Like many people, I felt very frustrated when the coronavirus lockdowns began. Prior to this, I had enjoyed meeting friends for coffees, and going to the cinema to watch films. Suddenly my partner, Misty and I faced weeks of being confined to the village where we lived. My partner had previously had cancer, so we had to socially distance from other people. A highlight of the day was taking Misty to my partner’s field, and digging trenches to plant potatoes, coriander and other vegetables. Right from the start Misty had been an obsessional puppy. Misty’s favourite activity was digging holes in the field, and I would encourage this by shouting “dig, dig”.

When I broke my ankle, and faced gruelling weeks of surgery, bed-rest, and morphine, a highlight of the day was throwing paper aeroplanes for Misty. The planes would sail round the room, and Misty would rush after them, catching them in his mouth. The planes were then torn into tiny pieces by Misty, and my partner was kind enough to hoover them up.
 

Collies are inquisitive, inventive, and like to be given plenty to do! Fortunately for Misty he has been my partner’s Labradoodle’s puppy from when we collected him. Rupert enjoys playing chase with Misty, and together they rush after balls and frisbees. They slept curled up next to each other on their dog-bed. Rupert has never had a puppy before, so helping to raise Misty has given him a fresh challenge. This friendship between the dogs means that Misty relates well to most other dogs as well, from schnauzers to Newfoundlands.

My partner and I have greatly missed normal social contact during coronavirus. At times, when the covid risk was very high, we were even anxious when Misty was getting close to other dogs when my partner walked him in the village. We knew that cats could spread the virus, but we weren’t sure about what would happen with dogs. My partner was fortunately able to take paid work repairing lime pointing on outside walls of farms and old houses, and Misty and Rupert would entertain themselves in the car with their toys. My partner would take Misty for regular walks round the nearby field whenever he got a break. By this time I was walking with a pair of crutches, and I would build up strength by taking short walks up the farm track, next to my partner and Misty.

One highlight of lockdown was meeting my partner’s friends for a glass of bubbly on a bench in the nearby stone-walled pinfold, and we watched proudly as Misty ran in circles, then stopping when asked to. Coronavirus has meant that we have not been able to take Misty to dog-training classes as we would have liked.

We have made the best of strange times to be creative in our training:

My broken ankle means that sadly I can’t walk Misty myself, so I am no longer the ideal owner. Covid puts a significant strain on relationships, and my partner and I have broken off our engagement. That said, I am still grateful for the bond that we had with Misty during the strange times of covid, when I spent many hours sitting in a chair — often throwing balls, or rope toys for Misty. Collies crave socialization with other dogs, so during lockdown Misty was lucky to spend hours chasing Rupert, and sleeping next to him. Now the R-number is down, many people are vaccinated, and the country is starting to move again, my hope is that Misty may start to meet more people and dogs, and enjoy longer walks with able-bodied people.

Networking for people to walk Misty was too tough during lockdown, as people did not want to risk mixing. Now that people are meeting for coffees in parks, Misty may run more freely than before. He may sniff new plants and branches, and chase other dogs’ tails. He may meet familiar faces in the park, as other people take their dogs for regular walks. I smile at the thought that Misty will enjoy fresh new contact, as we move away from the restrictions of lockdown. I will remember with fondness how Misty lifted my spirits during lockdown when I couldn’t walk.