So Tilley has been with us for two years now and we have hardly noticed the time go by. She’s always been with us, hasn’t she?
As friends who have seen us with our mutt will attest, we love our little diva.
She’s got us sussed out and we do anything to her begging call, mainly belly rubs and treats.
All the rules we set on day one are of course strictly upheld. HA! Got you fooled, she is on the sofa, upstairs and on our bed. And the feeding from the table hasn’t gone that far that she has her own plate and seat, but she is working on it.
She been through the mill with us: operations, from which she has healed as well as she can. Sadly, she has arthritis in her hips and the elbows. Though there was no sign at all when we walked up to Stickle Tarn in the Lake District the other week. In and out of the rock pools, jumping from boulders to boulders like she’s done this all her life.
And then there were the many foster dogs. We finally learned that our little diva is a one-dog-in-the-house sort of a girl. Though she did help us fantastically well with the other dogs, they clearly were calmer and more settled with us and Tilley.
Walking on a loose lead happened a few months ago, after many harnesses and training tricks. Though she does tell me off when I don’t walk her before 8am!
Our new campervan she loves much more than the old van. She will happily sit up front and look at the world go by. We can barely put the camper bed down before she is up there spinning and digging around, making her own bed. Right in the middle and on top of both our sleeping bags.
A few weeks back we went camping with many of our friends and she was very content with the extra crowd – and belly rubs – just laid there on my lap or in campervan sleeping away.
She keeps us on our toes as she is very clever and learns things in the blink of an eye. So, new names for toys, friends and food she clicks on right away. Which means we have tried English, French and talking the first letter of words. Because any hint of “walkies” or “carrot” or “food”… you get the picture… she goes bonkers.
She might be smart but she still asks for belly rubs, food, walks etc in the same way so at times it is a guessing game – what do you want, Tilley?! And backwards she will walk while doing funny shaking, growling sounds with her mouth.
She will tell us when it is time for us to cook or sit down and relax on the sofa. She really loves to chill out while we cook, and when we relax on the sofa she loves to drape herself across me so she can have a good old sleep.
Oh, it is time for walkies, is it, Tilley? Right, OK.
Happy Gotcha Day, Tilley Diva!