Recycling

We all know that recycling is good for the environment. Discussions With My Dog supports recycling – in most cases.

Daisy believes in recycling the recycling. If the kitchen bin is unattended, she will diligently empty half its contents on the floor just to check that the waste packaging has been properly disposed of and all traces of food have been removed. Sometimes she has to chew the packaging into tiny pieces to get the job done properly.

Have you ever noticed that mail order parcels often arrive with unnecessary amounts of packaging – there are boxes within boxes, layers of bubble wrap and polystyrene linings. One mid-sized delivery can easily fill up your whole recycle bin. Don’t stand for this - fight back! Tell the supplier you want to return the goods within a 14 day cooling off period, return the box, with all the packaging, to the supplier with a note explaining you are happy with the product but want your money back for the delivery cost which has clearly been ramped up due to excessive packaging. If everyone did this, I bet packaging would quickly get stripped back to the bare minimum.

Recycling can be timeless (almost). In music terms there can be no better example than Status Quo. They’ve written hit songs, released dozens of albums and played thousands of shows over 6 decades. All this by recycling three chord songs. OK, you can tell a Quo track a mile off because they have a similar sound, but if you have a magic formula why waste it?

Recycling isn’t always recommended. Take four or five cardboard cut-outs, teach them a few stupid dance moves and how to lip sync and you have created a boy band.  They will pump out a few forgettable inane tunes that will be hugely popular with pre-teen girls for a couple of years. The same band gets recycled a couple of years later, nobody notices because you can’t remember what the previous version sounded like.

Finally, here’s an example of how a household utensil, in this case on old mop, can be recycled into a brand new pet - mop dog

Alastair and Daisy

How your dog can motivate you to do sport

Everyone knows the importance of exercise. Daisy loves a run in the woods or on the beach. Unlike dogs most people prefer to take their exercise in a gym. So, this week, we get Daisy’s take on what the gym has to offer:

The squash court – She watched some guys whacking a rubber ball against the wall for a couple of minutes. Unfortunately, Daisy doesn’t play the same rules. She ran across the court, snapped up the ball and it hasn’t been seen since.

The weights room – not much to see here, mostly jar heads and posers.

The running machine – a bunch of people pretending to be hamsters on a treadmill.

Spin class – some ladies inside hamster balls.

The exercise bikes – another bunch of people going nowhere, only they’re going nowhere faster than the ones on the hamster treadmill.

The swimming pool – after a run through the woods Daisy loves to cool off in the water. Her favourite pool looks a bit different. 

The shower room – I reminded Daisy this is what happens to dogs after they go swimming the dirty pond. Daisy thought it was about time to leave.

We finished our introductory tour of the gym. The rep asked us if I would like to become a member. They were doing a special deal for £50 a month. Unfortunately, dogs are not welcome. Daisy and I are off to the woods.

Alastair and Daisy

The Danger of "one-click" Shopping

If you live in Britain today, you very probably have a mobile phone or a computer, and that device gives you access to your Amazon account. An Amazon account is the cyber-portal to a treasure trove of shit to buy or, in my case, an endless amount of shit for my wife to buy. Even more dangerously the Amazon account is linked to my credit card.

A few days ago, a parcel arrived in the post, it wasn’t my birthday or Christmas and I don’t remember ordering anything, but it was addressed to me. I opened it to find a large multi-pack of dental sticks. For those who are not familiar with dental sticks, they are marketed as a product to keep your dog’s teeth clean. A sort of edible tooth brush. The idea is the dog slowly chews the stick and the chewing action removes the plaque from their teeth. I don’t know what dental sticks are made from, but dogs absolutely love them. Daisy can scoff one down in less than a minute, which rather defeats the objective of cleaning her teeth.

Daisy is a Lurcher. A Lurcher isn’t the sort of dog who would consider stealing a tasty morsel as wrong. The Lurcher will simply work out how to get their snout into the cupboard or saucepan that contains the tasty morsel. The Lurcher will wait patiently until the coast is clear before making their move. They are crafty and seldom leave any evidence behind – maybe the odd piece of chewed up packaging. A Lurcher is always on the look out for an opportunity to help themselves to a snack.

So, I had a vision. My wife was trawling around Amazon looking for inspiration for something to buy. She was interested in something vaguely dog related and was on a page advertising dental sticks when the doorbell rang. Daisy was sitting by the untended computer. The cursor is hovering over the icon for a packet of dental sticks which attract her attention. Daisy hops onto the chair and steadies herself by placing a paw on the desk. Her paw hits the mouse and she has just added a packet of dental sticks to her shopping cart.

The ever helpful Amazon website prompts ‘Why not order a multi-pack’? Daisy moves her paw and instantly upgrades herself to a multipack. The website recommends placing a recurring monthly order for dental sticks. Daisy thinks that is a jolly good idea.

Amazon wants to know how she is going to pay? Dad’s credit card of course.

Finally, does Daisy want express next day delivery at an extra £1.99? Do bears shit in the woods? Of course she does.

So, you can see the dangers of ‘one click’ shopping.  I’m going to be watching the post next month to see if another box of dental sticks arrive.

Alastair and Daisy