Jake at Port Eynon - still shots

Here are a few still shots of Jake at Port Eynon. Here he is before he got too stinky - apart from some sand around his face.


Getting wetter and grubbier by the moment.



Investigating some kind of marine life. A sponge? No idea what it is, animal, vegetable or mineral.


Jake inspected it well, a puzzled look on his face the whole time.


When it refused to play, or communicate in any way, Jake got decidedly bored.


I had him back on his lead by this time, as I had to get back to the bus stop, and I grabbed him when the opportunity presented itself. He has a habit of running away when he knows I want him back on the lead, so I tempted him with some food, and quickly leashed him up. I stopped at the ice cream kiosk at Port Eynon, before heading to get the bus. I can thoroughly recommend the Caribbean coconut flavour - delicious. Soon afterwards, we were on the way to Rhossili.

Jake has fun at Port Eynon

I headed for Gower again today, with Jake in tow, of course. He absolutely loves Port Eynon, so I'm going to try to get him down there once a week, until the summer dog ban comes in on May 1st. Anyway, here are five short video clips of him racing around, having fun.

The wonder - and woes - of a longhaired dog.

The Swamp Monster arose from the bog again yesterday. In other words, Jake, my little Shih Apso, or Sh*tty Asbo as I called him yesterday, got into the biggest, stinkiest, most foul, boggy area of Cwmdonkin Park imaginable. He was off the lead at the time, when he met up with a playful female Jack Russell, and her equally playful housemate, a big, hairy Newfoundland. Despite all my best efforts, and those of my downstairs neighbour, who was with me at the time, he refused to return when called.

The two other dogs headed for an area of the park that is, quite frankly, a stinking great quagmire, as it has been churned up by the tyres of the park-keepers' vehicles. Jake bounced along with his new friends. My main fear at the time, was that the huge Newfoundland would decide he was an afternoon snack. Luckily, the big dog either wasn't hungry, or wasn't vicious.

I had climbed to the very top of the park, when Jake sped off after the two dogs. Five minutes of yelling 'see ya, bye Jake', which usually brings him running back to me, terrified he's about to be left behind, produced no results. So, I had to hoof it down the steep hill, and spent another five minutes, with the help of the owner of the other two dogs, trying to catch the little devil. When Jake doesn't want to be caught, it's amazing how fast his short, stumpy little legs can run.

I finally managed to grab his harness, and leash him up. Horror of all horrors, his legs, tail and belly were utterly caked in dark, sticky mud. I'm not talking a light coating here, he was utterly sodden with it. Not even last week's walk across muddy fields got him into that state.

Being a Shih Tzu/Lhasa Apso hybrid, Jake has the most beautiful coat ever, and I'm very reluctant to have him clipped right back. But he's not the easiest dog to groom, as he's very strong-willed, and not all that used to grooming. Until he came to live with me, I don't think his coat was regularly attended to, so I'm more or less having to start from scratch in getting him to tolerate it. I'm having a nightmare sorting him out after yesterday's fiasco.

He left the house tangle-free. I wish I could say the same about his return. Because of the state he was in, I immediately bathed him when we got home. Somehow, he managed to tangle up his lovely tail during his play session with the other dogs, probably due to all the static that builds up in his fur. As I bathed him, I had to pick out endless leaves, twigs and other debris. He also had knots on his belly, in his armpits and on his legs. I've had my brushes, comb and thinning scissors on him, and got rid of most of the mess, apart from a big clump at the base of his tail. It's removeable without shaving, but getting the little devil to stay still is a nightmare. I'm determined to get him sorted, though.

He will need a full, professional grooming when the weather warms up a bit, probably into a teddy cut, but I am NOT shaving his beautiful tail for love nor money! I see so many Shih Tzus and Lhasas around with their coats clipped right back, and their lovely tails shaved bald. I HATE it. Why get a long-haired dog, only to shave off its crowning glory? Jake's coat may be slightly high maintenance, but it's no great hardship to groom him every day. As it's only a few inches long, it only takes a few minutes - unless he does his Swamp Monster routine.

Anyway, enough doggy waffle for now. Thanks for reading!

I've been Shih Apso-ed!

A few days ago, George, a young lad of about 11, who lives on my street, came up to me and informed me that Jake used to be his friends' dog. I thought nothing more of it, thinking maybe the kid had seen a similar dog somewhere. Today, a group of young boys rang my doorbell, and I initially told them to clear off, as I thought they were tommy-knocking and getting up to mischief. But one of them piped up with 'have you got a little Shih Tzu dog called Jake? I think he used to be our dog'. I quickly apologised for telling them to clear off, and as I was about to walk Jake, I took him out to meet them.

They boys were delighted to see him, and Jake was also pretty pleased to see them. He normally growls at anyone who comes into my garden, but he clearly knew the kids. A quick chat with the boys confirmed that Jake is not a Shih Tzu, as I was initially told. They were his original owners, who rehomed him with the people I got him from., and the interim owners told me he's a Shih Tzu. It turns out he's one of these new-fangled designer dog critters, a Shih Apso. He's a Shih Tzu - Lhasa Apso hybrid, which explains why he's at least 50% bigger than any Shih Tzu I've ever met. In other words, he's not a pure-breed. But do I care? Do I heck! The irony is, I've always poked fun at the owner of designer dogs such as Labradoodles, saying they're nuts to spend a small fortune on what are, essentially, mongrels. I paid nothing for Jake, but now consider him priceless!