It was our first weekend when we were able to take Alfie out – and we were very excited. But as he is still only three months old we decided that we should probably keep him local otherwise he might be a bit overwhelmed.
The day was really bright and sunny. But rather cold. Oh dear. Our darling Alfie is tiny, tiny, tiny and he really feels the cold. So we made a plan to include some shopping for our new pet.
As Alfie is too small for a proper dog collar at present, he has to suffer the indignity of wearing a kitten collar. Quelle Domage! And the only outerwear that fits is a thin red and black Dennis the Menace tee-shirt – not ideal. So we attached his lead and off we went to Whitton – our local centre, which is the fourth largest town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. Clearly he sees us as the Alpha Females in the pack as he spent most of his walk hiding behind us rather than out in front leading the hunt (we have watched “The Dog Whisperer” you know!).
Our first stop was Whitton Pet Centre where we explained the temperature issue. Naturally, this is a shop where dogs are more than welcome to trot around and have a sniff – and if they’re lucky they’ll also get a dog biscuit from the lovely owners. Within no time at all a rather smart extra small red jumper from Muddy Paws was found (£10.25) and they helped Alfie into it. Perfect.
Now normally, we have a cup of coffee sat outside Café Parisienne in Whitton High Street – with our previous dog we would enjoy the sunshine while numerous members of the public would stop and have a chat – about the dog of course. But on this occasion we were determined to introduce Alfie to public transport so to the 281 bus stop we went.
Within no time at all, a bus came along and we boarded - carrying Alfie as he hasn’t quite got the hang of crowds yet. He sat on our lap and looked out the window with a suitable level of awe as we passed Twickenham Rugby Stadium.
We disembarked on Twickenham High Street and made our way to the Starbucks there. Sadly, the rules here are that only guide dogs are allowed entry – we weren’t even allowed to hold him in our arms inside while we waited for our takeaway order to be prepared. This meant that one of us had to stand outside – two cold noses pressed sadly against the window. The upside is that all sorts of people – from the very young to the very old – chatted about what sort of dog he was and how old. There were even a few admiring enquiries about that new red jumper.
With takeaway coffee and chocolate in hand we walked by the riverside. Alfie’s first exposure to sea gulls, ducks, geese and land lubber pigeons. Excellent fun. As we strolled alone we smiled at other dog walkers and allowed kids and grannies to stroke Alfie. We walked past The Barmy Arms which is a well known rugby pub and a place where we would often sit and watch the river with our previous dog at our feet in the spacious outdoor area.
We admired the sculptures at Champion’s Wharf and met Popsi, an American Cocker Spaniel. We both read the rules at the entrance to York House Gardens which indicated that “dogs must be kept under control”. These squirrel-filled gardens are beautiful – especially the Italian marble statues in the huge waterfall which is Twickenham’s answer to the Trevi fountain. We have done much newt watching here in the past. After exploring the various grassy areas (poop bags at the ready, just in case) we returned to the town.
The top of Church Street has a little square with a giant chess set if you care to play. The Mediterranean restaurant here (Pinchos) serves excellent tapas and has tables and chairs outside where well behaved dogs are welcome. I spied my Mexicana necklace in a new jewellers (Complement) and went inside to see if they had matching ear rings. Immediately, the owner indicated that Alfie should be bought inside and out of the cold – a dog-friendly jewellers is worth noting!
By this point Alfie was tired and seemed quite content doing an impression of a sleeping baby kangaroo inside Lizzie’s jacket with just his head poking out. So we decided to take the bus home.
Dog fact: With 31% of households in the UK having a dog, the number of canines is estimated at between 8.3m and 10.5m. Now that, by any standards, is a lot of dogs.
