We spent the weekend with X and her wild young – how she copes I can’t imagine – they had 8 cats, then when we went to the school some of the boys came and asked if we knew there was a cat and 3 kittens under the passenger seat! They were brand new – she hadn’t made a sound. X was very apprehensive as he had so many cats. They already had 3 new kits from another cat. The child and I hid them away in a box in a shed but he must have found out and drowned them which upset the boy a lot – and me.
They have a new small kitten and the dog spent all her time trying to make the beast’s acquaintance, snorting and blowing under doors to find it, and rushing round when they were in the same room to find which side of a chair she could get nearest to the cat underneath – all she got for her pains were a number of smart raps to the jaw with claws very much to the fore, but it didn’t deter her much. I think it was friendliness too, and not mere aggression as I have never known a less aggressive dog than her. She will even trot down the drive past the neighbour’s goose which occasionally invades us, studiously ignoring it at a range of three or four feet. I’ve even seen her try to do the same with a rabbit, but it was less trusting than the goose, or more mobile, and departed in the middle.
Our boxer bitch came on heat 3 days after joining us and went on the PILL for eight days and we trust all is well but I strongly suspect she’s now embarked on a phantom pregnancy – woe is me – I trust it is at least phantom. I feel a bit guilty at the amount she eats when people are starving. A big attraction is she doesn’t yap all the time – she didn’t bark at all for 10 days then a friend of the neighbour’s came up here with him while we were heading off a sheep up our drive and she took an instant dislike to the friend (we don’t like him either!) and strained on the lead barking and hackles up – I was quite relieved to see she could rise to the occasion.
I heard fierce hissing whilst I was serving coffee in the drawing room and looked down to see Charlie Brown his white cat stretched out at my feet and suddenly realised there was a large man standing on both her back feet! Yes, he’s a she – they found out when she produced.
[from one reporter] I don’t really want to be tied with a dog but feel I need one here if X has to be away and other people have remarked the same thing. I thought I’d like a boxer and phoned a kennel I was told of, to find they bred beagles – which reminded me that was really what I meant to have (just like the man my grandfather knew…!) [???] so we went off miles into backwoods – they were delightful but v. exuberant and the owners said they were v. difficult to train and handle and did just what they wanted if you weren’t v. firm with them. Fortunately, they’d only got a dog pup (gorgeous) and I want a bitch. So then I saw an ad for 2 boxer bitch pups – phoned there – and the 8 1/2 month one left chased sheep. When I said I didn’t really want too young a dog she came up with the idea of a 4 year old bitch who’s had 2 litters of 12 and 14 pups and she felt should be retired. Being a new idea I’m thinking about it but I think it’s the answer – X and I are hopeless at training dogs and I don’t want that chewing up stage again – so we may go and have a look. The idea of having to exercise her on a day like this doesn’t appeal!!
[and from partner]
We have just acquired a boxer bitch, 4 years old, generally well trained and of a pleasant temperament it seems. One good point, she is almost entirely mute, apart from snuffling noises when curious.
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