BE MORE SPANIEL

The Distressing Incident of the Missing Anteater

by Peter Thomas

by Peter Thomas

They say that moving house is the most stressful thing in the life of any dog. But that is nothing compared to losing one’s Anteater in the process.

My humans and I (Sophie here by the way) are now installed in our new home. I was nervous because my humans talked a lot about downsizing. The only other time I had heard that word was when they made the change from sharing their lives with a golden retriever to getting my true Mum Poppy who was a spaniel. I was worried they might be planning to replace me with a dachshund like my cousin Ray. It turned out it just meant taking a dozen car-loads of stuff to charity shops and as many runs to the tip and giving away countless boxes of books.

While they were packing, I had made absolutely certain they would remember to bring my special best friend Anteater, who was my Christmas present from Ray and is also my favourite pillow. I rashly entrusted her to their care, supervising carefully as they placed her in her own conveyance mysteriously labelled “utility dog”. When we arrived I waited excitedly for her to emerge: one day, two days, a week, but no Anteater. I was heartbroken.

I had been so excited because I now have a room of my very own. The nice man who was doing the decorating liked me so much that he insisted he would decorate my room for free! There were some bold orange and yellow paints left over from the previous owner together with sky blue from the master bedroom and seafoam green from the guest bedroom (lucky guests) so I put in a request for a seaside mural. Turned out he didn’t like me that much. My room is kitchen washable blue – some nonsense to do with muddy paws. But it just wasn’t the same without Anteater. Three weeks in and all the boxes in the utility room (the strange name they use for my space) had been opened, but still no sign. Had Anteater gone to charity? Was she among the books on their way to Africa? I could not bear to imagine she had been recycled!

I did not give up hope. My highly trained nose told me my Anteater was somewhere in the house. I had heard that when humans travel on aeroplanes it is normal for them to land in one country while their luggage arrives somewhere completely different. Could Anteater’s box have been delivered to Portugal by mistake? With the doggie persistence all spaniel families know so well, I persuaded my humans to look one by one among the hundreds of boxes in the study and eventually there she was. She had only been misplaced in transit. Anteater and I are back together again!

Here is the vital lesson for any dogs who are moving house. Do not allow your humans to put your special friends into boxes.

They wouldn’t do that with their precious stuffed teddies. Insist that your companions always travel with you.

Don’t let them out of your sight for an instant. Relocating is traumatic enough without careless humans losing your Anteater.

Married to Ruth, Peter Thomas is a very happy father, grandfather and spaniel owner. He has published three non-fiction books and is delighted to assist Sophie in her creative writing projects. Peter retired in 2023 after 36 years as a Minister of local Baptist Churches - he was originally a teacher of chemistry and computing. He looks forward to spending more time with family and friends, playing piano and guitar, and walking by the sea. He continues to add to his blog of more than a thousand sermons and reflections found at www.pbthomas.com.