Harlaw Reservoir and a bit of a mental health rant

After our big long walk yesterday, we were both still a bit tired, so we've been taking it easy today. Ann's had quite a few domesticated chores/errands to run etc so I've actually managed to have more snooze time than her.

This afternoon she took me to 'Harlaw Reservoir' for my walk. It's a lovely place for a little Collie to have a walk because there's woods where the squirrels live, so I was able to go chasing I didn't catch any because those pesky little creatures climb up trees and I also got to splish, splash, splosh in the reservoir. And as far as Ann was concerned, it's all on the flat and it only takes 45 mins to walk all the way round, I get to be off my lead for the whole walk so get plenty of run about time. Yay!  We both enjoyed our walk this afternoon.

And now for the RANT!!!............................. Do dogs have mental health issues?


Ever since we came back to Edinburgh (more than two weeks ago) we have been meeting dogs with 'mental health issues'. It's 'crazy! Everywhere we go, we seem to bump into dogs wearing coats saying such things as, 'anxious', 'nervous', 'give me space'. This is obviously a legacy from lockdown when everyone in the world decided to get a dog and were not able to socialise them properly. It makes my human very mad! People just seemed to buy a dog in lockdown because they were at home all day long and wanted a furry friend to go out walking with. Most of them didn't even think about the implications of not being able to socialise the new addition to their family and that's why the dog rescue centres are completely over-crowded now, but that's a RANT for another day.


This afternoon we only met a few people walking around the reservoir, there was more than enough room for everyone to have space but one of them had a dog on a lead that was wearing a coat saying, 'give me space'. When it's owner saw me walking towards them off my lead, she immediately dragged her dog off the path and stood behind a tree glaring at Ann while I passed by. What did she think I was going to do to her dog? I've been properly trained so I just ignore other dogs, unless they want to play with me. This poor little doggie didn't even have the option to play with me because he's probably never, ever, allowed off his lead. He looked sooooo sad. And what did she expect Ann to do?................... put me back on my lead to walk past him? Duh!!!


Obviously during lock down a lot of people bought dogs, but it's only been in the last couple of weeks that Ann has realised how many of them now have 'mental health issues'. However, what she can't understand; is why their owners aren't doing anything about it?! All they're doing is masking the problem by sticking a coat on them saying, 'anxious, nervous or needs space'. Never letting them off their leads to get proper exercise and telling anyone that will listen that their dog has problems. And also putting the onus on other dog owners, who have trained their dogs properly to keep them away from theirs. Of course their dog has problems. Anyone with an ounce of common-sense would have realised that a puppy bought during lockdown would have needed to be socialised & left 'home alone' after lockdown, but the majority of city dog owners don't seem to realise that and it's sooooo unfair on the dog.


Obviously there's been a lot in the media in recent years lockdown started 5 years ago re the nations mental health, which is at an all time high, but has anyone actually done any research into how the mental health issues of puppies bought in lock down is affecting their lives?


I'm really lucky. Ann adopted me on the 11th February 2019 so I had a whole year with her before lock down happened. In that first year she invested a lot of time and effort into my training to turn me into the perfect pooch that I am today. (Read our Blips from 2019) And then in 2020 when we were locked down forever, and I didn't go in the car for more than three months, and I only got left 'home alone' for one hour a week while Ann went shopping for herself and an old lady when lock down was lifted, she worked really hard at making sure that I hadn't forgotten everything that I had learnt when I was a puppy. .............And the good thing about lock down was................... we really bonded.


It's just a pity that so many people who got dogs in lock down, now don't seem to want to put in the time and effort to turn them into a perfect pooch like me.


OK, RANT over!!!