Tails from the riverbank.

Every time Hubs and I have planned to go sailing on our narrowboat this year, something’s happened to prevent it. Things like the pups being neutered, individually of course, just to make it more awkward, and  Sam eating indestructable bones and needing surgery, repeat  flu bugs….oh, the list is endless! Last weekend, our boat trip was almost sabotaged again by an aging black lab that was limping around the village with no collar on. Fortunately, the owner was eventually located and we FINALLY got to the boat.

It was a stunningly beautiful day, and initially we just walked for miles with the pups, trying to tire them out,  hoping that by the time they got onboard they wouldn’t have the energy to run around. After all, this would be their first time on board.

We passed this old rusting bike that had been pulled from the canal.

A few hours later, exhausted and hot, we decided to bite the bullet and get on the boat. Well….it wasn’t as simple as you’d think! And….it quickly became nightmarish. Sam, with his long legs couldn’t even manage to step across the four inch gap onto the boat and ended up in the canal, closely followed by Annie who leapt in after a moorhen, or him, or both.

Fortunately, as they both had leads on, I thought it would be easy to pull them both out again….only it wasn’t. Sam got out of the gap between the boat and the canal and swam off pulling me in after him! Hubs, almost deafened by a bunch of squawking panicky ducks, finally managed to get me and the pups out, getting very wet and breathless in the process…and, it was all my fault according to him!!! Anyway…. finally, a very bedraggled bunch of muddy, smelly, wet swamp creatures  boarded the boat!

I wasn’t in the best of moods by this time, and when the soaking wet dogs began leaping around the boat, giving themselves a good shaking as they went, sending mud flying in every direction , I almost packed up and went home. The boat looked blitzed in seconds.

Once dogs [and us] were dried, things seemed a little better…well…ish!

A narrowboat is small at the best of times and when you have a lump like Sam blocking the entire centre of the boat it can get awkward trying to get past with a cup of tea. The pups quickly learnt which way was out, and after a few walks staged a sit in in this area.

And when they FINALLY  tired of sitting there whining, they took to barking out of the windows…all the windows…. No respect for the furniture whatsoever!!!

Then a good old game of pull knocked off what remaining ornaments where still in place.

And finally, even though Annie had now crashed, Sam dug deep into his reserves and managed a final bout of barking out of the window.. until he too finally gave in to sleep! Then peace, glorious peace reigned. Time for me to undo some of the damage and try to put my poor battered boat back together!!!

We had planned on sailing, but after all the hastle we decided to just try and survive sleeping on the boat.

The following day dawned sunny and bright so we thought it was of UPMOST importance that the dogs got a lesson in behaving at the pub opposite which was heaving with kids and dogs….a few beers took the edge off their erm….boisterous behavior and all ended well! Ish….the dogs fell in another three times between them, but I remained on the bank so a slight improvement! Hopefully they’ll be more used to it next time