Harry Christmas 2009

Good News! Harry does like his Santa toy this year. It has a tennis ball inside and can be swung round. Lasts Year's toy was a failure.
Harry Christmas!

Harry and Molly

There are a lot more Border Terriers in Abingdon than when Harry was a puppy (in 2000). Here is Harry with Molly. Molly is just sixteen months old, and can walk about ten miles a day and still want more. Molly is kept more on the lead because she has a tendency to run after rabbits and deer and not come back for ages. Harry was much the same at that age.

Quite a Big Stick

Harry picked up quite a big stick for a small dog and ran with it across the Cricket Field, and might still be carrying it...
but I gave him a more manageable sized stick.

Short Walk

Harry on The Ock Valley River Walk this morning. It was not as long a walk as he would have liked but I had things to do. I turned back at this point and he stood still for a while as if to say "Is That it?"

Harry Like An Express Train

In this video Harry comes towards the camera like an express train. Don't blink or you will miss it.

Harry On The Bus

Harry hops into the car with no worry but does not seem quite so keen on the bus.

Harry Tree, Sneeze and Stick Video

Harry's Second Video - Outside this time.

Sniffed From Both Sides

These two big dogs ran up to Harry and had a sniff from both sides. It was all very friendly, with waggy tales, but Harry looked a bit cornered.

He had rather a boring week. Lots of rain and dark evenings and me very busy with work meant he did not get out much. I don't know if he gets bored. My wife is convinced that he not only gets bored but gets depressed. At such times it would be good to have a companion, like these two have each other.

Did Somebody Blink?

I have one of those clever cameras that will sometimes flash up a warning "Did Somebody Blink?" and put a little orange warning square round the object in question. Often it is wrong, but today it got it right. Harry may even have gone to sleep.

Harry With Antlers

This stick looks like it could be a deer's antlers. Harry often holds a stick by the dangerous end as he runs about.

./: .dfvvv/;.xc

./: .dfvvv/;.xc

(Harry seemed to want to do the blog without much help today. I'm just waiting util Google come out with a doggy translator so I can tell you what it means. )

No Silly Costume For Harry This Halloween

Dogs have enough to put up with at this time of year with firework night on November 5th, so there is no need to add to the trauma by forcing them into Halloween Costumes - even for a photo opportunity.

Harry's First Video - Ball Game

Not the best of camera work here but you must remember it is Harry's first video. It was shot on location at my mum's house in the nearby village of Cumnor. Harry pulls up the rug before kicking off to make the tunnel. The Commentator is my mum.

Harry Sleep

I have just been reading about dog sleep and it says there are 4 types of dog sleep...
1. Side and belly Sleep - paws out
2. Back Sleep - paws in air
3. Ball Sleep - curled up napping position
4. Back to Back Sleep - for warmth and bonding

Harry can now add

5. Upside down Sleep - for the dog who knows no fear.

Marathon Dog

Harry did not run The Abingdon Marathon but he did get to watch some of it with some of his people friends.
He even saw the lady who won the ladies event Number 387 doing up her hair while she ran by. She ran the marathon in 02:45:38.

Honey! I Think I shrunk Harry

We are being careful with Harry at present - he seems to have shrunken.
And I am keeping an eye on him when we go on walks so that I don't loose him in the leaves.

Harry is Against ....

Harry has joined the 'Against' Campaign. He is not 100% sure what he is against or for yet but that does not matter to him.

For anybody who would like to know just visit the Against Breast Cancer Web Site
and for more pictures of Abingdon Turned Pink go to This Abingdon.

Harry Gets Blessed

The Church in Abingdon had a special 'St Francis' service today where animals were blessed. Here are some of the dogs, including Harry, waiting outside. Nobody was quite sure whether they were allowed in or whether the blessing would be outside on the grass. At this stage only two rabbits had dared to enter the church.But then we discovered we could all go in, and this is the moment when Father Taffe blessed Harry by flicking him with holy water... We are expecting much improved behaviour from Harry from now.

Harry Dog Log Blog

Rather than doing a Dog Blog today Harry has decided to do a Dog Log Blog. The Logs are mostly willow from near the River Ock.

Harry has Mites

Not a good week for Harry. We took him to the vet and found that he has mites - which means we have to use special shampoo every day. So for a treat today we took him up on White Horse Hill.
Harry has always ignored sheep up to now but today - maybe it was the mites or the effect of the shampoo - Harry barked and tried to run at this sheep. The sheep did stamp at him first so it was not all Harry's fault.
Then a bit later Harry ran up the hill barking to try to get at this Paraglider. He must have thought it was a big bird.

Thats better

Thats better! This is where you belong Harry and not on The Abingdon Blog.

Harry is a Pedigree - No Joke

When I told somebody recently that Harry was a pedigree they laughed as if to say 'you are having me on.'

No, I am not joking, Harry is a pedigree Border Terrier. And very proud of his ancient lineage - dating back beyond the fake building he is sitting in. It is a folly. Harry is not.

Harry on The Trail

Harry discovered a trail of dead grass across, what is normally, the immaculate grass at Albert Park. He chews on his stick and considers the possibilities: could it be a toxic trail of wee from a very large and incontinent animal, could a football line painter full of grass burner have be stollen and pushed this way...

Has anyone out there got any ideas to help Harry out? As you can guess he hasn't got a clue.

Horse and Hound

It has been said of the Border Terrier that he can run alongside horses without tiring for many miles. I don't think that is true of Harry because at nine years old - after a couple of ligament injuries - he would tire of running alongside the horse after the first hundred yards. He is very well behaved round horses - possibly because he came from a farm. But more likely it is because he only really has concerns for: people, some dogs, all cats, all squirrels and all rabbits.

Other species are off his little radar.

Ball Thrower - just 90p

On our way out for our afternoon walk we met Tiny, and he had just been bought a ball thrower from the 9TP shop for just 90p. Sounded good value to me so in I went and got one for Harry.
Looked fine at first. Harry was very keen, and went scampering across the field to get the ball..
Only problem was he didn't want to give it back. So he only got one throw.

A Boxer Dog

Harry is pictured here near the punt roller in the University Parks in Oxford. He looks OK but...

Last week Harry was involved in a rather nasty fight. It happened when my wife was walking him. There was a boxer dog coming his way on a narrow path. Being a terrier, Harry did not give ground when there was a confrontation, and ended up coming off worse with his head stuck in the boxer dog's mouth. My wife was screaming....

They were pulled apart, and except for a cut on his eyelid Harry was fine. But it was a salutary lesson... when it comes to boxer dogs Harry should not lead with the head.

Harry on Blewburton Hill

On this walk Harry seemed haunted by the different smells. There were mutton and rabbit up on Blewburton Hill.

(This weekend's pictures should have been Harry with a low microphone performing at Abingdon's Got talent, but then I went and lost the camera while playing chase the stick in the Abbey Meadows. So if anybody finds a Canon Powershot with a picture of Harry just drop it off at our house. £5 reward.)

Close up

Harry has just been in the water which is why he has a wet muzzle.

A South Parks Carnival Reject

The security men at the gates of South Parks, in Oxford, would not allow Dogs into The Carnival. This led to many arguments and protests by dog owners who expected it to be a doggy event. Not only were dogs not allowed in, but also some people dressed up like gollys got thrown out by security.

Harry was disappointed at first, but in the end he enjoyed a run round at Warneford Meadow.

Pre Season Rugby Training

It look like Harry is getting in some pre-season Rugby training . He is seen here practising the line out.

Harry and Froo Froo

I sometimes meet another dog who knows Harry's blog and try to get Harry to sit nicely next to the other dog for a photograph. In most cases this fails. This is about the closest these two got.

Abingdon dog

With Wet Paint

Caught in The Act

Harry does like his beer. He may well claim to be 63 in doggy years, but that is only 9 in human years. Doggy years won't get him an ID card. No wonder he is looking so guilty!

Looking for somewhere to Go

Harry is looking for some grass so that he can Go, but that grass was not for real.

Harry Likes Butter

He likes bread even more. He eats more of the bread thrown into the river than the ducks.

London Bus

We are having one of those giddy moments when we are no longer sure where we are and what year it is. We thought this was Abingdon in 2009, but we have just seen a 159 London Bus saying it his headed to Trafalgar Square, outside St Helen's Church.

Ready for a Skirmish

The blue plaque says that on this site there was a civil war skirmish in 1645. Harry is all ready for a skirmish with his stick.

15 minutes of fame over

Back in January the Harry Dog Blog was featured in the Oxford Mail. The Oxford Mail photographer was there taking pictures of the Euro Bands playing in the park. But this time when Harry got close, the photographer didn't want the dog in the picture.

Looks like Harry's 15 minutes of fame are over.

See the water fly

Harry needs a jolly good shake when he is back on dry land. Press the image to see a larger image, and watch the water fly.

Retriever

Harry doing another gun dog impression. The warm weather has arrived and Harry now goes further into the water.

Harry in a Hole

Harry has dropped his ball down the hole and is going after it. I only hope he does not meet Badger down there.

Easter Egg Hunt

The easter eggs are just too high up for Harry.

A Big Yawn

After yawning Harry got up and went to explore a plain patch of grass some way away, turning once or twice as he sniffed about. That done, he came back about the half the distance and lay in the sun again, but far enough away from the camera so it did not bother him again.

Harry - the little monkey

A lady, with a smart looking labrador, seemed to be looking down her nose at Harry. Not only was he very damp and very scruffy, he was also very sooty. First, he went for a swim...
and then, the little monkey, rolled in an old bonfire to get dry.