Hayfever, dogs and walking

It's that time of year again. Rapeseed is in bloom and large numbers of the local population are sneezing and coughing their way around the village, me included. For a while, I wondered if there was something hideously wrong with me - as I do whenever I get the tiniest ache or twinge these days! - but when I realised it wasn't just me who was suffering, I worked out what the cause was. Even the dogs are sneezing and spluttering. That doesn't stop them insisting on going for long walks though; how lovely that I can now take them out myself without any worries about not being able to get home again with them or about them pulling me over, as they did so often in my toxically-anaemic days before surgery. On the other hand, like me, they're really quite middle-aged now, so tend to be less likely to hurl themselves at other dogs screaming abuse when they meet!

It is nice to get home uninjured though - there was a time when I'd lost count of the number of bruises on my person as a result of being dragged off my feet by enraged and enormous dog! Indeed, it's now a pleasure (mostly) to go on the daily walk, stopping off to marvel at the size of the pigs on the corner and to admire the patience of the goat who lives with them; I feel incredibly fortunate to have regained my life, and walking my dogs by myself underlines for me how far I've come.