Companionship

Last weekend I went to Suffolk Dog Day at Helmingham Hall near Stowmarket.  It was a great day; I deliberately didn’t take Moss with me because I thought she’d find it overwhelming.  There were more than one thousand dogs present and she’s extremely sensitive.

What an interesting day it was, so many people with so many dogs, and so many different stories to tell.  Many of us keen to talk about dogs.  It was an absolute joy to be able to strike up a conversation with a complete stranger on the subject that we all had in common.

Sitting by the ringside, watching Best Veteran being judged, I was next to a lady and her grownup daughter.  Both of them had tiny Italian Greyhounds on their laps, a breed I’ve never even come across before.  As I saw them with their dogs, it suddenly it occurred to me why we have dogs, and it’s terribly simple.

It’s companionship, isn’t it?

In all its many different forms, from the hard-working Police dog to the tiny weeny handbag dog, it’s the companionship that makes this relationship work.  That’s why it’s survived over so many years, because we all benefit from it.

Realising that made me feel a bit lonely without Moss by my side.  I began to wonder if perhaps she could have dealt with it after all.

Maybe next year …

Image:         

At the ringside with a woman and her beloved Italian Greyhound, look at the adoration in her eyes.