Breaking and entering with a Whippit

So what a day, when you live with a polish lowland sheepdog life is never dull!!

Snoopy IS certainly ‘special’

I got up normal day walked 6 dogs and did 2 hours behaviour work at the RSPCA. Got in about 3.30pm, piled the dogs into the car and went to the park. They had a good run round and then I did some training. I worked them together for a while on the car park. Both dogs were great. Dinky is doing nice left circles. I’m very proud and her heelwork is really nice now.

I headed back to the car and thought I’ll do some more work with Dinky using the whippit. Those of you that don’t know what a whippit is, it’s a horses lunge whip with a toy tied to the end. You get them from Learning About Dogs and they are used to teach control. I use it to motivate Dinky as she loves to chase things. This gets her really motivated.

So I put Snoopy in the car, chucked in the leads, toys, my bag and keys and got out the whippit

We played for a bit and then did some heelwork. I was thinking Dinky is fab and then suddenly I heard Beep, Click

Oh no, that wasn’t the car locking was it, it can’t be, oh please that did not just happen!!I walked back to the car and Snoopy is stood on the seat on my keys. Noooooooooooo. I lifted the handle and it was locked.

Ok keep calm think, phone, it’s in the car, money, it’s in the car, dog lead, it’s in the car, house keys, in the car. Arrhhhhhhhhh!!!!!

So I have a leonberger (with no lead) 2 poo bags, a handful of liver cake and a slobbery wet dog toy tied the end of a bloody horse whip. Great!

Snoopy is sat innocently looking at me inside the car. I looked at him shaking my head and said ‘you have no idea do you’

It’s now 10 past 4 and the park gates are locked at half past.

So I’m luring Snoopy about from outside the car to get him to stand on the keys again hoping he might accidentally unlock the car but he just kept setting the alarm off!! Its just not going to happen is it?

So try something else, I know phone my mum. There is a bloke walking into the park with a small dog. I stop him and say. ‘Excuse but my dog has just locked itself in the car with my keys in it and I need to ring somebody, could I borrow your phone?’

Quite understandably (I do live in Manchester) he says sorry I left my phone at home. Then his phone beeps in his pocket (how very funny)He says ‘oh I’ve got it with me, I thought I left it at home and hands it to me’. I ring my mum and she is not in so I leave a message, ‘Mum if you get this message in the next 20 minutes can you come to the park, I’m in the car park’.

The guy then comes over to help (now he’s realised I’m telling the truth however ridiculous it may have sounded and I’m not going to steal his phone!!)

I’m now thinking to myself, time is running out fast and which window would be the cheapest to replace!!!Snoopy is still looking vacantly at me from inside the car with that dumb Jim Henson creature look on his face.

The side window had a fastening missing and you can actually prise it open a bit. My plan now is slide the whippit in and try and hook the keys on it. I held the window while the bloke pushed the whippit in the gap. Id also had to explain that I don’t horse whip my dogs and it’s actually a toy!!!He managed to get the keys on the end, hurrah………. but they just slid off with the weight. Damn it!!

Then the next thing there is a popping crunchy type of noise, the glass shattered. The guy started apologising. I really didn’t care by this point. I’d got my keys and was able to get out of the park before it shut. I moved Snoopy safely to the front of the car away from the glass, thanked the guy and drove home.

When I got in I rang the company I bought the car, a Japanese Import off and asked if they could get me a new window as I had smashed it. He said ‘Jane why did you smash that one! I explained and he said ok I understand, but a front passenger window would have been cheaper. I told him he needed customers like me when there is a credit crunch. A new window is £115 + vat.

So lesson learnt, don’t leave your keys in the car no matter how much you think it is unlikely the dog will stand on the lock button on the key fob and lock the car, Oh and teach Snoopy to retrieve keys.