'Tara'

1986 - 1996

While not a great Rottweiler as far as the breed standard goes Tara was a brilliant dog to have around. She seemed to be born with an old head on her shoulders and when I first got her I was actually worried that she'd never learn the meaning of the word 'no' because she never did anything wrong! Such was her impact on my life that I still find myself calling any matronly dog Tara by mistake. She was the best puppy trainer I ever had too!

'Tyson'

1988 - 2001

By the time Tyson left this earth he was almost completely grey! I shall endeavor to find a decent photo of him when he was in his prime if only to prove that he did once have a black mask! Tyson was a great dog, a bit kamikaze as a youngster but once he was over the age of about 2 he was very calm and not at all as boisterous as I was expecting.

'Ablett'

b. 1994 and still going

Growing up I was never allowed to have a cat because my brother was allergic to them but almost the minute he moved out I came home with a 10 week old RagdollX kitten whom I named Ablett after the footballer.

'Creepers' & 'Girlcat'

1999 - still going strong (and fat!)

Though not littermates (they were born about 3 weeks apart in early 1999) I got these two together as kittens from the Greensborough Cat Shelter. I pretty much got them to take care of the rodent infestation in my horse stables/tack/feed room since Ablett and Buddha never seemed to get up there to do anything about it. So the two were raised in the feed/tack room where they very quickly took care of the mice and rats, better than any rat bait or traps could ever achieve! I still sometimes refer to these two as "the stable cats" which is pretty funny given as I type Creepers is lying on the couch where he's been for the last 3 hours! Now I did actually give these two proper names when I got them. Creepers (above left) was named Herman and Girlcat (above right) was named Petra but the names never really stuck. Creepers just ended up getting called Creepers or Creepycat for his creepy behaviour (ie. licking people's hair, liking having his head chewed on by a dog, enjoying having his temperature taken by vet etc) and Girlcat was the only female cat I had so she was always referred to as Girlcat.

'Muffy' & 'Mopoke'

The new kids on the block, Muffy and Mopoke are litter sisters but probably to different fathers and born a fewdays apart. Muffy was born on 23/12/05 and Mopoke on the 25/12/05. The mother cat belonged to a friend who was going away for Christmas holidays so I agreed to look after the little family so the mother cat and just Muffy at that stage were dropped off on Xmas morning. The short version is that the mother cat went home eventually and I find myself with two more cats! I was going to keep just one of them but they are such good little mates and I couldn't bear to pick one and split them up. Muffy is the white semi-longhaired kitten (pictured above at about 6 weeks old) and Mopoke, named after the Boobook Owl (also known as the Mopoke owl because of the sound it makes) is the tabby and white kitten (pictured above at about 12 weeks old).

 

'Misha'

1996 - 1997

Misha was a pup that I should've but couldn't resist.I had watched my neighbour's Border Collie raise 2 or 3 litters and controlled myself but when Misha was born I just "had to have her". Misha was pretty much a Border Collie but her father (a dog 5km's up the road) looked to have a bit of Coolie in him. Sadly Misha didn't last long, her busy nature saw her hit by a car before she ever reached maturity.

'Wendy'

When I moved to Gippsland in 1995 Wendy came with the house! The previous owners, who had moved about 20km's away, took their pigeons with them but this one kept coming back. I'm pretty sure Wendy was a male but the previous owner's teenage sons named him after Wendy of "The 12th Man" fame. Wendy pretty much just pottered around the property and I decided he was probably lonely so I got another young pigeon from a friend - aptly named 'Brown Pigeon'. Wendy adored Brown Pigeon and it's amazing how much ambience a couple of pigeons add to a property and how much company they provide. Unfortunately pigeons go through an annual moult which makes them vulnerable to predators. Wendy had obviously survived many moults in his lifetime but this time he had a young BMD with a particular penchant for catching birds to contend with and I guess his time was just up. I then had a lonely Brown Pigeon and considered getting a replacement for him but had visions of constantly replacing birds so I held off. It turned out to be a wise decision as Brown Pigeon disappeared not long after I spotted a hawk hanging around the property.

'Otis'

1997 - 2001

When my friend's Bullmastiff x Great Dane Rani got pregnant to the Labrador down the road I decided I would have one. With Tara not long gone and not knowing Tyson would live so long I wasn't confident, as someone living on property alone, that Nat would make me feel safe as she was so ridiculously welcoming to strangers. So I figured one of Rani's pups would be a good addition to take over the role that Tara and Tyson had so valiantly filled.Otis was a very large, impressive looking dog and fit the bill perfectly. However, he was euthanased in his prime due to a combination of temperament and soundness issues - one of the toughest things I have ever done.

'Buddha'

1996 - 2003

Buddha was a purebred Ragdoll and absolutely stunning to look at but not a whole lot else.When I got him he spent the first 3 weeks planted on the couch and only moved to eat and toilet! I never did shake the feeling that he might actually be retarded. He was relatively normal though but not very interactive with people other than to whinge at them. Buddha was euthanased at the young age of seven due to a suspected neurological disorder. He had lost the use of one of his legs, which would have had to be amputated, and had also gone very strange indeed (even for him!) Letting him go was the kindest option.

'Chloe'

1980 - 1988

Chloe was my first dog and the typical fat, family owned Labrador.I couldn't find any good photos of her- it was a long time ago, I probably don't have any! Chloe is probably responsible for my dog obsession since she failed to put me off while I was young and before it was too late <G> Not for lack of trying mind you...I spent many an after-school afternoon chasing Chloe around