Nearly back to normal

It's been a while since my last post, I apologise but now Henley's shoulder has healed rather nicely and he is allowed to start visiting the park for a run. Henley loves the dog park and knows when we are heading there. We aimed to get to the dog park when there weren't any dogs there (as redundant as that sounds). The reason being so that he does get to involved with other dogs in running around, playing and possibly re-injuring himself. We did however get to the park one day to come face to face with a 4-5 moth old Vizsla pup. We were quite surprised as we have yet to come across one at the park. Henley and his new Vizsla pup friend Ollie had a blast together and enjoyed being with each as they both seemed to gel. I've found that at the dog park some of the different breeds tend to come out more in each dog. The Shepard breeds (Collies, Kelpies, Shelties etc) tend to be ball crazy and have no time for a young Vizsla who wants to chase and be chased. The Greyhounds and whippets run at such a pace that they are impossible to catch. Try as Henley does he can only catch up with them when they are having a drink or resting which isn't any fun for them or Henley. The smaller breeds generally stick to themselves and when there are rambunctious giants (in comparison) racing around like idiots and wrestling who can blame them? Henley does have a couple of smaller friends that he loves to run and play with: a black and white Papillon named Axl and a Beagle named Sam.
Henley has been away from all of his friends at the dog park for so long (two months seem like a lifetime for Henley and his humans). So he'll be weaned back to going to the park at the 'peak' dog periods once he's been to the park at less busy times.

One thing I have noticed is that Henley has gotten even more sassy since his surgery. He's not afraid of telling who's who and what's what. Especially if it is a impudent inanimate treat that needs a good talking to and smack before being devoured.

Henley has always been a vocal dog from letting us know when something is amiss, battling over the best bed with Tess to groaning and moaning when he can't get comfortable when he's tired and wants a nap. And as summer approaches and the flies, moths and butterflies have come out in force his day can be quite busy chasing down flies and leaping after butterflies and moths. If they fly out of his reach or they are on the wrong side of the glass door he is no afraid of letting everyone (and I mean everyone) know his frustration.
An update on the battle against the alien (cat) invasion of earth (or at least the family room): Henley is still fighting and not letting the aliens (cats) presence get him down, its the little victories/ battles that make up the war. Tess (alien threat in Henley's eyes) is being her ever patient self and lets us and Henley know when she has had enough. Do you have a war waging in your house? Is it one sided or are both species giving as good as they get?

Post Shoulder Surgery

Let me start off by saying that you really don't realise how much you miss your fur baby until they aren't there. I dropped Henley off to the Small Animal Specialist Hospital (SASH) on late Sunday afternoon and he was one of the first to be operated on, on Monday morning. I was waiting for the phone call to hear how his surgery went and they said they would call at around 12pmish. I watched the minutes tick by until 1pm and called them to find out how my lad went. The veterinarian said the surgery went well and that Henley was already awake and was groggily already up on his paws. Staying overnight they said that he should be fine to be picked up on tuesday (today).

Our house had changed massively with Henley coming into the family but I didm;t realise just how loud and boisterous he had turned our house into till he was absent. The old tabby Tess and the two younger cats Skitz and Princess kept looking around behind them expecting Henley to pop up and pounce on them out of the blue. Our house was a lot quieter in Henley's absence as he is the most vocal dog I have ever come across. He groans, moans, sighs, grumbles, chats, whistle whines and makes a row row row sound that always has us laughing when he belts it out.

After receiving a call that Henley was good to be picked up and brought home in the afternoon I went to pick up my boy. Sitting in the waiting room to see Henley and his Veterinarian as I heard a door open and the sound of nails on the linoleum floor could be heard my dad and I looked up the hallway. I quickly glanced at my Dad and could see that he didn't recognise the dog walking towards us. "It's Henley dad," he was shocked and asked "is it really him?" at the sound of our voices Henley started to pull on the leash and whine to get to us. You may ask how could you not recognise you own dog? I recognised him but I could see why dad initially didn't recognise our boy. Over a quarter of my once golden rust coloured boy was white! He had been shaved and boy could you see the difference between fur and bare shaved skin.

What do you mean my haircut isn't the latest fashion?

He is still regal even looking a little yin yang/ cow spotted like.

There's a big difference in texture when you pat Henley at the moment.

 It's going to be tricky keeping Henley rested, but in order for him to recover well it has to be done (even when he pulls out his Bambi eyes and wants to go running around the yard like a crazy cyclone). I know one thing for sure dad is certainly happy that his little man is back home.

I think dad's happy to have his little man back at home.

Grandad loves his little fella being back at home where he belongs.

For the next 7-10 days Henley's allowed very small walks to the letter box and back (we live in a battle-axe block so the drive is a little longer than normal and suits the distance the vet recommended) three times a day. Then after having a check up in a fortnight we can slowly but steadily build up to more exercise and eventually he'll be back to normal (fingers crossed).

Surgery and slowing down a vizsla

As Henley's limping and holding up of his left paw increased in frequency due to having Osteochondritis Dissecans aka OCD in his left shoulder I decided that he had to go and see the vet about having surgery. Our local vet referred us to a specialist at SASH (small animal specialist hospital) where Henley went when he had toxicity a couple of months ago.

The side entrance to SASH

Come on this way!

Waiting to see the specialist

The specialist was running a bit late so my dad took him outside for a bit of a stroll.
When it came time for us to see the specialist Henley of course bounced around like a jumping bean instead of limping like he has been doing a lot of.
The orthopaedic specialist thoroughly examined Henley's joints and advised that the best option for Henley to recover would be to have surgery to remove the flap of cartilage. It would be an arthroscopic surgery (unless they have a problem removing the flap and a larger incision is required) and would be in hospital over night to recover. So late this afternoon I will be dropping Henley off at SASH where he will be staying overnight, having his surgery tomorrow morning and staying overnight again on monday night and if all goes well coming home on tuesday.

This morning we went for a casual stroll (this is me trying to slow Henley down so he isn't in too much pain before his surgery) at Pennant Hills Park.
And I am pretty sure Henley sniffed every square in of the oval we visited.

All these new smells.

Excitedly pulling on the lead while wearing his easy walk head halter.

Left, right, left which way should we go?

Hey mum isn't this place great!

hmm not sure what this smell is from

A blurry Henley licking his nose after a particularly interesting sniff

A treat break (training) is always a good thing

I hope we come back here again, this place is great for investigating!

Even though Henley is meant to be resting as much as possible a short casual walk is a must otherwise Henley goes crazy being inside all the time and his zoomies (crazy racing around the yard or house at breakneck speed) are the worst thing he could be doing to his shoulder. So we have been to different neighbouring areas where Henley has never been, so sniffs and gets to smell all new things. This tires him out mentally and keeps both of us sane. 
With Henley's shoulder injury he has gone from being fit and able to run rings around his canine friends at the dog park to getting worn out by just walking to the park. The vet said that his fitness condition and the small amount of muscle wastage is normal with this type of injury/ illness and that once he has recovered we can build him back up to how he was pre-OCD. 

I'll keep you all posted on how Henley's surgery and recovery goes. Wish him luck!

The Very Last Lick

Henley is picky eater, I never knew that a dog could be so picky with their food until Henley came into my life. So when he decides he likes something it is gone in a flash! His favourite sneak treat is the last cat sized mouthful of the cats canned food. There is only ever a minuscule and I mean tiny, tiny amount left (as cat food isn't good for dogs) in the metal bowl insert that he licks and then picks up and trots back to his bed where he savours every last lick of the small bowl. And Henley doesn't stop at just one bowl, when it comes to feeding one of the cats a new bowl is often used and so if we don't check Henley's bed his collection keeps getting larger. I think the record for cat bowls hidden in his bed is eight of them!
He will also clean his own metal bowl if there was something truly delicious in it the meal before.

Do any of your dogs enjoy licking out their bowl like a kid that gets to lick the bowl after baking with their mum?

Tongue Out Tuesday

With the rain sticking around Henley's napping has turned into a super power. When the humans won't let him out to frolic and dig in the mud puddles they (including the cat) are thoroughly told off for making it rain and then its time for another nap. And as Henley has learned from Tess the seventeen year old tabby it takes plenty of practice to be an expert napper.

Quick the sun is out! Sunbathe SUNBATHE!

Oh she's taking a picture again, really mum?

Fine, but make sure you get my good side mum.

It's a tongue out kind of tuesday

I must say it's a hard life for a Vizsla pup. Napping followed by stretching, annoying the cat, checking in with the humans to make sure they are behaving, more napping, mealtime, bathroom breaks and even more napping, its a full schedule that's for sure!

Toxic And Non-Toxic Plants For Dogs

Back in late July/ early August when Henley gave the fright of my life by eating something (not sure what) and getting toxicity poison from it (still unknown exactly what “it” was) I looked more closely into what plants are and aren’t deadly for dogs. I must say there isn’t much information on what plants are “safe” for dogs. There’s plenty on what plants are poisonous but not the other way round. So I thought it would be helpful to develop two lists that depicts the most common plants found in your garden that are toxic and a its of plants that are non-toxic for dogs:
I should also point out that this list will pertain to plants native and exotic to Australia.

White Bottlebrush (Callistemon salignus) Safe for Dogs. 

Non-Toxic Plants:

African Daisy Gerbera jemesonii
African Violet Saintpaulia spp.
Baby’s Tears (aka Polka Dot Plant) Hypoestes phyllostachya
Bamboo Palm Chamaedorea elegans
Beetroot (aka Swiss Chard) Beta vulgaris
Bottlebrush
Buttercup Squash Cucurbita maxima cv
Buzzy Lizzie (aka Giant Touch-Me-Not, Patient Lucy) Impatiens spp.
Callistemon
Carrot Daucus carota var. sativa
Celosia plumosa (aka Cockscomb) 
Chickens and Hens (aka Nother Hens and Chicks) Echeveria elegans
Cinnamon
Cornflower (aka Bacelors buttons) Centaurea cyanus
Crape Myrtle Lagerstroemia indica
Cucumber
Garden Snapdragon Antirrhinum majus
Gerber Daisy Gerbera jamesonii
Honeydew Melon Cucumis melo
Jasmine Jasminium species
Marigold Calendula officinalis
Mulberry Tree Morus sp.
Pampas Grass Cortaderia selloana
Petunia Petunia species
Rose Rosa species
Strawberry Fragaria
Sunflower Helianthus angustifolius
Venus Fly Trap Droseraceae

Toxic Plants:

Poisonous for dogs: the Poppy

  

Agapanthus
Aloe vera
Amaryllis
Apple 
Apricot
Arum lily
Azalea/Rhododendron
Baby’s Breath
Begonia’s
Bird of Paradise (Strelitzia reginae)
Brunfelsia (aka Yesterday, today and tomorrow)
Carnations
Clematis
Cherry Tree
Chrysanthemum
Cyclamen
Daffodil
Dahlia
Daphne
Foxglove
Garlic
Gardenia
Geranium
Gladiola
Grapefruit
Helebore
Hibiscus
Holly
Horse Chestnut
Hosta
Hydrangea
Hyacinth
Iris
Ivy
Jade Plant (aka Dwarf rubber plant) Crassula argentea
Jonquil
Lantana
Laurel
Lemon
Lilies (entire family)
Lily of the Valley
Lime
Morning Glory
Macadamia
Nandina (aka Sacred bamboo, Hevenly Bamboo) Nandina domestica
Norfolk Island Pine (aka Australian Pine)
Oleander 
Orange
Periwinkle (aka Running Myrtle) Vinca rosea
Peony
Poinsettias
Poppies
Portulaca (aka Pigwee, Wild Portulaca, Moss Rose) Portulaca leeracea
Primrose
Privet
Rhubarb
Sage Palm
Snow drops
Snowflakes
Sweet Pea (Lathyrus latifolius
Tomato Plants
Tulips
Walnuts
Wandering jew
Wisteria
Yucca

While compiling the lists I also remembered that fertilisers and pest control (rodent poisons, snail and slug bait and insecticides) can cause allergic reactions for dogs (and cats) and even death in some instances if digested or come into direct contact with. Fertilisers come in many forms: liquid, granular or solid form. So its best to watch out or be aware of the ingredients in your fertilisers.

Another trouble area that can occur with dogs (puppies especially) is what mulch you use in your garden. Some puppies and dogs (Henley included) will gladly pick up, chew and eat bark mulch. This can be a choking hazard or lead to gastrointestinal issues. In other parts of the world a popular type of mulch available (not readily available in Australia) is Cocoa Bean Mulch. Yep chocolate mulch, it's as bad if not worse than if your dog digested chocolate. Pine mulch is an alternative that dogs tend to not eat due to the shape and size of the needles found in it. So keep an eye out and see what plants are found in your garden or have a look at what plants are safe for your canine family members. 

A great website to check out a more thorough list of plants poisonous to dogs and other pets is the Pet Poison Helpline (http://www.petpoisonhelpline.com/poisons/).

Do you have any plants that you think should be on one of the two lists? Let me know and I'll add them to it.

Cabin Fever

For most of the week the weather has been pretty awful. Rain followed by wind and even more rain. Parts of Sydney have had severe damage from the weather and other parts have experienced flooding. As I showed in 'A splash in a puddle never hurt no body' our front yard floods when the rain gets heavy. And the initial cute splashing that Henley did soon wore off when he began to dig in the mud then try and race inside. Multiple towels a day are used to wipe his feet, legs and even head as he occasionally decides to shove his head into the muddy water to try and see what? I have no idea. But our washing machine sure is getting a workout.

Resting a Vizsla pup is hard work. Think of trying to pack a fire cracker back in its box after it has been lit and that's what it's like trying to contain a seven month old Vizsla. He does have his moments of quiet in which snuggles are amazing. But the still moments are far and few between.

A snuggle and a scratch on the chest and you have to take my photo mum?

Nap time while the rain pours down outside.

Upside-down he gets this crazy look in his eyes right before he runs at full speed around the house

So in combination with trying to keep Henley from running around with his injured shoulder (near impossible as that is), Henley's dislike for going outside to the bathroom when its raining, and the excessive muddy paw cleaning we have had enough of this weather. Bring back the sun!

A splash in a puddle never hurt no body

As Sydney hunkers down for some heavy rain and strong winds Henley has found the joy that is our flooded front yard. Poor drainage plus heavy rain means that the front garden turns into a plunge pool in places where Henley has begun his new career as an open cut miner. These holes that he can make in a matter of seconds with those digging paws of his are now over filled with rain water. Henley has met many a puddle especially enjoying them on his walks as he bats at them with his paw while whoever is on the other end of the leash stands clear back (learnt from previous puddle crazed experiences).
I do wonder if he overheard a conversation I had the other day concerning plunge pools and perhaps Henley is taking the splendid idea and making it a reality in the only way he knows how: "if your staff don't make one, one must take the initiative and start to dig one for them." So today when the rain retreated for a small period of time I let Henley investigate where his empty holes used to be.

I must add that Henley was shocked that he wash't allowed to run straight into the house after exploring the muddy puddles. And I wish I had known about the weather that we're having was going to happen, Henley had a bath just the other day, and now the wet dog smell is settling in. It's quite a challenge to catch him with a towel as he tries to run past you into the house. I know he sees it as a game of you can't catch me mum, and after the sweet victory of barrelling past my towel holding arm barricade he promptly conducts his victory dance of trying to wipe himself dry on any surface he can. Curtains, washing drying on a clothes horse, his crate and blankets an unsuspecting humans pants or pyjamas, you know anything but the towel you have ready in your hand to dry him.

Does anyone else have a dog that loves puddle jumping like Henley does? He'd love some tips on how to make the water splash as high as it can without it landing back down on his back.

Limping - Osteochondritis Dissecans (OCD)

On one afternoon while at a dog park with Henley I noticed as he was running that he was slightly favouring one front leg. It wasn’t immediately clear which of the two front legs had the issue but as it wasn’t overly affecting him I decided to keep an eye on it. A couple of days later on a separate outing to another park he jumped up onto a park bench seat and as puppies do got distracted and propelled himself off the seat. The problem was he had one leg dangling down in between two of the slats of timber of the seat. Yelping ensued and he was quickly extracted from his predicament but from then onwards the limping was more prominent. Henley is also more of an intense wrestling puppy with his close canine friends and as I like to put it he’s great at running, he just hasn’t got the stopping down pat yet. He used to run full pelt and army roll when he got close to his puppy friends. Quite a few times I and the owners of the other dogs would wince and say “that has to hurt, right?” To try and slow him down I separated him and distracted him with some training or walked him around to the other side of the park. But the minute he was let loose he was back at it. 

Needless to say a visit to our local vet was done. Henley ever the troublemaker bounced around like a typical jack in the box Vizsla pup and you couldn’t tell he had an injury at all. Luckily I filmed his limping at home and showed the vet.

After examining Henley's front left shoulder (which he yelped when the joint was felt and moved) and an x-ray was taken our veterinarian diagnosed Henley with Osteochondritis Dissecans aka OCD. You as I when I first heard of it had no clue what OCD is and how it affects the joint. One of the best short and concise descriptions can be found on Peak Vetrinary Referral Center's website:

"OCD (osteochondrosis dessicans) is probably the leading cause of osteoarthritis of the shoulder joint. Shoulder OCD occurs when a piece of cartilage separates from the underlying bone. Pain is due to inflammation of the joint and exposure of nerves in the bone under the cartilage flap" (accessed online 15 Aug 2014 http://www.peakveterinaryreferral.com/specialty-services/surgery/shoulder-ocd/)

We think that Henley's rapid growth in combination with him injuring the shoulder has led to the development of OCD in his shoulder. However as it was caught extremely early on we decided to see how some injections of a combination of anti-inflammatory, artificial cartilage and aids in the lubrication of the injured joint. The Synovan injections were taken weekly for four weeks and with rest Henley went from being quite lame to walking normally. However it is now a couple of months since his diagnosis and he has gone back to limping. So on advice from our vet the next step is an operation to remove the flap of cartilage. A vast majority of dogs with OCD recover the best after having the cartilage flap surgically removed. Until he has the surgery (which I am busily saving for!) he is on rest and relaxation. Short easy walks are a must though for both his and the families sanity.
However as I have mentioned its hard to keep a Vizsla quiet as you can see in this video of him doing rounders/ zooms:

Excuse the ending he isn't the best at stopping and the reaction you hear at the end is from  my mum watching Henley using her orchids as brakes to stop himself from slamming into the outside wall of the house.

Has anyone had any experience with OCD (osteochondrosis dessicans) and their dog? It often occurs in large breeds but I've been told that it can occur quite frequently in Border Collies and Brittany Spaniels. 

A Dinosaur pet store and a neighbour drops by

Today's weather has been all over the place. Raining one minute sun shining the next it really didn't make up its mind to be a rainy day till after lunch. A week ago I visited a large pet store located in Kellyville and bought up a storm. Today I went back to return a mattress I had bought because I knew Henley would only destroy if I gave it to him. His bed is currently on rotation depending on his mood. If destructo Henley rears its ugly head the bed gets put out of his reach and later in the afternoon when gentleman Henley returns so does his cushioned bed. While super crazy and destructo Henley is around his bed can suffer multiple holes in a matter of minutes (it feels like in seconds though). So now his bed that is chew resistant has succumbed to Henley's piranha like teeth.

One of the dinosaur statues

But back to the pet store, it is huge! And its parking lot is guarded by dinosaurs, yes dinosaurs. These large dinosaur statues are a big hit with children (and adults too!) who visit the store with their families. This pet store is HUGE! And is quote a dangerous place to visit when you have money in your wallet or a credit card on the handy.

Hello Mindy, what are you doing here?

After arriving home to Henley we spent some time doing some more clicker training and having some snuggles (Vizsla's love their snuggle time). Henley abruptly raced to the glass door and with his hair raised down his back he let out his untruer alert deep barks. Looking out at the driveway I could see a little black curly-haired dog. It was Mindy the miniature Schnauzer who lives two doors down from us. She had managed to escape from her yard and made her way to our house and of course Henley. 

Mindy has escaped her yard once or twice before and I have taken her back but today her humans weren't home and so after letting her into her backyard and closing the gate three times her reappearance at our gate meant that she would be here till her people came home. I let her and Henley meet each other through the gate. They both were very excited to meet each other and were initiating play.

When I brought Mindy inside as she was already drenched from the on and off rain I towel dried her and let her have a play with Henley. Henley gets to the extreme high adrenaline phase quite easily and its during this that he fails to remember his manners. So when I saw that Mindy needed some space I separated them for a breather. Henley was sadly not very gentlemanly and started excitably yelling at her, but she took it all on her stride and ignored the behaviour she didn't like. He was a little slow on the uptake but eventually he realised that she paid him more attention and was more welcoming when he laid down opposite her and stopped loudly barking in her face.

When Mindy's human arrived home from work and came to collect her Henley was sad to see her leave and somehow I think that if she manages another great escape Henley will be first on her visiting list.

Emergency vet visits and getting KO'd by my dog

For the last couple of nights Henley has been very unsettled and when he is upset he makes sure everyone knows about it. At first we ignored his barking but noticing that he could get comfortable and was continually pacing I had a look over him. He appeared fine until I felt his stomach, I had barely brushed it and he yelped and flinched away from my touch. In the back of my mind that two of his brothers had stomach related illnesses (one blockage and one highly inflamed stomach) I sat with him to see if he could settle at all. After asking to be let out to do his business (no troubles there) I turned back inside and washed my hands. Paws padding into the kitchen I looked down to Henley and immediately called my dad. one of Henley’s eyes was fully dilated and the other not dilated at all. It wash;t like that a minute ago so I knew soothing was quite wrong with him.

Calling my local vet they put me onto SASH the Small Animal Specialist Hospital who we had visited multiple times previously with my sisters injured cat Skitz, a stray tortoiseshell cat that turned up in our front yard looking for love and food and multiple injured native animals that I had saved and they took in. Ringing ahead they asked me to think of any possible things like plants or chemicals that he might have gotten into or whether we had changed cleaning products recently that may be causing an allergic reaction. Racking my brain on the way to the vet of what he might have gotten into I couldn’t think of anything. On arrival Henley went from the woe is me Henley at home to a new place? New people? instant excitable puppy Henley came out. From his behaviour you wouldn’t think he had a thing wrong with him, but the minute you looked into his eyes you could see he wasn’t right. They took him out back to run tests and examine him while I nervously filled out some forms. I have to say I have never been so nervous or worried in my life, how do parents ever go through this with their children? Henley is my furbaby and by the time the vet came out (after sitting and waiting 45 minutes) I was a nervous wreck. 

The veterinarian was quite perplexed by Henley’s condition. His stomach was very tender but the x-ray showed no blockage or obstruction. And his eye condition didn’t seem to be connected to what the vet estimated as being toxicity poisoning. I did remember that early in the day during one of his crazy Vizsla puppy moments propelled himself into the corner of our timber eating bar, but had continued on playing like nothing had happened. So the veterinarian suspected toxicity and a possible concussion and wanted to put him on iv fluids to flush out toxins and keep him hydrated, closely monitor him overnight and have their ophthalmologist (eye specialist) take a look at him in the morning. After telling me another vet would call me in the morning with his update and when I could pick him up I made my way back to the car (after putting down a rather large deposit for Henley’s treatment). Knowing that he was in the best care possible I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

The call in the morning came letting me know that his eye had returned to normal and had been examined by the ophthalmologist and appeared normal and healthy. His stomach was no longer tender and he had scoffed down the breakfast he was offered. Their best guess was toxicity and to try and keep a close eye on him for the next couple of days, feed him a bland diet for the next week and keep him quiet. I looked at the lovely vet when she said to try and keep him quiet and she quickly said “oh he’s a Hungarian Vizsla, well as quite as you possibly can.” Keeping a Hungarian Vizsla quiet is like asking the sun to stop shining or the moon to stop glowing the word quiet and Vizsla don’t just don’t normally belong in the same sentence.

Taking a rest on his favourite blanket.

Henley has well and truly recovered from his mystery illness that occurred back in July and it was only a week later that as I bent down to pick something off the floor that he reared up on his hind legs (like a pony) and head butted me in the head. Needless to say I woke up on the floor seeing stars with a very worried Henley fussing and licking me. Jeez I knew he had a hard head but it was more like hitting titanium than a bone skull. So yes I have been embarrassingly knocked out cold by my dog, at the time it wasn’t funny as an instant migraine developed but looking back on it all I can do is laugh about it.

Have any of your dogs accidentally injured you? 

The RSPCA Million Paws Walk

The RSPCA Million Paws Walk occurred back in May but we had such a great time there that I wanted to show you what is was like. It was lucky that the date of the RSPCA Million Paws Walk was on after Henley had received his last lot of puppy vaccine shots. We headed out early and I have never seen so many different breeds and sheer number of dogs in one area. Henley walked with a spring in his step and his tongue out with a grin that reached his eyes. Pet stalls stretched the length of the park selling a variety of pet products. Canine cakes and handmade morsels attracted many dogs and thereby their owners into stocking their cupboards with delicious artisan treats. The stalls were all doggy targeted with collars, id tags, clothes, toys, beds and much more but don't worry the humans weren't  forgotten a few stalls where the humans could refuel and recharge with coffee, sandwiches, and sausage sizzles.

When it came time for the walk to officially start we lined up near the beginning arch. Here Henley met quite a few friends.

Waiting for mums regular pose shot.

Hi I'm Henley!

This place is great!

Come on lets wrestle!

Oh who are you?

 We chose to take the shorter 2 kilometre walk opposed to the 4 kilometre walk as Henley zigzags and does twice as many metres then if he walked in a straight line. Taking our time and meeting many new faces canine and human on the way we made the loop course back to where we first started.

Meeting a cattle dog or two.

Dad and Henley trailing along.

 When we got back to the main hub of the Million Paws Walk where all of the stalls and activities were taking place we had a bite to eat and indulged in some people and dog watching. Many competitions such as best dressed human and pooch brought out the competition in some and it was great to see Mighty Woof and Farmer Dave's agility Park run demonstration. Wherever we walked Henley made his once secret mission blatantly obvious, operation meet and greet every Great Dane he can! He especially loved playing with one stunning blue Dane that caught his eye (and heart).

Pouncing around to get her attention.

From down here you look even bigger.

Perhaps if I crouch she'll bend down to my height?

Lets go you giant saucy minx.

Wow I can nearly reach your tonsils.

Umpf that's ok I like to play rough too!

Oh little puppy bring it on!

Stealing a kiss or two.

The Great Danes were defiantly Henley's favourite part of the whole day, even when he met a couple of his fellow Hungarian Vizsla's he kept searching the crowd for the gentle giants. Henley did spot a couple of dogs standing on the outskirts of the park that looked quite large from a distance so we slowly but steadily headed over to greet them with Henley pulling on the leash the whole way trying to get us there faster. But as we got closer Henley noticed that they just seemed to appear taller and taller. At one point he paused and looked up at me like: "mum do you believe this? These can't be dogs, they're too big aren't they?"

Wow how did you get this big? If keep eating non-stop will I get this big too?

(Sigh) puppies and their endless energy.

Irish Wolfhounds are another breed of dog I admire and one of the three we met here only had three legs. But don't worry that didn't hold her back in anyway.

From this angle he doesn't appear as tall as he really was.

After meeting the Irish Wolfhounds it was clear that an over excited puppy wasn't someone they were interested in wrestling with (as much as Henley tried to entice them in a game) so we said our hellos and goodbyes and made our way back through the crowd to where we caught a lift home.

We had a great day at the RSPCA Million Paws Walk and will defiantly be attending it again next year. Raising money for a great cause and getting to meet all types of dogs (and people) we went home very tired and happy.

Homebush Olympic Park

Back in May when Henley was nearly four months old I took him to Homebush Olympic park. The olympic precinct is jam packed full of great things to do with your family and many of the places allow you to bring your dog (as long as they are on leash). So as part of his socialisation we (Henley my father and I) headed off to the suburb. Built for the 2000 Sydney olympics the entire site is now used for sporting events, concerts, exhibitions, the Sydney Royal Easter show, conferences, restaurants and a hotel as well as being the home for many businesses. Surrounding all of the buildings are dedicated green pathways, parks, a bird sanctuary (no dogs allowed there) and even a frog sanctuary. Before the olympic precinct was built the entire area was full of industrial factories and subsequently industrial waste had polluted the waters and soil there. Across the site there can be found multiple man made hills that you can walk up or ride your bike to the top of. These hills are intact landfill and rubbish, but you wouldn’t know just from seeing or walking on them. It’s great that they changed the whole area into a family friendly and native fauna and flora friendly zone.

One of the many hills/mounds scattered across the site.

The main park where you can hire and ride your bikes, have picnics, eat at the cafe, let the kids play in the multiple sandpits, climbing frames, swings and slides and have a great day with your family is Bicentennial Park. A 40 hectare parkland one of the best areas within the park (in my opinion) is the two water play areas. First we went to the spraying water fountain up near all of the main arenas. Large jets of water are sprayed in an arc and the water runs down the steps into a large manmade pond/ lake. Henley loves water, especially when he can splash his paws in it so there was no stopping him from getting into the water and chasing it down the stairs.

Hmm what's going on here, where's the water going?

Quick lets follow!

My shadows in the splashing water.

Oh don't breath in when you have your nose in the water, eugh!

I kept him on the leash because I know that if he was off it he would have followed the water all the way down and into the pond and its not a dog friendly place to swim.

Ok Mum what are we doing here?

Water spurts up out of the ground in different patterns and at different speeds. On hot summer days this area is always packed with families and there's always kids running in and out of the water trying to keep cool and play games.

Pawing at the water spout.

What it gets bigger!

Ahh water up my nose, water up my nose!

How does the water keep coming and then disappearing?

After leaning in too far and having the water shoot up to get him in the nose we decided to spend sometime on the grass drying off.

Make sure you get my good side mother.

Really no more pictures mum.

NO MORE PHOTOS MUM!

Just one more sweety.

Snuggles in the car on the way home.

Henley loved our adventure to the Olympic Park and we'll definitely be going back again another day.