Silent radio star!

We’ve now made two radio appearances in connection with ‘Dash: Bitch of the Year’. The first was BBC London’s Barking at the Moon – a dedicated doggy programme which woofs its onto the airwaves every Thursday night. Due to the fact that it’s broadcast from central London at a late hour, I had to leave Dash behind. :( Nevertheless, the two presenters – Jo Good and Anna Webb – were delightful – and even read out a couple of extracts during the interview. Listening back when I got home however, I was surprised at how unlike myself I sounded. A bit smug, perhaps even pretentious. Ah, well. Wish I’d had my greyhound sidekick with me – her paws seldom leave the ground. Fortunately, I was able to bring her along when we guested on BBC  Oxford. :) From the moment when Dash charged into reception wearing her red and gold coat, she charmed all before her. The receptionist, a young Irish guy, turned out to be a fan of ex-racers; the producer likewise; and Jo Thoenes (pictured above), the presenter of Jo in the Afternoon, had to suppress the giggles as a long wet nose poked over the desk and dangerously near the mike. At times like this, I wish greyhounds actually made more noise! A bark, a growl or a howl on demand to connect with the listeners. Instead, Dash sniffed and snuffled around the studio before stretching out on her mat. The silent radio star; the greyhound diva. Needless to say, the interview went much better with her in attendance. The next event in the promotional calendar is the Greyhound Walks Show (http://www.greyhoundwalks.co.uk/show.htm) on Easter Day in Essex. Read all about it in the next posting!

Dash under the knife

No posting for the last three weeks, but good reasons why not. First, I’ve been away in Russia on a work trip; second and more important, poor Dash has been under the knife. It all started when I took her to the vet’s to get her nails clipped. Those of you who have greys (particularly hounds with black nails) will know it’s easy to nick ‘the quick’ and it can bleed for quite a while. I also took her to the vet since she’d developed a limp in her front right paw and I was curious to know if the overlong nails and the limp were connected. The nurse at the vet’s duly clipped Dash’s nails, but spotted a corn on one of the pads. At least that accounted for the limp. Then she asked me a question: ‘How long has Dash had that lump under her eye?’ ‘What lump?’ I asked. I saw Dash every day, all day. If anyone was going to notice a lump, it would surely be me. Apparently not. Once the nurse had pointed it out, I couldn’t take my eyes off it. Sure enough, there was a lump the size of a marble under the fur of her cheek (see the ‘Before’ photo above). It moved about when you touched it and made me feel a bit squeamish. ‘Better let the vet check it out,’ the nurse advised. He did, and didn’t like the look of it either. So two days later (the day before I was due to go away – what bad timing!), Dash was booked in for an operation to have the lump and the corn removed at the same time. You can see from the ‘After’ photo above that removing the lump left quite a scar. For a week she wore ‘the cone of shame’ (as one Tweeter wittily terms it) and hobbled around in a plastic sock when outside. The good news is that she’s now on the grassy road to recovery. The stitches are out and, while she’ll be left with a pirate scar on her cheek, the lump was thankfully not malignant or cancerous. Phew!! Roo! In the next posting I hope to have more positive news, including an account of Dash’s two recent radio appearances.