London Dog Blog – Welcome!

I have to start with a sad tale – but don’t worry, there’s a happy ending!

Like many of my single friends I have a dog. Whilst a born and bred Londoner, we always had a dog when I was growing up – they were usually Heinz 57 varieties who hoovered up the family scraps, did a sterling job of amusing fractious young children and raced around the house spreading enthusiasm and joy in their wake – whatever the occasion.

Being a working mum with numerous cats, and with so much anti-dog sentiment around, I suppressed the desire to have a dog while my kids grew up. Yet I had said to my daughter that I would consider a dog once my son went to University. I figured that a dog might not replace her darling brother but it would be easier and cheaper to keep – and probably a little tidier!

I was eventually worn down by my daughter’s constant pleas to honour my promise and allow a canine companion into our lives and our hearts. I generally favour larger dogs but she was desperate for a Chihuahua. As her obsession had lasted for a couple of years, I decided that it wasn’t a fashion fixation and after an ill-advised trip to the West End to see “Legally Blonde” I looked up local Chihuahua breeders – but only for a long haired version, I didn’t want one of those tea cup, bug-eyed toys that are paraded on The Only Way is Essex in my home – anyway, our cats were likely to view one like that to be a tasty treat if we weren’t careful. In exchange for me browsing the puppy pages, she said she would consider Harvard for her university education. A fair deal.

So off to Feltham we went to inspect a small female pup. But whilst there we fell in love with Handsome Henry (see the icon) who, at five months, was a stunning red head and full of bounce. He came to live with us shortly afterwards and what a hit he was. Our house was once again filled with laughter, we started chatting to lots of people in our neighbourhood who we had seen – in passing – for years and we took him out and about with us wherever we went. Henry became a popular sight on trains, tubes and buses – and in local cafes and shops.

My many gay and straight dog owning friends all started offering advice on where we could and couldn’t take our beloved Henry. And it occurred to me that what London needed was a dog blog – a place where we could highlight and encourage the dog friendly establishments in our great City and where proud London dog owners could share their dog recommendations.

But just as I was about to start the Dog Blog disaster struck. My darling Henry escaped from the garden and was killed by a car on a nearby road. We were devastated. That little dog touched so many people in his sweet but oh too short life. I walked around Discovering Dogs exhibition with tears in my eyes and my heart heavy. Only other dog lovers will understand the depth of our despair.

Anyway, the hole in our lives is still there. But the fences are fixed. And just before Christmas a new sweetie arrived to pick up where Henry left off. So Alfie – a rather scruffy looking blue tri-colour long haired Chihuahua who has more than a passing resemblance to Tramp from that delightful Disney film will next week have his final shots and be out and about with us to explore London.

So, you’ll have to wait a little while before Alfie can tell you his views on London – in the meantime, please feel free to let me have your recommendations for dog friendly places in London. And, if you like, you can also send your own blog posts which we are more than happy to post up here – in the Dog Blog – with or without your name being mentioned depending on how you feel. Please email me at [email protected].

Happy New Year London Dog Lovers!