Harry was so scared when we entered him in the Best Veteran category in the Friends of Tooting Common Dog Show that he tried to jump out of the ring, and when he found he couldn’t break free he clung on to me for dear life.
Harry was so scared when we entered him in the Best Veteran category in the Friends of Tooting Common Dog Show that he tried to jump out of the ring, and when he found he couldn’t break free he clung on to me for dear life. He didn’t win, in spite of his extraordinary sweetness and beauty. Harry is an eight-year-old English springer spaniel from Battersea Dogs Home and we got him last December. The trouble with Harry is that he is not quite right in the head. In fact, he is bipolar, and goes through his cycle every 24 hours. He begins the day in high spirits, so happy that he whimpers and trembles and makes a noise like Chewbacca. By 9 p.m. he is guarding the front door to see that nobody leaves. When I approach him he growls with such ferocity that he vibrates. I used to try to goad him into ever greater feats of growling, because I was curious to see if I could get out of the way if he went for my face, but my wife said that such behaviour was childish and irresponsible, so I stopped. We just have to accept that he is a very troubled dog, she says, and work round his issues.
The dog’s not the only one with issues. The other night I dreamt I was in prison and someone told me that Harry had died.
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