Tyrannosaurus rex, 62 kgs puppy, and moral matters - Nurhan's take

Nurhan's take:

 I lost Karma (my last Newfie in July last year. Last September, I came up with the cunning plan on taking one of my neighbours (Jan - pictured above, with Kin), to a dog show for Newfies, Leonbergers, & Bernese Mountain dogs (which when I first met Jan ~ 10 years ago, he had a lovely one called 'Tony'). My cunning master plan was for Jan to get a new dog and for me to look after the little chap when he couldn't... my cunning master plan 1/2 worked... here's Jan performing an invaluable service to Kin and I, every lunch time during the working week he goes and checks up on Kin and takes the little chap out for a 30 minute stroll. Without Jan, I'd be really pushed, living alone, to have Kin, and I am hugely grateful for the help. It's also quite amusing how many folk have mentioned that there is an older chap in the area who also has a Newfie about the same age as Kin...

There's been some gratuitous editing gone on in this section, as sadly it has been pointed out to me that a public airing of some of the issues that I have to deal with are not in my best interests to do so. Therefore the next two paragraphs might seem to be a bit random as the 1 1/2 paragraphs that led to them have been removed.

There is a trend when a company calls a product something that it really isn't and then feels self satisfied that they have done what they can... take the Suzuki Swift, which really isn't...

Years ago Berty (climbing partner when I lived in Glasgow), Kim (his dog), and I, were coming off the hills by head torch somewhere in the highlands and we heard this primeval roar, getting closer. It almost felt like we were being stalked by a tyrannosaurus rex. The noise built steadily until with the sequel of tyres  a red Ferrari came sliding around a corner, and zipped past us. Now generally we weren't fans on any form of intrusive 'civilisation' when up in the hills, but this was a rare event, and surprising on these roads that the car even had the ground clearance. We could hear the car for the next few minutes as the roar of it's umpteen billion CC engine rebounded down the glen. Berty is Italian and a bit of a car buff, his gait had definitely altered with this whole event. Strange how Ferrari never feel the need to call one of their cars, the Ferrari Swift!

One of the chaps in the neighbour hood who I only know (him and his family) from talking to because we bump into each other regularly with our dogs and have done for years, made the mistake of asking me, 'how life was'. I'm afraid I might have vented a bit. Which resulted in Kjetil, giving me his card and saying give him a buzz and well go out for a drink to take my mind off work. Which was inordinately generous of him.

Now when Karma wanted in, he'd go to the back door and softly bark once... Kin isn't so patient... But he was a patient last week. He had kennel cough, which shouldn't neccesitate a trip to the vets. But he had some blood in his mucus, and this went on for three days. So I rang the vet and they said that they should check him. Which ended up with me being poorer, him probably having a burst blood vessel in his nose, the same as us having a nose bleed, and being put on antibiotics (and drops which the chemist ordered and I forgot to pick up... note to self...). Naturally by the time we left the vets he was fine! Did get to weigh him... twice as I didn't believe the answer. I thought he's probably around 45 - 50 kgs... Nope, he's ~ 62 kgs... he's not quite 10 months old... Karma fully grown, at his heaviest was 63 kgs!

This is the correct way to give your dog antibiotics... some meat paste on your finger tips with the pills on top of that.

Step2

Job done!

We meet lots of these chaps whilst we are out. Now the green ones are frogs, greeny brown are toads... this I know (and no I didn't kiss her to see if she turned into a Princess), but what I didn't know is that toads live in woods. It's also mushroom picking season here and folk I've bumped into whilst walking Kin have been pointing out which ones you can and can't eat.

This is Kin at the Hellistø beach car park after a walk, obviously he'd rather sit here then relocate, 2 m and lie in the car...

Sheep TV has been replaced by the larger, Cow TV...

This is Kin waiting 'patiently' to go out. Now the days are getting shorter, which means that in the mornings and evenings it's quite often dark, now the only way to see a Newfie in the dark is look to the side of where you think he is and if your peripheral vision notices something blacker than the surrounding blackness, then you've probably found your Newfie. To improve on this I try to get him to wear a reflexive jacket... but then he lies down and won't move. New tactic:

get him to wear it at Bråstein when he's off the lead... get him used to it and then phase it in on local walks as the days get darker. Until then:

This picture is taken with a flash, there is some reflex but the main point of the picture is to show the red LED cycle light hanging from the harness, you can also see the red glow on the ground. These lights are now affordably cheap for this application and reasonably effective, but does play hell up with your night vision.

This picture demonstrates the time when Newfoundlands are at their most dangerous... especially if you want to remain dry...

I have to round this blog off with an outrageous current news issue. One of the TV channels here filmed a Norwegian politician going into a 'massage palour' in Latvia. Now prostitution in Norway is legal - but paying for sex in Norway is illegal (doesn't that make many marriages in Norway illegal?!). This was a law brought in a few years ago and it's mind numbing in it's stupidity / naivety - we make paying for sex illegal, so it'll stop... obviously (unlike the Netherlands that taxed it and brings in mandatory health checks). This politician comes back to Norway and he's been charged and fined (25 000 NOK) for paying for sex, IN A DIFFERENT COUNTRY! Surely this means that every Norwegian who goes abroad, to a country that has a higher speed limit, and they drive at that speed, can then be charged with speeding when returning to Norway. They had some ignorant cow (of the two legged variety) on the radio harping on about how moral issues do not stop at a nations boundaries. Oh and the (married) politician (not that it's anyone else's business) has stated that he only had a massage.

Okay this really is the last bit before I head for bed. My GP (fastlegen)/and the practice's nurse,  after ten years of looking after me and generally restoring my faith in the medical profession, they are both retiring at the end of this month. This came as a surprise. Eli, the nurse even had Karma (briefly) in the surgery to meet him. I'm sorry to see Eli, and Dr Dahle go as I knew I was in safe hands with them and they are good folk too. Now I'm off (figuratively speaking) to join Kin