Nature really isn’t nice to dogs. Is it our fault we feel compelled to eat everything? It’s such a high price to pay. We get the upset stomachs every so often and then, worse still, we get the worming tablets. I reminded my mistress how poorly they made me last time but she said that was no excuse I was a big dog now and the vet would give me the right thing. Vet! Did she say vet? It’s bad enough having to take medicine but he is the one that prods and pokes me in places that make me blush. Unfortunately my mistress says there is no getting out of it and besides she wants to talk to the vet about when I should have my operation. It really does go from bad to worse. The only consolation is that after the operation there should be less need to prod and poke me, at least there anyway. So this all happened yesterday. The day had got off to a particularly nasty start when she said my tick treatment was due. Now I am not one to grumble about a bit of liquid squirted into my fur but it was what she said next that caused alarm. “You smell a bit, I think I will give you a bath first.” The bit about smelling had felt like a compliment until the threat of clean water was introduced. Oh I see, just because the children have gone back and she can’t make James have a shower, she has started on me. I think she has a problem! I’m not so small as I was the last time I had a bath and I didn’t want to co-operate. Well she only went and did that thing where they get you by the scruff of the neck and you become all submissive because if reminds you of when you were a little puppy and your mum did it to move you around. What can a poor puppy do faced with that? So a bath it was. A very wet bath! If you are going to be forced to get into the bath the least you can do is insist on sharing it with a friend, even if they don’t get into the actual bath itself! My mistress was soaked. At least that gave me some cause for a laugh and believe me it was the sort of day when I needed one.