- Location
- Andorra and Spain
Sadly not!
We went for a nice long walk this morning, me, J and the Labradogs. The trail we took is about 10km, and as it was due to be cooler this morning, I thought a perfect day to give it a go. The walk was partly on narrow paths through the woods and partly on the unmade roads around the farms; the dogs don’t need to be on lead as there is barely any traffic (one jogger, one cyclist and one car the whole way) and because it’s rough roads, they are going slowly and you can hear them coming for ages.
One of these roads goes past a finca, quite a big place but like many here, put together with any materials to hand. The original tiny building extended with corrugated metal panels, wooden pallets and string
I’ve run past it quite a few times and heard dogs barking inside, but this time was different, as we were walking and with all three dogs. This time, there was a dog outside. A big German Shepherd. No problems, the dog was behind a fence, so couldn’t get to us. Its big bark had Squidge and Shadow running up to the fence to check it out, so we called the back to us and kept walking up the road. A few metres on and I heard something give... I turned to see the dog running towards us. Oh, bollocks.
J grabbed Willow but we were too slow to get Squidge or Shadow. He ran to engage but came back when called and I managed to get a lead on him and pass him to J. Luna, however, ran straight up to the dog. I’m never as worried with her because I know she is so good with other dogs, but I had no idea of this thing’s temperament and we were on its turf. So I was so relieved to see the dog go from alert and “who are you?!” to floppy and relaxed, play-bowing and chasing Squidge. They chased around a bit, back through the gate the dog had forced open, then the GSD came back out to see me, leaving Squidge “trapped” inside. Not the sharpest tool in the box, that one. I managed to see that the Shepherd was s bitch at that point, and young at that, so I knew we could relax with Shadow. There’s a whole sub-story there which I won’t bore you with! Our big problem was that this dog wouldn’t stop following us! For an hour, we tried to get her to stay at the finca. I put her back in the gate twice, making it as secure as possible, and twice more she broke back out. We tried testing the territorial limits, as most dogs here will only follow for s few tens of metres before turning back; but this one being so young I think was enjoying the walk and the company too much!
In the end, we walked all the way home with her, about five kilometres on from her home. We got our dogs inside and watered and I took some water to her, as it was quite hot by this point and I couldn’t not. I hoped that by keeping her outside the gates, she would eventually drift off back home, but no. So in the end, we bundled her into the car (cheese is AMAZING!!) and drive her back. Sans Labras, we were able to secure the gate better and then drive away sharpish.
But, I have to say, she was the most gorgeous dog. I have a real soft spot for German Shepherds, and she was such a sweetheart. She kept jumping up really gently just for a bit of affection. She was happy and playful, respectful of W&S when she needed to be and just an all-round gorgeous dog.
She’s obviously well cared for in a physical sense, as she is a good weight, with a very glossy coat and with a tick collar (albeit not fitted correctly so I took a few ticks off her), but she is probably left for long periods without company, so craving a bit of attention. I know taking her back is socially the right thing to do, but I did feel bad knowing she would be so much happier in our little clan. Still, a GSD is not on my short-term plan, so back she had to go.
Such a gorgeous girl, though! I might leave a note next time I’m passing and offer to take her for occasional walks.
We went for a nice long walk this morning, me, J and the Labradogs. The trail we took is about 10km, and as it was due to be cooler this morning, I thought a perfect day to give it a go. The walk was partly on narrow paths through the woods and partly on the unmade roads around the farms; the dogs don’t need to be on lead as there is barely any traffic (one jogger, one cyclist and one car the whole way) and because it’s rough roads, they are going slowly and you can hear them coming for ages.
One of these roads goes past a finca, quite a big place but like many here, put together with any materials to hand. The original tiny building extended with corrugated metal panels, wooden pallets and string
I’ve run past it quite a few times and heard dogs barking inside, but this time was different, as we were walking and with all three dogs. This time, there was a dog outside. A big German Shepherd. No problems, the dog was behind a fence, so couldn’t get to us. Its big bark had Squidge and Shadow running up to the fence to check it out, so we called the back to us and kept walking up the road. A few metres on and I heard something give... I turned to see the dog running towards us. Oh, bollocks.
J grabbed Willow but we were too slow to get Squidge or Shadow. He ran to engage but came back when called and I managed to get a lead on him and pass him to J. Luna, however, ran straight up to the dog. I’m never as worried with her because I know she is so good with other dogs, but I had no idea of this thing’s temperament and we were on its turf. So I was so relieved to see the dog go from alert and “who are you?!” to floppy and relaxed, play-bowing and chasing Squidge. They chased around a bit, back through the gate the dog had forced open, then the GSD came back out to see me, leaving Squidge “trapped” inside. Not the sharpest tool in the box, that one. I managed to see that the Shepherd was s bitch at that point, and young at that, so I knew we could relax with Shadow. There’s a whole sub-story there which I won’t bore you with! Our big problem was that this dog wouldn’t stop following us! For an hour, we tried to get her to stay at the finca. I put her back in the gate twice, making it as secure as possible, and twice more she broke back out. We tried testing the territorial limits, as most dogs here will only follow for s few tens of metres before turning back; but this one being so young I think was enjoying the walk and the company too much!
In the end, we walked all the way home with her, about five kilometres on from her home. We got our dogs inside and watered and I took some water to her, as it was quite hot by this point and I couldn’t not. I hoped that by keeping her outside the gates, she would eventually drift off back home, but no. So in the end, we bundled her into the car (cheese is AMAZING!!) and drive her back. Sans Labras, we were able to secure the gate better and then drive away sharpish.
But, I have to say, she was the most gorgeous dog. I have a real soft spot for German Shepherds, and she was such a sweetheart. She kept jumping up really gently just for a bit of affection. She was happy and playful, respectful of W&S when she needed to be and just an all-round gorgeous dog.
She’s obviously well cared for in a physical sense, as she is a good weight, with a very glossy coat and with a tick collar (albeit not fitted correctly so I took a few ticks off her), but she is probably left for long periods without company, so craving a bit of attention. I know taking her back is socially the right thing to do, but I did feel bad knowing she would be so much happier in our little clan. Still, a GSD is not on my short-term plan, so back she had to go.
Such a gorgeous girl, though! I might leave a note next time I’m passing and offer to take her for occasional walks.
). I let them go on ahead and start walking, thinking she'll get to a certain limit away from her home and then turn back, but no.
