What fires up our imaginations to write and draw stories for this dog blog? Everything and anything, really. Read on…
Charities I belong to or follow
Have you ever considered a special muttwit companion of your own? Or, have you ever wondered what is that bird call?” Below are two sites which may help you to answer both questions.
My suggestion for anyone who wants to have a dog ‘for life’ as a companion is to first consider adoption of a rescue pet. Probably, the most famous animal shelter for both cats and dogs in the UK is Battersea Dogs Home. You can visit their site here: https://www.battersea.org.uk/ A short opening statement will tell you exactly what Battersea think about choosing between a new puppy or a rescue dog: ‘Rescue Is Our Favorite Breed’
To give you an idea of the wide variety of fourlegs looking for a new home to fill with loads of loving, please say hello to the two muttwits below:
Rocky – Staffordshire Bull Terrier, Male, 6yrs – 2mnths, reference:377386
Rocky is an affectionate and energetic dog who shows many of the charming qualities of his breed. He is looking for owners who want an interactive, energetic dog who is keen to play, exercise and train. (courtesy of Battersea.org)
Peanut – Jack Russell, Male, 4yrs – 2mnths, reference: 382583
Peanut is a little dog with a larger than life personality! He is a sweet and affectionate boy once he has gotten to know you and will be a charming companion for the right home. (courtesy of Battersea.org)
There are many more muttwits to meet on the site but…please remember a dog is for life, not just for lockdown!
Birds in the UK: https://rspb.org.uk
I love rambling in the countryside but I am hopeless at remembering the names and types of birds behind their extraordinary calls. RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds) is a site that can make identification easy by matching a particular chirp or trill with a particular species – and in the easiest way possible. The site features an A – Z of birds found in the UK with a field-recorded sound bite of chirp, tweet, trill or song. Addictive and simply wonderful – and you’ll probably end up listening to them all.
Books
This week I want to introduce you to, or remind you of, some fine American writers who can tell a memorable story with great characters, fully expressed in a minimum number of perfectly placed words.
Larry McMurtry – great dialogue, wonderful humour, wonderful character development – you can’t do better than start off with Lonesome Dove, one of the greatest Westerns ever written.
- Publisher: Pan; Reprints edition (5 Aug. 2011)
- ISBN-10: 1447203054
- ISBN-13: 978-1447203056
Jack London – understands the animal soul better than any other writer. The Call of the Wild is a short adventure novel set in Yukon, Canada, and features a dog named Buck. The story opens when Buck is stolen from his home and sold into service as a sled dog in Alaska and forced to fight to survive and dominate other dogs. I don’t want to spoil it by telling you any more…
- Publisher: Independently published (17 Feb. 2020)
- ISBN-13: 979-8614825652
- ASIN: B084WLBV5K
John Steinbeck – the finest writer of prose who has ever wielded the pen. Of Mice and Men is a masterpiece that tackles the universal themes of loyalty, friendship and shared vision, by giving a voice to America’s lonely and dispossessed. If a picture can paint a thousand words then one Steinbeck sentence can paint a thousand colourful emotions.
- Publisher: Penguin Classics; New Ed edition (26 Jan. 2006)
- ISBN-10: 9780141023571
- ISBN-13: 978-0141023571
- ASIN: 0141023570
Music
My musical tastes shoot off in two extreme directions: electronic ambient and melodic metalcore.
This week I am featuring a great ‘melodic’ metalcore band who I have followed for the last fifteen years – yet still desperately waiting to see perform live: the incomparable ‘Killswitch Engage’:
Go on, check them out – with the volume knob at 10.
USUAL MUTTWITS 
Good choice of writers mate. Battersea has seen a spike in rehoming since lockdown, so let’s hope everyone keeps those dogs once they get back into their usual routines.
Jack has reblogged your guest post.
https://havewehadhelp.wordpress.com/2020/05/30/blog-feature-usual-muttwits/
Cheers, Pete.
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Yes, you are absolutely right Pete. A dog is for life, not Christmas, not lockdown, not nothing! Only to be welcomed into a caring and loving home ‘for life’.
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