Beanz aka Fenton

If you have seen the footage of Fenton the (handsome) dog chasing deer in Richmond Park, you probably fall into one of two camps. The "haha that is hilarious - been there, done that" camp, and the "how terrible, how can you laugh about that" camp.

TJam falls into the former. Not because she doesn't think it is terrible to let a dog chase deer, but because she recognises that, even with the best will in the world, things go wrong sometimes. She felt for that owner. And because sometimes, if all's well that ends well, then you have to laugh or you'll cry.

And so, I would like to tell you about my fabulous Saturday. As you know, I am partial to chasing, and so I have to stay on my lead when I walk past sheep fields and the like. I am not that fussed about actually catching anything, I just like the thrill of the chase. I am not a killer or anything. I have proved that on several occasions.

When I went flying into the woods on my walk, TJam thought I was after squirrels.

(Can you see where this is going?)

It was only when a flock of about 8 delicious sheep came charging out of the woods, that TJam realised the real reason for my delight. I couldn't hear TJam shouting "come here" (the polite version). I was in the zone. It's not every day sheep get out of their field and into my woods.

Sadly for me, but luckily for TJam and the sheep, some passers by shouted and waved their stick at me. It was ok by me, I'd had my fun. I turned round and bounded joyfully towards TJam to see how excited she would be at my glorious find.

Not as excited as I had hoped, as it turned out.

A jogger ran by and said he wished he'd been filming. TJam didn't find that very funny either.

I have been told to tell you that all the sheep ran off and appeared in good health.

Sheep in a Bog

Hands up who has ever waded into a stinking bog up to their knees to drag out a sheep by the scruff of its neck. That's another experience for TJam to add to the list.

A gang of 4 sheep had made a break from their field into the woods where we walk. By the time the Beanz and I had given chase, TJam had realised what was going on and said a quick prayer to the patron saint of keeping dogs safe from farmers with guns, one of the sheep had broken away and taken refuge in the bog. Probably not on purpose.

Once caught, the Beanz and I stood watching from the side (tied to a tree) while TJam waded into the thick black sludge up to her knees, grabbed the sheep by the scruff of the neck and dragged it to the edge. Once it had found its footing, the sheep left the scene dirty but  apparently unscathed and headed off in the direction of its friends.

TJam's trip to the café was a little smellier than usual and we all had to sit very much outside.