chairs are kind of wobbly and I didn’t think he’d be keen on them, certainly Beanie wasn’t, but he loved the way the seat bottom molded to his shape. They do have one major design flaw though:

Comfy seat – but I can’t reach my beer!

We had two guests for the party, fellow Beagle Bundy and Ru. They each had a go at the agility course and did very well, albeit with a couple of false starts.

What do ya mean I’m supposed to jump it?

OK, got it!

Just like Beanie & Biggles, Bundy had absolutely no fear of the seesaw

Ru was a natural at the jumps!

Obviously no birthday party would be complete without a cake – a sardine cake in this case!

Of course any time you get three Beagles round a table with a tasty, smelly cake on it you can’t really expect to see good table manners.

It’s impolite to howl when the service is a little slow

One shouldn’t chew with one’s mouth open

I’m sure there are also rules about not resting one’s chin on the table..

..not swallowing one’s food without chewing it at least once

..and not proceeding to consume one’s plate immediately after finishing one’s cake

The noise those three Beagles made was deafening. If I ever get to see a full pack of working Beagles going on a hunt I’m going to need earplugs. And through all this, Ru sat quietly by his owner’s side and didn’t misbehave once. Non-beagle owners have no idea how easy they’ve got it!

Despite the noise and dodgy table manners, I couldn’t help feeling proud of how Biggles has turned out. He’s come on in leaps, bounds and boings since we got a little help with his possessiveness. Admittedly the life expectancy of teatowels, toilet rolls and dishcloths is still rather short in our house, but Biggles is now far more willing to give things up and follow our directions even when there’s no immediate reward in sight. As far as I’m concerned he’s the best Beagle boy there is!