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Sunday the 27th of December 2015
It has rained hard for 24 hours and we have a record amount of 38mm in the rain gauge! Even our Grandchild didn't fill it up that much in the summer! The whole garden is awash and the hedge is standing under water....

Friday the 25th of December 2015
Dasher flew after a large fluffy cat this morning, so it rushed up a tree!
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The dogs were very frustrated

A few doggy shots from the Christmas eve celebration yesterday - they celebrate on the eve of the 24th in Denmark for some unknown reason! The dogs had a wonderful time and I managed to keep them from poisoning themselves on chocolate and other things dogs shouldn't eat!
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Left: Grandchild trying to eat a bun - I had to put Solo in his cage for 10 minutes!
Right: Our 6 month old Grandchild noticed the dogs properly for the first time and all his fingers were wriggling, dying to clutch and hold them! He was VERY fascinated.

Above, helping to wash up the dishes!

Thursday the 24th of December 2015
Wishing all my faithful readers a Happy Christmas!

Tuesday the 15th of December
First a morning with blinding winter sun...

then a morning with quite a mist!


Friday the 11th of December
I got a shock and a surprise today!
Shortly after we sold the car in April, we were invited to lunch with our friends Heidi and Erik, who live around the corner to our old house. A simple train journey where Erik picked us up and later dropped us off at Høje Tåstrup Station. No problem.
As we still wore wintery shoes, we each took slippers with us to change into while we were with them. We had our usual wonderful day there!
On the train going home, we heard a little crash sound under our seat. Tried to see if we had dropped anything but nothing to be seen. We’ll never know what the sound was. I travelled home with my sunglasses on, as the setting sun was low on the horizon and streamed in the windows. When we got home, I realised my ordinary distance glasses were missing! Big panic!
I must have dropped them out of the plastic bag of shoes I was carrying? (I remembered the clatter and crash we had heard.) So I immediately went on the web and filled in a “Lost Property” form with DSB, the train company, hoping to get them back one day. I never heard a word.
Next day, I went to my favourite opticians. They tested my eyes, it was some 5-6 years ago since last, and I ordered some new glasses. I knew it could be some time before the train company DSB found them and they are my “long distance” glasses, which I cannot be without.
In the meantime, I had to go around with sunglasses on all day – my only other ones with long distance.
Which looked crazy of course on rainy days or watching tv in the evening!
Peter, Sheila and Adam came to stay for 2 weeks and never saw me without these darned sunglasses on, nor did various guests we invited - and sunglasses are annoying things as you cannot see the eyes of the person you're talking to!
These no doubt contributed to the funny “gypsy story”! See: www.sighthound.net/gypsystory.htm
All this was in the start of May.
After our guests had gone home, I collected my new glasses – they cost me nearly 3000 kroner! A dreadful price.
Still not a word from DSB about my old ones – surely the cleaning lady would have found them by now? I kept thinking about them. Summer came and went and now today it is the 11th December.
This afternoon, Svend sees an ad for a cheap pair of men’s slippers in a newspaper that he quite likes and shows me.
I am negative, pointing out, that he hates this kind of slipper, which has a flat sole and doesn't turn up at the toes, because he shuffles along and trips up on things!!!
I go and fetch his slippers, which he has not worn since the Heidi and Erik lunch, to show him.
And yes, he hates them as they are flat and and that’s why he’s not used them since, as he has other shoes he can change into when out at friends. I plonk them on the table beside him and suddenly see... oooh, what is this peeking out of one of them?
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It appears to be a glasses case? I am always helping him find his glasses, so now I assume they are his ... but no, I turn them over and see the white cat sticker I carefully described to DSB!!!
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I look inside and what a lovely surprise, THEY ARE MY LOST GLASSES FROM MAY!!!!!!
I am completely in shock - and overjoyed!
Svend has clearly put the slippers away on a shelf with other shoes that we never use and not noticed the glasses case tucked well down the toe! What an expensive mistake!
The old ones have “Solo chewed” earpieces but they weigh less on my nose than the new ones, so I think I’ll start wearing them again!

Tuesday the 8th of December

We've just had a hard storm wind battering Denmark non-stop for two solid days, yet I see this little oak tree that I bought on holiday in Cornwall when it was only a foot high, still has kept all it's leaves!!!

Dasher well dressed up a very cold day, I have just been on an hour long walk with them.

They sit long enough for me to photograph this! Silly dogs!

We don't get many Christmas cards - well I only send eCards now, so paper cards are rare and I laughed out loud at my friend's envelope, using up all her old stamps, as she doesn't send much in the post any more either! Very decorative! Pity that the Post office had to plaster a magnetic strip across the top ones...

Friday the 4th of December

For one month, Dasher can wear his "Father Christmas coat"! Brings a smile on everyone's face, people stare out of cars, the two girls we passed on ponies this morning had a good giggle and today, we were even photographed! I only took this bad photo due to constant drizzle, mist or wetness plus howling gale winds, so I dare not use the camera.

Thursday the 3rd of December

House from 1575 now a museum.
Yesterday, I met up with two girlfriends on the island of Fyn, for a lovely Christmas lunch, Danish style. We visited a museum called Clay with all things made of, well yes, clay, both old and new! See: claymuseum.dk/english/ A wonderful, inspiring place. Then on to a Museum in the pretty town of Middelfart, (the town is from before the 13th century!) not the one above, where they had an exhibition of what would translate as "Gingerbread houses", decorated in masses of icing sugar and sweets - all depicting parts of the interesting old town. I made a video of some of the "works of art", just 3 minutes long, do see it here:

www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVgIsIPDEeA
The attention to small detail,the imagination and the love put into the "buildings" is incredible. I was most admiring.
And the wonderful Christmassy gingerbread smell was right out in the street! (The principle ingredient is cardamon, a "lemony" tasting spice.)

Above, from the garden some pretty mini crab-apples.

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Friday the 27th of November

A cat watched us go past from a fence this morning, fully aware that the dogs never saw it!
I wanted to buy the dogs two new glass food bowls.
(One had broken, so I had two “odd” ones) I prefer strong glass to all the fancy metal and plastic bowls made specially for dogs! Plain glass is discreet and nearly un-noticeable standing out most of the day on the kitchen counter top. I could not find the ones I usually buy but spotted these two very “royal” cut-glass bowls going cheaply, so now the dogs eat like kings out of their new, very stable and special bowls!
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Solo gets up on the kitchen table as I watch!
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We can't shout to show our disapproval, as this can send a dog flying down and landing badly in the rush - and breaking a leg. So I let him do it for the sake of the photos!

Wednesday the 25th of November


Solo is 3 years old today! My thoughts go to his human parents....

Wednesday the 25th of November
Below, two photos sent by a friend living less than an hour's drive away from us, showing THEIR huge amount of snow on Sunday! Re. my little story just below. (It's raining right now, so all snow disappeared.)
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Below, a new photo from 2 friends who live near where we used to live:

Monday the 23rd of November 2015
Yesterday was both a nightmare day but also a WONDERFUL one together with family and friends!
Unfortunately, the Brunch Party was held on the very day that a big snowstorm hit Denmark.
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Photos above taken yesterday at the inn we went to at Bellahøj.
Some places had less snow, like where we live, where it all melted but other places it was very thick - 60 or more centimetres.

Photo above from 2 guests who had to dig their car out yesterday morning before they could drive anywhere!
We left the house at 8.15am in icey, blustery winds and whirling snowflakes. The bus came precisely on time and the train only 3 minutes late. So far so good. (So I proudly texted my friend who was dog-sitting later, that her bad forebodings were put to shame – but little did we know of what was yet to come!)
Photo below waiting for the bus to come over the hill.

At the second station, the train stood for longer than it should and then we were all told over the loudspeaker, that some trees had fallen down under the weight of snow, bringing down the over-head electric wires, so the trains to and fro only had one track to share between them! We were to wait until they figured out the order of things.
After sitting for some time, the loudspeaker announced that people going to the airport should switch to the train standing at the next platform, (meaning down two flights of stairs, along a tunnel under the tracks and up two flights!)
This caused MANY people to start hurrying off our train
– and we thought: If they are going first and getting priority treatment – why don’t we go along as well? So we too, hurried over to the other platform and found the other train now full to bursting, as it had already been half full with the usual amount of passengers and now it was the chaos of passengers from two trains crammed into one!
After about 10 mins. a new announcement was made that everyone wanting the airport would be ferried there in taxis, so please to leave the train!
I thought, what a fantastic good service we have here on the Danish railway system and was most admiring!
So about 50-60 people clambered off again and milled around on the snowy platform, wondering where to go next.
After a further 10 minutes, it was announced that they were all to get back on the train again!
(Somebody at top level had canned the extra expense???)
This time the "airport souls" had to stand up, as we had taken their seats when they left!!!!
We were now most of us feeling like we knew each other and conversations struck up and everyone helped where they could.

Saturday the 21st of November
VERY cold today, so time for the dogs to wear their trouser suits made by Togs for Dogs in England! I don't know what I'd do without them. Sighthounds have such long, thin legs.

Anyone can see the evidence, that Solo has jumped up on the kitchen table and drunk Svend's coffee!

Saturday the 14th of November
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again on this blog, because it is vital that all dog owners test the dried food that they give their dogs.
A handful of dried particles look like a modest sized meal when sitting innocently in the dog bowl.
But each particle will swell up in the stomach during digestion.
One needs to know exactly how much each particle/brand of dog food swells up.
The test is simple:
Take two identical pieces and put one in a glass of water and let the other stand alongside in the dry.
Leave for around 2 hours – out of reach of the dog!
When the time’s up, the soaked particle will often be double the size or even triple – once I had a type that was FOUR times the size! (I never bought that one again.)
Only a few brands disintegrate and do not swell.
(So obviously you can/should feed larger portions of these kinds, to compensate for the lack of swelling.)

As an owner, one should also have a rough idea of the size of the dog’s stomach.
The evening meal should be one that allows it to have that “comfortably full up” feeling, but without being too much.
Therefore, before putting the meal on the floor,
if you should have tested the food for it’s swelling percent – you will then know how much to feed your pooch.
You can now feed an amount that will swell up to “the right quantity” for your particular dog,
and NOT force him/her throw up shortly afterwards to relieve the massive pressure, or be one of the few unfortunates, who gets the dreaded bloat – or who gets over-weight through overfeeding.

Personally, I feed my dogs 3 times a day.
Sighthounds have small, “tucked-up-in-the-rib-cage” stomachs and I found many years ago, that they are best with a very small breakfast, (just think how many hours it is since the last meal?) and a very small lunch. These small meals keep away hunger pains and stop excess bile building up in the stomach, (which can be very painful and sometimes they throw up to relieve it) – and then a larger “dinner” in the late afternoon or evening when all exercise and activity for the day is over and they just want to cosy up to us, relax or sleep.
All in all, they do not eat any MORE this way, but they are kept “comfortable” in the stomach – and it’s never enough to prevent them from running or doing rough exercise through the day - and they thrive on 3 meals! I have never had over-weight dogs – even my “oldies” have always been “fit for fight” in top condition.

So please, at the very least, test your dog’s food for how much it swells – you might get a shock!
(And you might consider sparing him/her from a lot of hunger pains and discomfort, if you decide to feed 3 times a day, as indeed we humans thrive best on!)

Two examples of swelling - and if you don't make allowances for this when you feed your dog - well, heaven help it!

Tuesday the 10th of November
Our oldest son and daughter-in-law came to lunch on Sunday and the afternoon weather turned nice, so we went for the long walk through the fields. They wanted to hold a dog each, so I enjoyed being able to swing my arms and walk normally for once! But the dogs were confused. Solo lagged behind instead of being up front and Dasher kept his eye on me, uncomfortable that "things were different"!

Clever Anne spotted this unintional piece of modern art in her mango juice greeting drink standing on a tray from IKEA
- and took this photo with her iPhone!

Could sell at a high price? Any bidders?

Meanwhile, up in the kitchen garden, I have strawberries in flower and with fruit - which the birds are enjoying!
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... AND raspberries - these were picked on the 8th of November!
Today, I "fell over" the grasshopper again, hanging upside down on the wall of the workshop. He seems to like white backgrounds! Still going strong, tho' winter is nigh! I noticed it's got special hooks for hanging upside down!

Saturday the 7th of November
Yes, we did it! We fell for joining everybody else, who has been celebrating Christmas ever since last month and put up our outside decorations a month earlier than usual!!! This is because we like the light in the evenings in the driveway and figure it is a bit “burglar-scaring” to enter a place that is so well it up.
But otherwise we are not yet in the Christmas mood!!!


Outside the Care Home for older people, they are building a lovely new and very modern children's playground. But I am only sorry that they have not given one thought to the many elderly, who might enjoy a last swing or two - they could easily have made a couple of extra strong swings, perhaps with a more "chair-like" seat, as I am sure there are many who would still enjoy the thrill and movement - and being together with the children all having fun. So far, there's not even a bench to sit on.

Above: Before. Below: two days ago:

Saturday the 31st of October

Yesterday morning, on entering the village from the walk over the fields, I spotted this Halloween group of school children and teachers, on the way to celebrate at our local school. Some were dressed up.

They shocked me by walking on the wrong side of the road. The correct side for walking is the left!

Later, I caught up with them and said to one teacher: "Do you realise...?" and she fully agreed it was wrong - too late now of course, but pretty tragic that no one took the golden opportunity to show the children a bit of road drill.

On the long "through the fields" dog walk this morning and when I get to the village, I admire the very old trees are SO beautiftul in the sunlight. It's a breathtaking time of year... but soon over with now....

Below, the road through the village.

Below, a VERY old tree..

Below: Enjoying the last chance of sunbathing.

Saturday the 24th of October 2015 - now the 8th blog!
Dasher playing silly games with a cat toy! His tail is actually horizontally over his back, (you can just faintly see it if you have keen eyesight!) but the flash caught the SHADOW of it on the wall!


Friday the 23th of October
Met two ponies coming towards us yesterday morning.

No close ups as I stood well in to the stone wall with Dasher on a short lead and Solo, the most likely to flip out, held firmly under my arm! Suddenly, the path that I thought was too wide, was nearly too narrow!!! The ponies kept their eyes on the dogs but passed calmly like we didn't exist! The dogs stood sniffing the air for a long while afterwards!

Above, same photo enlarged. I have seen the pair many times before.

Below: The last rose of summer!

This one's called after the famous Danish actress Ghita Nørby. The perfume is wonderful.

Tuesday the 20th of October
The winter corn this morning, (may not be corn, I'll have to wait and see!) is already sprouting well. Compare with September's photos of brown earth below. It's hard to see the grass path now! Bit of a dull day today. Note the traditional Danish white painted, red roofed church in the distance.

Monday the 19th of October
"Who said it was YOUR shoe? I dare you to come and take it!"

Amazing what can grow on a rotten tomato while your back's turned! (Sitting on old potato peelings.)

Sunday the 18th of October

Thursday the 15th of October

Manday the 12th of October

It's gone gloomy and colder now, so these virile strawberry plants, thinking the recent sunny days were summer again, can never ripen!
Below, 100 year old beeches and ash in the autumn sun - as I pass on a dog walk.
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Wednesday the 30th of September

After a lovely long walk of over an hour this morning, Solo still stole my shoe! Soon three years old, yet behaving like a puppy!
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Then he checked the table over for forgotten crumbs!

Yesterday evening, Solo appeared to have been bitten 5-6 times by mosquites. He was shaking his head a lot and a closer examination revealed a lot of allergic bumps. Look closely, nose and all around right eye. He is quite swollen.


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I suffer exactly the same right now, so I knew how he was feeling, sure he would get through it and this morning he was just fine again! (I rubbed the bumps with my own Mepyramine cream against itching and it seemed to help him.

Monday the 28th of September
I do the "over the fields" walk again this morning in beautiful weather and not a breath of wind!

Here you can see the long shadows from the morning sun on the old boulder-stone wall.

An amusing sign in the Royale Kvarter - we could do with more of them, dog owners disgust me with their carelessness...
Below, on way home, the path to nowhere past these nice terrace houses! A wonderful view at the end.

Sunday the 27th of September

Photo above: The Mayor of Slagelse (dead centre) makes a speach before cutting the ribbon and declaring the path open.

Below: Looking back to the way in and out from the village.

Yesterday morning I met with a crowd of local people to see the opening of a new, what they call in Danish, "trampe sti". Trampe is the same word in English, when you tramp on something - we are going to tramp around on this new path, as indeed we did! Sti means path. This new footpath has been created between two enormous fields joining the very old village of Slots Bjergby, (which we are a part of) in the north, to the new housing area affectionately referred to as "Den Royale Kvarter", (the Royal Quarter/area), because most of the road names are called after the members of the Danish Royal family!!!
This new housing area is south of the village. It means a lot to me as a whole new doggy walk possibility opens up! I can easily walk up, (I say up, as it's hilly here!), to the Royale Kvarter, through a couple of short roads and a sandy path and then I am crossing the fields in the breathtaking peace and quiet of nature. (Where deer, pheasants and foxes roam!) The path runs alongside an old rocky boundry wall from centuries past, (which is completely overgrown) and several fields of corn etc. on each side. At the moment of course the harvest time has passed and the fields are all freshly ploughed. The path ends between old houses with large gardens with trees several hundred years old, running into the main street of the village. I have then a 15 min. walk home.

Below: We are all walking (tramping!) for the very first time. The tops of the roofs of the Royale Kvarter can just be seen.

Below: Looking back the way I have come and outskirts of the the village of Slots Bjergby.

Below: From a little further along and the red roof of the pretty church in Slots Bjergby, (the highest church on the whole of the island of Sjælland), can be seen to the right - if you look closely with reading glasses on!

I did this walk again this morning, the other way round. The only shame is that the ridge of old, overgrown stones over-shadows the path at this hour, so the dogs miss being warmed by the sun. The above shot is taking at mid-day yesterday, so a shorter shadow.

Wednesday the 24th of September
Staring at each other!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=731W5DIOCtI
See the above short video showing Solo plucking the plums!

Monday the 21st of September
Solo plucks his own plums! The windfalls are apparently not good enough.
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Below: Solo is waiting for me to come outside and play and he is impatient, so he sets to destroying my plant in the pot!

What a mess!

The family were here to lunch yesterday and my oldest son took a few photos:

Solo and Dasher howl terribly when they hear themselves on this video. Try playing it to your dog!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=irDHzwW-DtU
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A game of ball in the garden makes Solo go crazy!

It's not always Solo lets one take the ball to be thrown.! He looks very wild here!

I have given them two identical bones. Dasher is enjoying his while Solo is depressed, as he is totally convinced that Dasher's bone is far better and he is just waiting his chance to grab it!

Wednesday the 16th of September

I went to Tivoli last Sunday! It was their yearly open day for DOGS!
Apart from the pleasure of seeing all the dogs, the fun for Dasher to meet so many others and the BEAUTIFUL gardens,
the Danish Kennel Club always arranges a big parade with everyone’s (pedigree) dogs grouped under the FCI Groups 1-10. (10 being sighthounds, so we came in last!) The leaders of each group or breed wore signs to tell the public the breed and group.
Unfortunately, it poured with rain, easing off to very fine rain but never the less everything and everybody got dripping wet. It only stopped shortly before we were due to leave. Dasher and I were soaked even before we had got up to the bus stop. (Of course we both had rainwear! His is from togsfordogs.)
Here is a short video (only 39 seconds!!!) of the rain pouring down and showing us on the bus to the station,
www.youtube.com/watch?v=shOEaK9epXU

This should have been the start of a story about the whole day out, (the weather was promised to clear up later) but alas, it rained too much to use my camera, apart just a few photos.
BUT I did have fun anyway meeting the few friends faithful enough to turn up for the parade.

Above, taken by my son! (Only 4 IG's in all, the rest chickened out!)

Above, Dasher wants to meet a Greyhound, so he ducks under it's friend and disappears, see below...

...then jumped back! (He'd hoped it was a female???)
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Above right, the dogs who were chosen to be on stage whilst the Kennel Club speaker told all about the breed's history.
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Waiting time with friends! Taken by my son. Right, Dasher, now with coat back on, finds a man to kiss, who had an adorable Whippet of 5 months from Norway.
I was deeply impressed by the Greyhound friend with 4 large greyhounds - well all greyhounds are large aren’t they - as believe it or not she had travelled on the train with them. ALL FOUR OF THEM!!!
Tivoli's side entrance is just opposite the main station, so the last bit was easy but I would have loved to have seen people's eyes pop out when they saw FOUR Greyhounds, (and she’s not very tall!), stepping into the train!!! They were wonderfully behaved and kept their cool as all Greyhounds do - except if they spot a hare!
She was quite unfazed at this - more concerned about how she could only get one dog included on her travel card (I have the same, where you can take two other adults, one child or one dog extra on the card – you pay of course), and how she had to buy 3 extra child’s tickets for the other 3 dogs! Wonderful what one can get on public transport here!!!
Can you imagine the scene? I had a very good day, despite the rain.

PS I nearly forgot, I had the most amazing experience when I got on the train at Slagelse to go to Copenhagen.
Expecting the usual half empty Sunday train with plenty of seats, I was amazed to find it totally full up with people and had to go through 3 carriages to find a vacant seat, which was one of a row of emergency extra seats, but quite comfortable.
I realised to my amazement that the train was full to the eyebrows with refugees from Syria and other countries all headed for the main station in Copenhagen, same as me – only whereas I was going to have fun in Tivoli across the road, they were changing to the train to Sweden – and the unknown life ahead of them. I felt very outnumbered.
Most were young men and a few children, many had mobiles and all around me there was a VERY foreign language being spoken! It was most weird. I was in the middle of the terrible tragedy that's happening.
The young man seated to the right side of me glanced briefly at Dasher sitting in his bag on my lap and got up and moved away!
One of the “dogs are unclean” brigade? I hope they all find happiness somewhere, sometime...

Wednesday the 9th of September
Video from the lure coursing demos last Sunday, described below:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Omf_WhVVyM


Monday the 7th of September
I had a wonderful day out yesterday!
Up at 5.30 am and out of the door with Dasher and a travel bag at 8.15. (A 5 minute walk to the bus stop can take much longer with a dog in tow!) I had two busses and a train to get to Roskilde where they were holding a huge 2 day event for horses www.storehestedag.dk/Default.aspx?ID=2457
but also all dogs welcome and the Myndeklubben, (The Sighthound Club of Denmark, which I am a member of), were doing short Lure coursing demonstrations in the middle of all the hubbub of loud speakers, dogs and horses.
My first time on public transport with a dog.
I had read that small dogs travel free if in a bag on lap and larger dogs must be on floor and cost a child’s ticket.
So a while back I got a travel bag in black plastic that a dog just sits inside. Here he poses at home:

I staggered up the deep stairs of the first bus with Dasher under my right arm, a spare finger gripping a handle of the dangling bag and my travel card in the other hand ready to be wirelessly read by the stander with a blue wireless “reader” lamp that’s on all busses....... I greeted the lady driver and explained I had read the rules about a dog travelling free in bag on lap.
She gave a me a long lecture about he should be IN the bag already, otherwise the other passengers might think he’d run loose around the bus, but she would let it pass as there were so few at this hour! All said in a nice tone of voice, but NOT a good start. Dasher, who is totally used to travel in cars was on “red alert” with all the new sounds and the odd bang and crash! But he quickly saw that everything appeared to be under control and that he could lick my face from sitting in the bag!
I managed to get off the bus OK at our station and then a short walk down two flights of steps (Dasher is good at steps!) - and along a tunnel under all the train lines, up two flights of steps to the platform towards Copenhagen and had a short wait, him in bag on my lap in the glass-sided waiting room.
Getting on the train wasn’t easy as the steps are really steep but I managed ok and found a seat and he relaxed as we glided along. The ticket inspector hardly glanced at Dasher when he checked my travel card with his “reader” and rushed off before I could say that I had read the rules etc. - so I'm not saying a word in future!
Then I had to find the next bus at Roskilde and this big station there is a nightmare if you don’t know it. After many more flights of stairs up and down and going the wrong way out to the road so even more flights of stairs back again, (luckily plenty of time before the bus went to do all this) then finally at the 212 bus stop I met a couple with a Beagle also going to the Store Hestedag and Dasher and the Beagle became good friends and spent the time mucking about while we waited.
The driver was barely looking at our dogs, though I always exchange a “hi” with them, who are usually very pleasant.
He kindly called out when we were there and I found the way easily. I could get in free as I was participating and got an armband to prove it!
Dasher ran 3 times in all as did most of our dogs but I didn’t film him. Will make a video of many others. The public were visiting together with their dogs of all kinds and we encouraged them to let theirs have ago at lure coursing and many did a good job whilst others never understood what was wanted at all, much to the amusement of the bystanders!
Below my friend's two Italians, mother and daughter of 5 months, were very amusing to see together with a Great Dane!
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A Saluki ready to go and Dasher is jealous as he is standing watching all the others! Right the end of one of Dasher's runs.
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Saturday the 5th of September
Spotted some deer on the doggy walk this morning.

The corn has been cut in this field.

Solo doing a show pose in the sun Friday - right ear flapped back. He's just had dinner, so a heavy stomach!

Waiting for me to kick a ball with his ear twisted.
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I throw or kick it and he is very good at fetching - when the mood takes him. Dasher doesn't get the point of fetching at all!

Ugh, he's up on my desk again to check it out for "stealables"!

Tuesday the 1st of September
Went on Sunday to lure coursing in the pretty little village of Rækkende and had a fun day. Rain had been forecast but whilst it drizzled en route, it was dry, warm and mostly cloudy - perfect for us all - and dogs could be safely left in cars.

My friend picked me up and drove me there with her two Galgos from Spain who filled the back of the car, so there was only room for Solo down between my feet on the floor in front, on a rug! Below: Camino being a "lap-dog"!

Here below, the female, Karla, a VERY sweet dog, does silly games with Solo in the long waiting time.
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See the video of their coursing runs here:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=3slWiNh7g-Y

Above, Camino in a shot from the video - he FLIES!
(The Afghan who leapt through a wire fence was quite OK again afterwards, she was only limping because a big tree branch was stuck between her legs in a tangle of hair, so she had difficulty walking!!!)

Saturday the 29th of August 2015 - now the 8th blog!
Sitting enjoying a shaft of early morning sun!


Friday the 28th of August
Plucked this afternoon for our dessert! Yummy!

It is fun trying to find all the raspberries often hidden amongst the leaves and hard to spot. Whilst I am searching for ripe fruit I am surrounded by busy bees who are looking for the flowers. Often there are flowers on the same stem as fruit! This particular raspberry Autumn Bliss, goes on creating flowers and fruit until the frosts finally kill it. There are also wasps buzzing around, they want the overipe fruit so they can suck on the juice and ruin them. Each one of us is carefully ignoring the others!
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Here you can see some flowers extremely low down under my hand, left. and around my hand, on right, whilst fruit in all stages of development sits higher up.

Thusday the 28th of August

A path in the grass has long been cut running alongside the road at the end of our one, but I take a longer walk and now this morning, "my" path was cut too, great fun to walk along there on the dog walk instead of struggling through a waist high weed patch!

I saw the man who was cutting it and had a chat, apparently it is to enable school children to avoid using the road, but they can now walk to the school along these pathways in the wilderness! Great fun.

Monday the 17th of August
The strawberry season has now been replaced by the first of our 3 plums trees to ripen and so after dinner, they dash to grab up the windfalls for dessert!






Friday the 14th of August
Fanny's just been collected and the place seems empty - it's like loosing a dog! Even two super-lively Italians can't make up for one Whippet!

Here she is last night when she threw herself on top of Solo, (her back legs are weaker now, so she sits rather suddenly!) who tried a growl, then stopped as one doesn't growl at "ladies", one is respectful!! So he suffered in silence until his legs probably went to sleep and he was forced to move! Below another picture I found hysterically funny. Again she had flung herself on top and Solo popped up out of the blanket like a periscope!!! ALL my dogs have always burrowed underneath all blankets, regardless of the temperature around them.

Fanny running again! She loves the game.

Yesterday we had the most wonderful experience, my night blooming Cereus cactus finally opened a flower in the evening, instead of in the middle of the night. The room was filled with a mysterious perfume and we slowly watched it open into a vertitable "bride's bouquet! In the morning it is limp and shriveling up - there's just one night of madness!
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Wednesday the 12th of August
14 year old Fanny is on holiday here again, just for a couple of days. Here she takes two "rounds", I dare not ask for more.

She is exercised and eaten lunch and now wants to sleep.

Tuesday the 11th of August
Butterfly on a butterfly bush! So pretty.

Solo hasn't stolen anything for a long time, so in case we worried about him being ok, he took our favourite biro from the kitchen table top today!

Wednesday the 5th of August 2015 - now the 8th blog!
Waiting for me to attend to them, Dasher and Solo take it in turns to chew each other's head!
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Saturday the 1st of August
Hoverflies are "innocent" little things (and do a lot of good) and at the moment I wade through a field full of waist-high clover and chicory every morning on the dog walk (see below) and see that the flowers are full of them – apart from the usual bees.
They take their time to suck up the nectar, which is apparently SO good, they don’t even notice if I stroke their backs!!!!
I suddenly got this crazy idea to stroke them gently - and they never budged!

Tuesday the 28th of July

I always love and admire Swallows, their flying abilities and that they can find their way to Africa and back and still nest in the exact same place as last year...here is a short and boring film where they came on a quick visit. They are local birds from the nearby village, the youngsters practising their flying skills and getting in training for the dangerous and long flight to the unknown!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FSU8UyfzSM

Saturday the 25th of July
29mm of rain fell inside 24 hours yesterday and this morning! (And no, my Grandchild has NOT filled it this time!)


Sunday the 15th of July
It's chickory (not cornflower as I first wrote!) and red clover time now - the blue is unbelievably beautiful.



At last a cat photo! I have seen many but not been able to photograph due to battling with two maniacal dogs!!!

Saturday the 15th of July
A bit of excitement on the morning walk: A very lage hare came racing towards us, saw us at the last moment and turned around some bushes, but I manged to get this shot, with the dogs going berserk! NO chance of zooming in, unfort.

A close-up of the same photo:

It was nearly as big as the dogs - just shorter legs!

Thursday the 16th of July
Some pretty pom-pom poppies!


Wednesday the 15th of July

The Blackbirds just love our cherries and eat even as I crawl around underneath picking strawberries. They know and trust me. However, as soon as I got my camera out, Daddy Blackbird lost his nerve, so here he is mid-flight! A lucky shot.

Monday the 13th of July
Last photos that will include Fanny, it's a sad thing, but we have delivered her back to her own family now. We are all a little depressed today, not least Dasher and Solo, they are very quiet!

Our oldest son was kind enough to drive us all to Fanny's family where coffee and delicious, home-made muffins awaited. The dogs enjoy the back seat, which is covered in a special plastic dog cover to protect the seats (and prevent the dogs from falling on the floor), on top of this I put a thick fleece blanket for luxury travelling!
Their harnesses are connected to the 3 passenger safety belt click-in places on the back seat.

Despite we had already received lovely gifts, the family had found two more presents and even tho' well wrapped in, Fanny's excellent nose told her immediately that this one was a box of goodies for Dasher and Solo so she grabbed it and hung on desperately trying to steal it before we even could unwrap and see what it was!!!
The other gift the family had fallen over on the ferry from Sweden and felt they just HAD to buy it as there was a Whippet on the box - so rare to see this breed anywhere ever, it was a "must have" to buy!! SOOO funny! A wonderful surprise and it now sits on the kitchen table so we can look at it for a month or so before enjoying.

Below, a last goodby with this great picture I must show you of the two oldest sons who had helped us back the car out safely, then they ran around into the wheat field alongside their house and we thought they looked so funny, that my son quickly took this wonderful shot through the side window before we drove off:

What an unusual summer scene!

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She has just stepped in to the bed betwen Solo og Dasher and it's a tight squeeze! They ALL insist on sitting beside me as I eat breakfast. Question is, can she manage to lie down? She moves very carefully.....

... and YES! She could just squeeze in!

All three stealing strawberries for dessert after dinner a couple of days ago. They are good ground cover under a plum tree so I let them do their thing - our own strawberries are up in the kitchen garden.

Photo from her last morning here, collar on ready to go..

Thursday the 8th of July
See Fanny running around the house for good exercise. She decides the pace. She only runs 4 times in all (3 times a day before meals) but on the film she runs more, as it is made clips from morning, lunch and evening runs! She loves it, but cheats if she can as all she really wants is the 1/4 Frolic pieces they get each "round".
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-t2Rg-HXiiA

Wednesday the 8th of July
Beside me whilst I ate breakfast this morning. Fanny has become more and more my shadow and wears herself out trying to keep tabs on me all day! Mostly I show her where I am or what I am doing - and Svend is with her if I work up in the kitchen garden. Here she is enjoying the sun in the driveway.
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Last night Solo got too hot and gradually fell out of the bed! Right: Fanny in the poppies that have grown up around the dog's toilet area! Fanny eats the odd leaf or two - she wants her opium fix!

Saturday the 4th of July

More "Fanny-on-holiday" pictures! Below, on walk this morning.
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Right: While we watch tv in the evening yesterday.

Some of my strawberries are enormous! Below: Fanny is as addicted to Chinese cabbage, as all my dogs for more than 30 years! They get it as "dessert" after dinner and I must never run out as the look in their eyes will murder me! I'm sure the fiber is good for them. (They don't want the green, just the scrunchy white stem.) We eat the green tips in salads.
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Above right Dasher is shattered after a long hot day and his skin is quite pink! See the temperature at 2pm today. (It was over 33 later on.)
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Above right: Taken from inside the kitchen, Svend has a coffee on the patio and Fanny sleeps.
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Waiting to go in after the early morning pee!

All are agog as Svend is coming home any second!

Wednesday the 1st of July
I arrive home after the walk with the boys and there is Momma blackbird, having bathed in our birdbath, re-organising all her feathers standing on our postbox! She's not budging for us, so we have to wait patiently, as she knew we would!
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Solo and then Fanny suddenly shot into the flower bed after something exciting! I wait and photograph them coming out - yet another false alarm - luckily!
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Monday the 29th of June
I am eating breakfast this morning and everyone wants to sit in the dog bed that's beside me.
.Fanny grabbed it first, so the two Italians are very disappointed. Then Solo manages to sneak in, but there's no room for Dasher, who stands a long time with just his front paws inside. I settle him in another bed. It's "visitors come first" here!

Later on, sunbathing on the patio - except that the sun has gone - again!

Saturday the 27th of June
Fanny-Whippet's family are on holiday again and so she has her own little holiday with us!
Here she is running around the house with the others yesterday. How many dogs can take this exercise at 14 years of age? She is in good form, back legs just a little rickerty, she's is very deaf and can't see too well either, but this is very normal in extreme old age. She just runs 3-4 times and at her own speed and with enthusiasm - and she's not even breathless!

Dinner time and I grated carrots into our salad and the dogs adore the stump. Fanny got the biggest and in seconds Solo had chewed up his and then stole Fanny's right from under her nose, literally and here he is gulping it down under the table!
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Useless to try and rescue any! Below Fanny and Dasher lie beside me in the evening as I see tv.

Today family came to lunch. Here, the dogs assist the unpacking of the car!

Fanny is well used to small boys so she's good for a kiss!

Below Grandchild with my blind canary sitting on his finger! He loves doing this every visit and it's a rare opportunity.

See my rain water measure story below, the 16th of June - here we caught the culprit in the act of doing it again!!!!

Here are the strawberries we ate - well nearly all of them, rest are frozen down!

I idly photographed this fly sunning itself on the wall yesterday and was amazed at what detail there was - my little camera is very good! Of course I have heavily cropped the picture.

Even the horse looks like it is wondering what's happening!
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Yesterday, I plucked the first strawberries - nearly 3 weeks later than last year due to the cold weather and not much sun.

Two more photos of busy bees, we have quite a few different wild bees, I am trying to photo them all.
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Tuesday the 23rd of June
Hurrah, today we have had Solo 2 years!

Svend says he cannot see anything to celebrate?!!! Joking, tongue in cheek, because Solo still keeps us on our toes: Svend's shoes are always on the move, his wrist-watch chewed to bits and stealing up on the tables, he's even leapt up and stolen from Svend's plate...to name but a few of his crimes but so MANY laughs and entertainment too!

Here is his latest antic, stealing cherries (still green) from the tree. He now plucks them himself. Above, getting a sighting. Below sussing them out. Lastly, leaping up and plucking them!
(Anyone worrying about hard cherry stones in a dog's stomach needs to know that the stone has not yet gone hard at this stage so is easy to scruch up whilst still green!)
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Dasher can't be bothered to eat unripe fruit - he waits until they are ready! Here he is sunning himself as I eat lunch.

No, Dasher is NOT too skinny, this is the way the shaft of sun caught him and maybe he is breathing in?

I love chives - the flower is so pretty and my favourite colour, so I even have them in the flower beds! They sow themselves.

The first strawberries today the 22nd of June - 3 weeks later than last year.

Friday the 19th of June
SOO cold here the dogs had to wear coats this morning - it was windy and raining too... we are having a record cold June...

Solo eats the GREEN cherries that keep falling down off the tree! Dasher knows better than to be so stupid.
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A cardboard box came in the post and of course Solo grabbed a piece as we unpacked:
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A rare day of sun and Svend's shoe is carried outside again!

Tuesday the 16th of June 2015
Funny little story
Early one morning on the weekend, I woke up and stepped outside to see it had been raining hard and everything was dripping wet. This was badly needed as the earth is so dry it is cracking open and my strawberries won’t ripen, so I was SO happy.
I studied the rainwater measure and to my amazement, it was nearly full up showing 33 mm of rain! An absolute record, I could hardly believe it. (Look closely at the photo, you CAN just see the level.)

So I immediately asked a friend living nearby with an identical rainwater measurer, (I know this as I gave it to her as a present only the other day!!!) and hers showed only 5 mm. - VERY mysterious and when I later looked more closely, the ground around here was still cracked and dry.
I was just wondering if Svend had filled it up to tease me when the answer jumped into my mind and I laughed out loud and long: My grandchild of 3 years was here with his family to lunch the day before and HAD been spotted walking around the garden with my smallest watering can - no harm in that, we thought - but he has undoubtedly filled the measure up, bless him, not knowing what the real purpose of it is!!!
(I had even entered the record amount in our diary and took the photo as proof!)
Below, you can see the watering can now retrieved from a sidegate plus my innocent looking Grandchild saying "Who me???", ha ha!!! I was nearly fooled!
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Solo was so dead tired after they went, that he slept soundly for several hours! This because he is good to fetch a tennis ball, so they threw a ball for him many, many times until he was quite worn out!

Sunday the 7th of June
Easy-going Bella came on a visit yesterday! She knows how to behave even with hopeless and rude youngsters like our Solo who ran after her barking and saying "Get the hell out of here!" in dog language! She did her best to ignore him.

Here, even Dasher has a bark, but he knows her and also knows she is female, males have great respect for females!!!

"Everywhere that Bella went, the dogs were sure to go..." as in the nursery rhyme!

But then she did a wee and THAT was interesting and really slowed them up!!!!

Below, later on as we sat outside in the good weather with coffee and cake, she found one of their old, discarded bones to chew. See Solo, he wanted it real bad!!

Below, my chives are flowering so prettily in the kitchen garden.

Below, my garden chair appears to be floating in a cloud!!!


Saturday the 6th of June
The dogs and I just got off the little pathway in time this morning as two ponies crossed the main road and came our way!





Below: Big strawberries on the way, just need some warmth, we've had a very cold spring...
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Right: A bee having an afternoon rest!

Tuesday the 2nd of June
The nuisance and happiness-ruining Magpies have been at it again:

Smashed and eaten - still wet and sticky some poor Blackbird's eggs early this morning.

See the baby bird killer spying out it's next victim at the top of the trees? Ugh.

Two flags up this morning - June is a good month for birthdays. The path is so overgrown you can hardly see the dogs!

Monday the 25th of May
Unfortunately, our expert bird-killer Solo has discovered Momma Blackbird's new nest in the box hedge at the end of the patio and I have had to protect with a wheelbarrow and wire netting. He gives high leaps and bangs and shakes the whole hedge so it's just before the eggs are scrambled - but the wheelbarrow foils him now.
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It's lilac time!

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Dasher looking beautiful as I photograph the lilacs. Below action and chasing about.



Friday the 22th of May
The apple tree has a record amount of blossom. You couldn't squeeze another flower on!
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Tuesday the 19th of May
Our guests are unanimous that we have the world's most nature-filled interesting bus stop view to entertain whilst one waits for the bus!

There are always several hares, (the other morning 4 were having a friendly fight!) a Moorhen couple where she is sitting on the nest, two ducks, a noisy Peawit always flapping around screaming and courting his two female partners, a little flock of house martins swooping about after insects and chatting to each other and two horses in the distance held back by an electric wire as half their field has a badly broken down fence. Also various passing seagulls!

Tuesday the 12th of May
Solo still steals and this time he has unusually destroyed poor Svend's metal watch strap. We couldn't find Svend's watch after he took it off yesterday evening to wash some dishes and we looked everywhere but then this morning I find it on the lawn, all wet from the night dew - but still working!!! Unfortunately, the metal strap is chewed to a million pieces. Here is Dasher checking it out. He would NEVER do anything like this. So Solo is in disgrace - but he doesn't know it!!!!


Monday the 11th of May
Tragedy hit a few days ago: Momma Blackbird laid 4 eggs and left is a photo of 2 of them. (They lay one a day in the early hours of the morning.) Then I photograph two mornings after and the nest was shockingly empty, see right.
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So despite our best efforts, the horrid Magpies HAD seen the nest-building activities, kept an eye and then raided the nest and eaten the 4 eggs for breakfast before we even woke up in the morning. Later on, Dasher showed me where the shells of 2 of them lay on the lawn still all wet and sticky. I am SO upset on Momma's behalf.

Here you can see how near she was to all of us - you can just see the nest on top of the outside light:

Terrible that we were unable to protect her.

Meanwhile, my brother is staying here from Florida and my cousin from the South of France, so I am kept VERY busy!
Below: Help on the morning walk.

Below: Solo loves my brother!

We were 10 for lunch Sunday and here is my youngest grandchild about to hide behind the flower beds with a dog toy he is sneaking off with!

Tuesday the 5th of May
Despite torrential rain and high winds, our oldest cherry tree struggles on - you couldn't squeeze another blossom on it's overloaded branches! Right: The ornamental cherry by the front door - excuse window reflections
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Momma Blackbird has changed her mind! She is now building on a patio lamp by the back door! This time I will let her have her way. She will have to put up with us eating out there just underneath and her swooping over our heads to and fro...

Here she is yesterday morning and this morning - it's not going to be easy.....

Cam found an old discarded bone on the floor and started chewing on it. This woke Dasher up to the fact that it was HIS bone and NOW he wanted it badly...

- after ignoring it completely for months!!!

Dasher tries to paw and prod Cam on his back and does all sorts of distracting moves, dancing around him.

Camino knows it's not his and looks up at his Mistress for help!

Dasher gets ready to grab whilst pretending to look the other way...
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Finally, Dasher grabs the bone as Cam stands back - Cam is on best manners as he is fully aware he is not at home!!!

Then Dasher has the cheek to prance around showing off and saying to Cam: "See what I've got and you can't have it, ha ha!" and is really taunting him!!! Cam is surely cursing under his breath but he's a kind, polite dog when out visiting!

Later: Begging our guest for attention at the kitchen table.
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Left: Hare in a nearby field and right: The first Blackbird egg has hatched and the shell tossed away onto the lawn!

A big fat pigeon on a visit - until he spotted the dogs....

Sunday the 26th of April
I can now see where the nest is! Same place as the Linnet's last year. She has started building today as it rained and this gives slushy, mouldable nesting material of dead leaves and my rock plants. Below, caught in the act!
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A cute pansy sowed itself last year, survived the winter and now is flowering!
Below, Greyhound Camino and mistress visited us briefly last week.
Dasher is daring him to give chase - and he did chase them both but we had to stop it as for obvious reasons - it's no good big dogs playing with tiny "pencil thin-boned" little dogs. Collisions happen so easily and the "prey" want to stop, whilst the one giving chase is having too much fun to stop...

Below Cam after Solo - see how high Solo is off the ground!



Coffee and cake outside in the sun.

Dasher wants to share the bed but there's no room thanks to Solo stealing a boot!

Tuesday the 20th of April
I’m pretty sure Momma Blackbird is nesting in our patio box hedge, just can’t quite make out WHERE – yet.
Maybe she hasn’t decided either as she – and he – pop in and out from several locations. Also, up at the far end there’s a Linnet nesting - they sing so prettily.
They do this even tho’ the dogs are out to kill them if they can and we sit out there weather permitting and generally are spoiling their privacy and secretness.
But I think I know why they prefer a dangerous intimacy with humans and dogs rather than being further away from the house: There is a family of Magpies nesting in some high fir trees - high by our standards because some 20-25 years ago here was just farmland - from the top of which, they can spy on all the activities of every single bird for half a mile around. And they do. They keep an eye on where all nests are being built and if hungry, eat the eggs, but mostly they wait until the 4-5 little chicks are getting plump and cute and then one day the nest is suddenly tragically deserted and empty. So I hate Magpies! Pretty as some might think them, they are my enemy as they specially love my favourite small birds for lunch. I clap my hands if they come anywhere near our garden. In this way, birds sense that near our house is a "safe" place to be – just got to be out of the reach of Solo!
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Left, one of the Magpie spies. Right part of our patio box hedge, so dense that birds can make nests we never even can find! In the far distance you can see the fir trees, which I have zoomed in on to show one of the Magpies plotting it's next meal.

Monday the 20th of April
I step outside early this morning with the dogs and Momma Blackbird shoots past my face and lands on the patio light. Stays put while I photograph her and watches Solo leaping up as high as he can to get to her. She remains unmoved!

It's a bit of a mess outside as the sitting-outside-season is only just about to begin! Below, a close-up of her, but you can see her above, top left.
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Above right you can just see Solo leaping up the wall in vain, giving small shrieks of frustration!

The view on the dog walk this morning, usually more misty due to the sea... the bridge is to the island of Fyn including a long road crossing a small island that is very conveniently just between. In the foreground is a road.

Enjoying the early morning sun! And below, Solo tired out and asleep in the last rays in the evening.

You will never believe this story, but I have had this pretty little sign hanging by our front door for many years, at least 15 - a gift from some American friends. All my favourite colours of mauve and pink! Yesterday morning, a huge Bumble bee came past and actually hovered for some time investigating the flowers as if it nearly believed they were real! I was amazed and didn’t take a photo as I never knew it would take SO long time to check them out – I wish I could see through a bee’s eyes for a minute or two – but it’s compliment to the artist, they nearly fooled a professional flower expert!

Friday the 17th of April
The dogs always know when we are expecting guests and here they are craning their ears to be first to notice a car coming!

Monday the 13th of April
If we didn't hear the door bell - the dogs will make sure that we do. Listen here to their "wolves in the moonshine" racket:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=irDHzwW-DtU

Friday the 10th of April
It's probably going to be a bad year for insects after an exceptionally mild winter - as I was working in the garden, I suddenly realised there was a whole swarm of ladybirds amongst all the weeds I was removing:

Cute to see and will hopefully kill all the greenfly - but I wonder what other plagues we will have this summer?

The view at the end of the "path to nowhere" this morning!

Tuesday the 7th of April
COME BACK FANNY, WE MISS YOU! A dreadful empty hole in our lives as she was collected today, thrilled to see her mistress again and most unflattering for us to see: She couldn't wait to get into the car! We feel like someone died, it's so strange and empty here after fussing over her for some days, even Dasher and Solo seem very quiet. Whippets are the best breed in the whole world! Here is the last photo taken this morning:

Tomorrow, her family are looking after a mutual friend's elderly Italian female, so Fanny's life will be again filled with a livelier breed! So she won't have time to miss us!

Tuesday the 7th of April
At last, one of all three together beside me in my office. Right: Taken at breakfast this morning.
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Fanny might have wobbly weak back legs, but she suddenly had mighty power in them when it came to trying to get the bird's food! There's bread in the cycle basket for the Robin, Momma Blackbird and a flock of sparrows. Solo watches, he knows it's hopeless to try. This is taken through a window, so some reflections.

Monday the 6th of April
A"twist" of dogs!

Sunday the 5th of April:

Saturday the 4th of April:

Plenty of sun today, but still cold, so the dogs preferred to sunbathe indoors! However, below you can see, that when Fanny decides to sit in a bed, she ignores any occupant who might be there first! See Solo squashed flat in first picture! Then she grudgingly makes room and he struggles out from underneath, so they agree to share!
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Above: Fanny LOVES Chinese cabbage - which mine eat every day as dessert after dinner! It's the crunchy white stem they go for and maybe get good extra fiber this way? Below: Funny photo, as they keep me company in my office.

The last crocuses in the evening sun...

Sunset over the neighbour's house.



The robin has stayed and is singing a lot, so I do hope he finds a mate, or he'll soon change his mind! This is the first one ever who stayed with us and not just moved on.

It was cold this morning and they quickly want to go in!

Dasher and Fanny posing artistically this afternoon.

There hasn't been the usual queue to sit with or preferably on top of, Fanny this time. But this morning, Solo tentatively crept in beside her!

One of the perks of staying here is, that after lunch, they each get a strip of dried tripe to chew on! They love it.

Wednesday the 1st of April
We are looking after Whippet "Fanny" over Easter. She is nearly 14 years old and all that's left after the most wonderful era in our life with our last 3 Whippet boys whilst some friends had 3 Whippet girls the same age. We have been looking after each other’s dogs for over 13 years. They are all very loving, affectionate dogs, so we love them as if they are our own.
Fanny is mostly blind in one eye (old-age cataract they all get) but manages well, but worse is her almost total lack of hearing.
So sad not to be able to communicate with words, it all has to be sign language. She can hear a soundless whistle tho'. Still, her sense of smell is superb – like a bloodhound's!
I took her for the first walk this morning and she was fascinated at all the new smells every inch of the walk for about 10 minutes, then she thought she was too far from "home" and wanted to go back, but I persuaded her to walk on and as soon as we turned for home, (walked in a circle) she started pulling and we fairly raced along at top speed.
She is wobbly on her back legs - but then in human years, she is about 90 years old? If she was human, she would walk with a walker on wheels! However, she still can do the most beautiful, elastic "elevated" trot acroos the lawn - I could show her in a show ring and she’d win – in veteran class!
She stopped outside our gate although I carefully gave her NO clues, so I am glad to see she knows exactly where she lives – and she also stepped out of the car on arrival, wagging her tail yesterday and knew us immediately.
She grieved when her master left her here, although we carefully don't let her actually see him go. I was worried about her bag of dog food that had got wet and started pouring it into another bag, so she immediately forgot all about him, FOOD was MUCH more important!!!!
Here she is finally relaxing as we eat – she had insisting on standing supervising me doing our dinner – just in case I dropped something by accident! (Although I always feed the dogs FIRST.)


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Here she is running around the house with Dasher and Solo - they zoom round at top speed of course, so they have to wait for her. She does 3-4 times only as we must train her up carefully!

Here they are saying: "Hit with those biccies! We don't run around again until we've had a treat each!"

Monday the 30th of March 2015 - and now the 8th blog!
Family to lunch - and if one doesn't engage them in non-stop scintillating conversation - see what they do!

Below, our youngest discovers Solo has EARS!

Below, Solo leaps on everyone's lap and here our son is teasing him when lifting him down, but he doesn't mind a bit!
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View over the distant sea this morning, the island of Fyn (if you use your imagination!) and not least, the sun is lighting up one of the pylons on the bridge.

Wednesday the 25th of March
We have mice! Yesterday evening, one was after the bird food in the cycle basket. I went outside and was allowed to get within about 20 cms with my camera!!! So from now on, I take the basket in at night - ONE mouse is quite enough....

This morning, the dogs found a dead rat! NOT in our garden, but some 10 minute walk away, I hasten to add! Whatever next!

This morning as I ate breakfast, Momma Blackbird suddenly appeared from the middle of the box hedge on the patio - is this the place for her first nest of the year? Ten minutes later, there's Daddy Blackbird, I wonder what they are plotting.....
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Delicate white Crucuses caught in the evening sun...

Monday the 23rd of March
Went to the first lure coursing of the year yesterday! Dasher not running due to the now cured and invisable "mystery neck strain" on Thursday but he took the disappointment very well. Below friends waiting for their turn.

A very short video of Mephisto, Karla (seen above) and Solo's runs:

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Vincenza and Solo take off after the white hare... and Solo is just a dot running at top speed...
Below, Svend enjoying the cakes and coffee! The weather was FREEZING, only about 2-3 degrees after a frosty night, and the sun too weak to help.

Below left, Dasher with good friend Greyhound Camino and right a new young Spanish Galgo, never tried before, called Karla, is unimpressed by his attentions! ( I will be made a short video, link above, so her owner can see it, as she did not come.)
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Below: Show Greyhound/Borzoi mix Mephisto is showing where he flew off at the start of his run and dug great clumps of turf up on take-off, he is so powerful! (He's by far our biggest dog.)

Below: Solo ran with Vincenza in fine style - shrieking all the way round as usual!
www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrM2W-_fLcE

... but at the first turn, Vincenza is seen leaping high in the air - we don't know but maybe they nearly had an accident, or if it was some bushes and big weeds she ran into, but she lost valuable time so she gave up and ran back to Mum!

Such a shame, as for once she is in top form and more than willing to run with Solo. Females are so fickle - their perfomance depends so much on where they are in their season.

The lunch break! Below tired out after a long day.

Saturday the 21st of March
A bit of excitment today as two young Italian Greyhound breeder friends dropped in for a coffee after a nearby Sighthound show. Arne, who bred Dasher nearly six years ago, came with his Annie and her daughter Sigourney and friend Dorthe (photos of her above!) who is expecting an IG litter very soon, came with soon-to-be-Grandmother Vincenza, (expectant mother Athena was wisely left at home.)

Arne with Annie, Dasher's older half sister and Sigourney, Annies daughter who has the same father as Solo - and it is fascinating to see the amazing likeness!
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Left: Vincenza looks at Sigourney, who is guarding Dad's chair - and right Dasher, who was after her as she has just been in season! She is an even prettier version of Solo in all ways!

Annie and Sigourney looking like the spitting images of Dasher and Solo!!!

"Ha ha, you can't get me up here!" says Solo to Vincenza, who took a shine to Solo so they played the maddest games.
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"You must be joking!" says Vincenza, who leapt up with ease and made advances to Solo he didn't understand!!!

Then they raced up and down in and out of the rooms at break neck speed!

Below: Earlier in the day:

After a day of worrying on Thursday, Dasher declared himself totally fit and well yesterday no pain, all movement ok and he played several rough games with Solo (me ready to stop them) and ran like the wind - he was just his usual happy self, seen here chewing an old bone. I can't understand how a pulled muscle can clear up so fast... only stomach ache can come and go as the wind blows...very strange - so I keep his neck-warmer on for a few days just in case. It also serves as a reminder.

Solo giving Dasher "the killer look" before pouncing on him yesterday afternoon!

Thursday the 19th of March

The dogs sunbathe, see Dasher's funny position! He has the same warm knee-warmer on that we gave to Timmi when he had a bad neck. Now Dasher has done something mysterious to HIS neck and it often hurts, especially turning to the left. He is not in constant pain, but often yelps if pushed or shoved by Solo or making an unfortunate movement. He doesn't want to play, which is hard on Solo. So he can't do lure coursing either until he's better.

Solo stole Svend's newspaper but perhaps he wanted my attention, as the bed was running out of sun and needed moving!

Above, some of the pollen giving me the worst hayfever for years! This will be hazel nuts in the autumn, the tree is loaded.

The dogs play their usual mad wrestling games about three days ago!


Saturday the 14th of March
Yesterday I went with some trepidation to the vets with Dasher and Solo, who should have their yearly vaccination. That is, I get it done every two years as their health insurance demands it, but the Kennel Club here say every fourth year is good enough - however most vets recommend every year. This discrepancy is because no one has ever done any testing on hundreds of random dogs to control how long the vaccine actually protects. Solo has not been vaccinated since he was with his breeder.
I was very worried, as back then, at his second of two for all puppies here, he had a violent allergic reaction. His whole face swelled up – see breeder’s shocking photo here!

So I discussed this with the vet and firstly, the manufacturer is different, secondly she (the vet) went for a milder “cocktail“ of illnesses after hearing about their lives and asking if they were in contact with rats? Yikes!!! NO, they are most definitely not!! And then we went for a short walk before going home, to see if he would react and I could dash back inside and get instant help. But he was just fine! What a relief! The vet looked at his health booklet and identified that the second injection was the same as the first, plus another, different one – which she said, is known to “give more trouble”. So he’s never having that one again!

Here they are driving away from the vet’s an hour later and a finer face (distorted by the camera lense, which I held over my shoulder) you never did see!

A wonderful sunny day on Thursday and someone had their flag flying. Danes are good to fly their lovely red flag at just any occasion, always birthdays and anniversaries but also there are many national flag days and other special days including the royal family’s birthdays etc. always such an uplifting sight as somebody is happy and celebrating.


Tuesday the 10th of March

and the crucusses are flowering - although one can still clearly see the car tracks... and a few scattered crocus that got dragged out of place!

Below is from 24th November 2013!!!

Everyone came from miles around to see it and it was "the talk of the town" and in the local newspapers!


Another photo taken through my office window of "my" Robin - still here, so I am hoping and praying he will stay, as I love their song - and it reminds me of England, where they are to be heard "all over". He can see me, so I only have a split second to focus and shoot in.


Wednesday the 25th of February

Sunday the 22th of February
Family to lunch yesterday and the dogs and our Grandchild Louis get along very well!
.Solo wants to kiss Louis, whilst Dasher looks on, calmly sharing his bed even though he could be crushed at any minute! This was the scene beside my easy chair yesterday afternoon!
I also showed Louis how I could get the Canary on my finger, so he could experience the bird sitting on his finger afterwards! Here are his mother's photos of us:
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We lower him onto his water bowl.

Tuesday the 17th of February
Solo is the most professional thief we have ever had, and god knows, we have owned MANY!!!
He is also the first we have had who can jump up on tables with extreme accuracy – so little is private from him!
This day, he was presumably sound asleep with me in my office, Svend made a cup of coffee and took biscuits as usual.
Then the second that Svend got up and went into the lounge Solo awoke and zoomed into the kitchen to check for forgotten biscuits and crumbs! He knows that in the past, Svend has accidentally left him something to steal... (it took time for us to learn new habits and to take extra care!) so although apparently sound asleep, he is actually noting Svend’s every move!
Below, he is just dropping back after checking the table top as he sees Svend has noticed him!

Below, caught in the act of cleaning up imaginary crumbs!

A little about my last two elderly birds, both bred by me.
The yellow is a Canary cross between a Harzer Canary and a Fife, and is 13 years old in April.
He is now completely blind, poor thing, after a couple of years with cataracts.
He has water, seed, green stuff and grit all on the floor the same place every day, so he easily can find it. Every evening I get him onto my finger and he steps off onto a branch in the aviary to sleep for the night and every morning he steps onto my finger again and I put him on the edge of the water dish. He is so keen to get the water, he is already making drinking movements in the air, so I know I am doing right and he appears fully satisfied with my daily transport service! He shows he is still happy by singing loudly most of the day. (Photo here of him sitting on my finger on his way down in the morning.)

The other bird is a cross between a “Grey Singing Finch” father and a yellow Fife Canary mother. I had read this cross was possible when I put the two together more than 20 years ago – and he will be 19 years old in April!!! (My oldest Canary was 17 and another became 16. Mostly, their heart just stops when they get old.)
The offspring of such a cross are sterile, (which suited me fine), and there were 4 youngsters, of which 2 died after only a handful of years. The remaining 2 were a devoted pair and lived happily together, but alas the female died some 2 summers ago, so now he mostly sits near the blind bird, as if he derives comfort from his company.

Normally one cannot have 2 males together unless in a huge aviary, they would fight to the death. Birds sing to define their territory and the males will fight to keep it.
However, these have grown up together (and about 10 others) – and did once have a very big outdoors aviary at our old house, with my old office, (window always open a crack), to go into at night and in the winter.


You can see his yellow Canary mother in his feathers! But otherwise he is like his father, very slim, small and grey - and an excellent singer. Despite his age, he seems perfectly fit and well. But I know he badly misses his sister.

Tuesday the 10th of February
This morning, at last some sun and I take these two uplifting photos of aconites and snowdrops from our garden:

Spring is just around the corner!


Friday the 6th of February
This morning quite a thick mist and everything decorated in white frost:

At last a thaw - and see how little water there was in that huge collection of snow piled up in the water measure seen below - it was mostly "air":


Wednesday morning at 7 am- the most pretty full moon!


Tuesday the 3rd of February
Snowed non-stop all day yesterday and we wake up to deep snow this morning, here is a photo from 7am:
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Right, a photo above from the dog walk at 9am. Solo has just given the little girl a "kiss"!

The house at 8.30am today. The man who clears had taken our side again! But the road was very bad.
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Above is when it started Monday morning. Right: The Robin is still here!

Yupee! Pappa Blackbird has arrived! Don't know where he's been since last autumn, but he's back and he very nervously popped down into the cycle basket for some of Momma's apple! She watched from the side gate. Spring must be on it's way soon! Below, the Snowdop situation: Nearly open!!!


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Above, I spot this flock of "strange" birds on Sunday, resting in the sunshine. I had to ask my photography and nature expert friend to identify them and they are "Waxwings"! I have never seen them before, but that's not to say they have not flown past unnoticed! See: wikipedia.org/wiki/Waxwing

Sunday the 1st of Febuary
Sunny one day then dark, rainy days the next - and up to 4 degrees in the day! An unusual winter!

Dasher giving my son a kiss - quite a gymnastic feat!

Dasher looking loving!

Above: Same view Thursday morning!

Wednesday the 25th of January
Terrible weather, dark, rain and very windy... but photo below is from Tuesday and in sharp contrast with all the snow in Sunday's photo from the same place shown further down!

Sunday the 25th of January
Below, at last some sun after a day of non-stop snow!

But alas, the man who mistakenly began to clear our pavement, see below, has clearly realised his mistake and stopped doing it, as you can see! Shame. Below: My favourite view!


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Aconites and snowdrops are on the way!

I managed to catch our busy Robin with some whole-meal bread in his beak! (He's still here, Lisbet!!!)

Saturday the 24th of January
Even more snow, now very thick and still coming down at 3pm...
I managed to get two photos of another place I feed sunflower seeds and peanuts to my favourite Blue tits and Great tits!
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It's a flower-pot holder. This is through a dirty kitchen window!
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High snow drifts in the bird's feeding basket make life difficult for them... here is Momma Blackbird after an apple and whole-meal toast session! Compare with photo below!

Thursday the 22nd of January
and more snow, so much prettier and the sun even came out for 10 minutes at mid-day! Below taken at 8.15:

The man who clears the pathways every morning must be new! He is not supposed to do our short end of the road - but no one has told him and we are not saying, so we get the same good service as the others further up the road, who have to pay for it!

Above, on daggy walk this morning with the sun trying to break through the mist.

Above, Momma Blackbird sitting on the edge of the cycle basket I put the bird food in. She eats and eats, then flies off for 15 minutes, then back again to eat more - off and on all day long!
Below, the Robin INSIDE the cycle basket, as he too eats some apple!


Wednesday the 21st of January
...and even more depressing days where continual rain turned to slushy snow and after two days finally managed to settle, but after a cold night just below zero, it's already "warming up" again... I am starting to believe the "global warming" theory, tho' since the inner core of our planet is cooling, cold will win out in the end?
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Here's the gloom and icey snow at 8 am and Solo in the garden tries to taste the ice!

Doggies in the mist! Yes, the road goes uphill here, not me holding the camera crooked!

Pretty droplets of frozen rain. The green is the box hedge, which luckily gives us some green to look at all winter, when everything else has gone brown.

Momma Blackbird's back view sitting on the side gate. She has just stuffed herself with apple, (I'm having to buy specially for her, as ours have run out now) - plus some brown whole-meal toast! (Svend doesn't like brown whole-meal, but has to eat it as I buy it because it's healthier for the birds, ha ha!!!)

Saturday the 17th of January
After a week of depressing gloomy grey weather, we finally get a day of sunshine - so bright I had to wear my sunglasses. Most unusual to get such a wonderful day on the weekend when everyone can enjoy it. The best weather is usually takes place in the week while everyone's at work!!!
I saw a big bushy-tailed fox crossing a distant field this morning! First time in the nearly 7 years we have lived here. I managed to take a photo.



The view over to the bridge (10 km away) to tiny the island of Sprogø and onwards to Fyn across the sea.

Wednesday the 14th of January
10.30 am and slushy snow belting down right now! (Gone again after a few hours!)


Tuesday the 13th of January
Still plenty wind and rain, though both in slightly lesser proportions today! So here are some inside shots:

Guess who's on the table again? But he steals less now - I think!!
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Left: Solo chews Dasher's ear! Luckily he has a gentle mouth having grown up with a kitten as a playmate - because he had no brothers or sisters. Then they start romping about! Having TWO dogs is just great as they exercise and entertain each other.

Monday the 12th of January 2015 - and now the 8th blog!
No photos, as every day is the same with gale winds, grey skies and heavy rain, so I keep my camera under my coat when out! Today, Solo jumped up on my desk and must have trodden on an F-key with a sun symbol that I have never used - whilst stealing a roll of selotape! The screen showed the message "NOT FOUND" and I thought it seemed very gloomy and grey, just like it was outside! After answering a few emails, I thought: There IS something wrong, the screen is really DULL GREY not "white", so I experimented, thinking he must have done something and sure enough, he had turned down the brilliance! So I have put that back to normal now! DOGS! Who'd have 'em!



Thursday the 8th of January
Monday we took the dogs for a walk around a local pond with many ducks. Very misty.

Yesterday, the early morning full moon was very pretty - taken towards the west:

The full moon at night up the road towards south east.

Sunday the 4th of January 2015 - and now the 8th blog!
Not much to report - yet! We survived the chaos of New Year's fireworks and are still waiting for winter to come, meanwhile here are some "spring" shots taken yesterday, (I've even seen a mosquito!!!):

A raspberry hangs on up in the kitchen garden despite Christmas snow and cold! Below a ladybird attempts to come in the back door, but I turn it away! It's best off hibernating, not toasting it's feet in the warm! Talk about Global warming... isn't this proof?



Track suits for when it's bitterly cold from: Togs For Dogs