My Best Friend's A Dog
Chat to any dog lover and they'll praise the virtues of these amazing animals. Totally devoted to their master, they ask so little and yet offer so much. I could write so much concerning the good points of the humble canine, I could explain why a heap of people prefer the company of a dog rather than a fellow human being or how a pet can fill a gap left by a lost loved one. But that's for another day, instead my story is about one very special dog, my mate, Murphy.
We've had pet dogs in the family throughout my life. We've had Greyhounds (Blackie and Bill Teal), a Bassett Hound (Bertie of course), a Great Dane (Toddy) and a Springer Spaniel (Bill). Every one left a massive void at the time of their departing and on each occasion we vowed never to have another dog, it was just too traumatic to say goodbye.
The year was 1993, the pain of Bill the Springer Spaniel's death a year earlier had eased and the possibility of getting a new puppy was raised amongst the family. Of course everyone was in agreement, who can resist a puppy dog ?. My sister had a copy of a magazine with lots of information on just about every type of dog available, their temperament, their traits and habits etc plus a list of breeders. I already had some strong opinions about what type of pet I wanted to look at. Not too small but not too big. Short haired, I had neither the time nor the inclination to groom my pet for an hour a day. Maybe a gundog, not that I'm into hunting but I definitely prefer that type of dog to the herding or terrier type and I'm absolutely not into the "my dog's harder than your dog" breeds such as Staffies and Rottweilers, so beloved by certain sections of our society. Browsing through the publication I came across this amazingly coloured breed that attracted my attention. I'd never heard of the Hungarian Vizsla and wasn't sure that such dogs existed here in the UK. I phoned one of the breeders mentioned in the book and had an extended chat, learning about the characteristics of the breed in general and their suitability as a family pet. The breeder was enthusiastic and mentioned that I might like to go along to a major dog show to be held in Windsor in a week or two's time. It was a wonderful show with dogs of all shapes and sizes and there was a class just for Vizsla's. The rest, as they say, is history. I fell in love with the Hungarian Vizsla breed and wanted one !!.
Wanting a Vizsla was completely different to actually being able to find one for sale. There was but a handful of breeders in the UK, the web and email were only a glint in the eye of a bunch of geeks, so it was all down to snail mail or the telephone. All existing litters had been sold and several of the breeders seemed unwilling to sell a puppy as purely a pet dog. They were looking for people who wanted to compete in dog shows or working dog trials with their puppies. I guess that they were trying to establish a reputation for their particular stud dogs and selling pet dogs wasn't on the agenda. The long wait began. There was no shortage of Labradors, Spaniels and German Shepherds but my decision had been made, and my next dog was to be a Vizsla.
The breeder that I had originally talked to and had subsequently met at the show in Windsor was Peter Harper and his "Pitswarren" Vizslas had an enviable reputation in the show ring. His champion dog, Pitswarren Levi, had won more best in breed prizes than any other Vizsla had ever won in this country. On one of my regular calls to Peter, he mentioned that he and his wife had kept a bitch and a dog from the last litter for showing. Now that they were 4 months old they had decided to keep only one, so would I consider a 4 month old boy dog. I was in Andover as fast as 4 wheels could take me. I was introduced to "Pitswarren Murphy Himself" and naturally he was sweet and wonderful and soft and lovely and everything else that a puppy should be. As is normal with most reputable breeders, I was told to come back in a weeks time and I could pick him up. During that week the Harper's phoned twice and there were another couple of silent calls. I'm sure that each time it was just the breeders checking to make sure that we were who we said we were, and that the pup wasn't about to be left on his own all day in an empty house. We must have passed that examination because exactly seven days later we were able to collect Murphy, our very own Vizsla puppy.
He's now 14 years old, and sadly he's coming to the end of his time on Earth. He is, and has been, the best dog in the World. He is my very best friend and has been my constant companion and I really hope that we've given him as much love and affection as he has so willingly given to us.
This article was created by Trevor Dace. He has many years of experience working as a claims adjuster with UK insurance companies. His website http://www.instant-online-insurance.co.uk offers online petplan pet insurance with online quotes and secure online payment.
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