Barking Blondes: Clogs, couture collars and country vs city

We took a trip to the north coast of Norfolk this week. It was difficult to know who was the most inappropriately attired – us in our wooden platform fashion clogs or our two bull breeds in handmade designer collars. We looked a strange urban quartet stumbling over the cliff tops, exclaiming loudly “Oh sea! Ooh sand! ….OMG turf!”

Matilda the bulldog, in a red leather bow tie, wheezed her way enthusiastically ahead of us. As we turned the corner she had cast a wonderful silhouette on her back, legs in the air wriggling with sheer joie de vivre.

Molly, the miniature bull terrier, however, clad in wet t-shirt to keep cool, did her terrier thing and ran away. “Molly!” we screamed. Then louder: “Molly! MOLLY!!!!!”

We had completely lost sight of her as she hurtled over the horizon. Peace in this tranquil Norfolk bird sanctuary was shattered. Elderly couples in shorts, binoculars hanging around their necks, appeared from behind hillocks and frowned. Nice, healthy people walking nice, calm, healthy labradors avoided eye contact with us.

A fisherman doing something odd with fish in a bucket looked up. “Have you seen a bull terrier in a purple t-shirt with a zebra patterned collar go by?” we asked.

His stare spoke volumes. We stumbled on, regretting our clogs .The countryside is full of peril and our city slicker mutts seemed to have no sense of survival.

Suddenly a pheasant shot out from under a beach shrub followed by an exuberant Molly.

Naturalist Chris Packham has been in the press this week concerned over the domestic cat and their effect on urban wildlife. His take on bulldogs and coastal pheasants doesn’t bare thinking about. You can take the dog out of London but you can’t take London out of our dogs. They behaved like a pair of yobs on a day trip to Benidorm.

Do country-dwelling dogs have a better life than those in a city? The advantages of rural climes are obvious. Fresh air, large gardens, homegrown veg and probably cheaper vet bills (our vets’ celebrity-studded waiting room often resembles a night in the Groucho). Do country dogs still sleep in a kennel in the yard like they did in Beano? Are they offered a wider choice of smells and comfier rides in four wheel drives stacked with wax jackets?

We stopped for tea, following our cliff top escapade, in the local tea gardens. NO DOGS was the welcoming sign on the gate. We tied them up under a tree, where we could keep an eye on them and where they slept, exhausted from the novelty of fresh air. And then something very interesting happened. A local farmer delivering rhubarb, pulled up in a jeep with his beautiful, working gun dog seated in the back. As the driver went indoors, his dog caught sight of our two sleeping mutts and started to kick off. Standing on the seat and barking aggressively, it was obviously stressed and unhappy with stranger dogs within its eyesight. Our two continued to sleep. Matilda raised one eyelid to see what the commotion was then carried on snoring. Molly didn’t even acknowledge the barking.

Town dogs have so much stimulation and socialization that very little unsettles them. Police sirens, buses and traffic are part of their everyday. In the course of one week the average town dog will have sniffed the backside of over fifty passing pooches. Gardens are a luxury. However, the choice of smells from dropped kebabs to hookah pipes to royal parks is enormous. There was a time when breeders and rescue centres wouldn’t allow you a dog if you couldn’t offer a good sized garden. This has changed. As our vet says, it doesn’t matter if you live in a cupboard as long as your dog is exercised, loved and mentally motivated every day. Is the dog trotting along country lanes any happier than the poodle we often see in a bicycle basket being peddled around Trafalgar Square?

Survival for dogs and humans in a city is a challenge. It is far from routine but there is always room for fashion statements. Collars or clogs.

‘Barking at the Moon’ is on Thursdays from 10pm until midnight on BBC London 94.9 FM

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• http://twitter.com/PeterEgan6 Peter Egan

  Morning Jo, Anna, Matilda and Molly. An interesting dilemma urban versus rural and a really good point regarding the so important socialising of our friends. We take it for granted, the fact that our dogs will meet a huge variety of different breeds, as they walk with us through our urban sprawl and indeed on the magnificent Hampstead Heath, or any of the great parks and open spaces peppered around London. I worry, when walking on the Heath, and I meet a “working dog” it usually means their owner has shot some beautiful creature for fun and “Spud” the Spaniel has run tail wagging into the bushes to retrieve the poor dead bird. These dogs always seem a bit demented to me, hyper and disinterested, alert and a bit aloof, my dogs are townies, in your face, interested in loads of things, picking up messages everyday, most of which they probably left themselves the day before. Also, living close to the Heath, I find I can walk more freely and for longer than my friends who are country dwellers. Most of the land is owned by families who keep strangers and their dogs at bay. Also in this time of deep recession I really like your Vets comment about a dog being happy in a small living space, so long as it’s socialised, exercised regularly, mentally stimulated and loved. So many dogs especially the Bull Breeds are abandoned now. It’s tragic the number of dogs that are put down in the UK.
  Another lively and interesting blog. Always a pleasure to read.
  Love to the quartet (-:)

• http://twitter.com/MrHappySW11 MrReasons2BCheerful

  It’s an interesting question you pose this week, girls: town or country.
  I have often thought the urban-dwelling dog gets more exercise due to their busy owner’s work schedule – I used to walk my spaniel first thing in the morning and last thing at night… WITH a dog-walker coming in twice a day to boot!
  Bruno, my adorable Welsh Terrier, is typcal of his breed – he’d spend all day sleeping!!! Being a typical terrier he’s also hugely independent and would love an enclosed garden to be able to run around in – OFF the lead.
  So I suppose it’s down to the choice of breed really – rather silly to want a St Bernard if you only have a studio flat…

• madgooner1

  My dog always preferred the countryside because of cow dung.

• Ziggydog

  Re Chris Packham’s comments about dogs disturbing wildlife, cats are by far the worst offenders! Whilst a good mouser is one thing, it is impossible to ‘pick up’ after a cat unless its contained indoors, plus they kill birds and small furries. Even the most responsible cat owner can’t stop this. Dogs are trainable and adaptable and love more than a cat to be with its master, be it in the country or the town.

• 5brian5

  Hi Ladies; I really enjoyed your blog this week as always. In this mobile home park where I live, some of the residents have large dogs that have nowhere to run loose. Park rules prohibit loose dogs or cats. Whilst I never see dogs running loose, I have seen as many as six cats running together down the street in a “pack”. I often wonder, where these large dogs are all day long. Locked in a mobile home? These poor dogs and cats would clearly be better off in the country with new compassionate owners. I have procrastinated over getting an animal, until the neighbour dropped off his unwanted cat, because I felt it wouldn’t be fair to an animal. After observing how well my cat is doing, and realizing I don’t have a cat, but a four legged child who follows me around checking out everything I do, I have re-thought things. The other day whilst at my doctors office, this man who was hearing impaired with a coclear implant, had this really beautiful miniature schnauser service dog. This dog was so well behaved and sweet, we hit it off instantly. I had thought of a service dog before, as I am hearing impaired myself, and would never hear the smoke alarms. With all the people who need them, I felt it would be selfish of me. Now that I have this sweetheart of a cat, I’m going to talk to my doctors for help in procuring a service dog.. My cat, as traumatized as she was, would run and hide if fire broke out. I used to love the country, and still do for about one second. Then I throw my old ford into trird gear, turn around, and high tail straight it back to the city where I can enjoy the delightful smell of petrol instead of ragweed. I guess my cat and I, as well any future dog are doomed to living close to the city. Besides, I can support British business as my favourite supermarket carries Carr’s and McVitties. “Tula” likes digestive, and I can’t live without hobnobs! They always go nicely with “Barking At The Moon”! “Luv-u-4″! Brian (Detroit) xxxx

• Gizwiz

  Oooh for me, country definitely! My cat actually quite liked watching Chris Packham on Springwatch……. well, I think all the birds did it for her really. As for me? Much preferred Richard Hammond on the recent ‘Live’ programme the Beeb did when he was in Africa. The programme itself was dreadful but that particular presenter was definitely easy on the eye!

• marcbletchley

  hi girls
  i think mollie and matilda would settle into norfolkshire life quicker then the owners.
  it was amusing listening to jo on the wireless especially in the fish shop.
  keep up the good work i enjoy reading the others comments.

• http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1260183489 Sharon Webley

  A lot of towns have more open space to walk dogs (parks etc) than country villages, where it’s all fenced off private land. I live in a town and have 2 country parks within a 5 minute drive, and a further 6 within half an hour’s drive.

• SarahGodfrey

  An excellent blog ladies, which poses many interesting questions. I love reading it weekly … in fact, it’s the highlight of my week! Keep up the great work!

• http://www.facebook.com/people/Karen-C-Chamberlain/1241322314 Karen C Chamberlain

  Oh my babies love the beach although a bit heard to keep an eye on all six they all seem to go off and find a nice place to wee and sniff out all the strange smells! We always check the tide times and go just as tide going out in case they do eat anything nasty that’s been laying in the sun YUK! We go down to Lydd on Sea in Kent. The tide is so low and only a few inches deep for miles so we don’t have to worry at all and lots of big puddles, all the girls just love it! On the other foot we have the Kent south downs so have the best of both worlds here as well as walking in the town for a Starbucks and people watching where the girls get so much attention and we chat to all the passers by, a lovely passtime…But off course we only take two at a time there! Six is a little bit rude LOL LOL! So we are looking to the CAnine Games on the 7th July, we are in the Opening Ceremony and assisting with the Fun Dog Show as well as raising a little bit of wonga for Bulldog Rescue. Gret show on the RAdio tonight Ladies as always we wish you love and Bulldog Kisses WOOF WOOF can’t wait for next weeks escapades! xxxxx