Creature comforts

WHEN it comes to providing additional comfort to pets, I thought I’d heard it all.

I know people who have moved from flats to bungalows to save old dogs’ legs on the stairs. I admired a couple who shifted from a housing estate to an isolated place in the country to rescue their noise-phobic border collie from complete insanity.

Numerous vehicles have been changed to allow easier access and many ramps have been purchased, not all of which have been walked up. I have listened in awe to stories about comfy beds that are changed weekly, fleece lined hammocks over radiators, mohair, Egyptian cotton, lamb’s wool and even neoprene.

But two stories made me smile. The first concerned an elderly papillon, who was the benevolent leader of a small pack comprising three little dogs and a cat. Of an evening, the king would retire to an old armchair and, from this throne, he’d bask in his glory, survey his troops below and generally be a little bit smug.

But one day the old monarch hurt his leg. No longer could he leap regally from the floor to his powerful position. His geriatric lady owner explained his problem and asked if I might lend her a saw. Fearing for his life, I was relieved when she returned it the next day. After she had sawn the legs off the chair.

And then there was Brandy. This retriever’s legs were going downhill so fast that going uphill was proving difficult. As was getting into his owners’ precious Volvo. He had tried a ramp but it was far too steep and, with his owners past their best before date, I was concerned for his future. I needn’t have worried.

After his next visit, his dad beckoned me out to the car park. The first thing I noticed was his mum sitting rather po-faced in the back seat.

Brandy then waited as his owner opened the boot and extracted a large plastic bread basket. As he turned it upside down, I saw that the base of it had been carpeted.

It was placed on the ground beside the passenger door, allowing Brandy to take a short skip and a hop on to the stable platform and into the vehicle, where the entire front seat had been removed to create his travelling space.