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May / June 2010

Dear Irish Terrier Friends,

I’m writing this encamped on the motorway on the London to Oxford road. We’ve been here for more than an hour and rumour ‘down the line’ indicates an accident which has closed both sides of the motorway. There is an eerie silence except for the birds singing and it’s beginning to feel like a summer picnic. We’re all out of our cars in the sunshine. Zu and Beegie are relaxing on their rugs, bowl of water at hand and ‘receiving visitors’ from all around. Like most Irish Terriers they are so extraordinarily convivial. They seem to understand that this is highly unusual and an excellent opportunity for chatting up new friends. They are, I have to say, soothing many an impatient motorist while gracefully accepting far too many titbits.

We did eventually get away and sadly there had been a serious accident.

I do love these years when the dogs are old and so incredibly dear. They understand exactly how one’s life is organised (or disorganised), recognise every friend and adore the family. Having just recently lost Isobel I’m even more aware of the poignancy of these last years.

The great excitement is that we have a puppy on order for September. I am ridiculously excited already. Zu and Beegie were ‘brought up’ with great gentleness by the two old dogs Miss Bunch and Becky Price. I taught them absolutely nothing, never had to house train them as Bunch and Becks took over completely. They were marched out into the garden and there was not one puddle – ever. They were rounded up very quickly in the park if they strayed too far and the smallest squeak of anxiety from either pup led to a furious intervention from their two old nannies. There was many a slip up much to the old ladies embarrassment and a famous occasion when a cushion was shredded and B & B kept out of sight when I arrived home.

We’ve always had two puppies but with Nonny and Tess still very young there will be lots of play time for the new baby. Nonny is doing very well. She has her little gang of friends in the park and a very sympathetic dog walker who says she is ‘sensitive’ which considering the general noise, energy levels and consumption of anything remotely edible is very perceptive indeed. I think she enjoys the constant stir of a toddler in the house.

The delay on the motorway was on the journey to Malvern to the WELKS (West of England Ladies Kennel Society Show). I love this show, the setting at the foot of the Malvern Hills is superb and everyone is so laid back and kindly. There’s much more space to walk the dogs and the car park attendants chat happily and point out the best walks through the woods to see the bluebells.

We had perfect weather. Not too hot for the dogs nor too cold for the ring-siders.

I did not particularly like the winning bitch as she is not ‘the’ type of Irish I admire. She seems too light boned and ‘wispy’ and although she does measure up to the breed standard and moves like a dream, skimming the daisies as they say, with her front feet. I disliked the show trim too. So many of the dogs in the ring are trimmed to the skin looking more like Fox Terriers than Irish. We seldom see the lovely broken two layered coat and the tails are so long and thin – oh dear. These things go in cycles and this is the current fashion and one wonders whether it is the influence from America.

The dogs of course are in beautiful condition and as full of themselves as ever so we must be glad for that.

I keep suggesting that we should have an untrimmed class for Irish Terriers in all the shows. I don’t mean the ‘shaggy bear’ winter look but just NOT trimmed to the last degree and somehow more recognisable as the sturdy all round working Terriers they were meant to be. Do let us know what you feel about this, but I do appreciate there’s a huge difference between show dogs and our more rough and tumble pets.

Tessie is quite a handful in the park at the moment. She goes to school with Imogen every day and absolutely adores all the children. She’s winkled her way in by making a great fuss of the Deputy Head but my problem is that whenever she hears children’s voices, particularly when they’re practising for their sports day or better still having a picnic, she dashes off to join the party and dodges around while I’m trying frantically to catch her and put her on the lead.

She gets very excited about all the bicycles as my son John Julian (Boo) is riding from John O’ Groats to Lands End raising money for blind children. Tessie has it fixed in her mind that every bicycle must belong to her dearly loved dad.

One last snippet. My other son James writes historical thrillers and the latest one ‘Realm’, which is published next week, has, wait for it…a brown shaggy haired, cheerful, indomitable Irish Dog called ‘Fearnot’ who scampers through the pages and makes one laugh and cry – so what’s new! He predates the Irish Terrier by several centuries but he is undoubtedly a forebear. You will all love him.

I do hope the summer days are proving fun for the dogs and not too desperately hot. Beegie flatly refuses to walk in the sunshine and stretches out in the shade while we all wait for her to cool off. But how we all love the summer.

With many greetings and love to the dogs,

Lucy