One Springtime the sheep were being pulled in, a sort of gentle rounding-up, for shearing but Shrek decided to decline the invitation.

I think they use snapping dogs to get the sheep moving and I don’t blame Shrek for keeping out of their way.

The upshot was, Shrek took off up the mountainside where he hid out for six years!

He survived on the high country 4,900ft above sea level, getting through the summer heat and bitter winters with snow metres deep.

He most probably lived under a rocky ledge, out of the snowstorms, meditating on the mysteries of life and scraping enough of the sparse vegetation to get by.

What a hero!

Read some more about Shrek the Sheep (with photos)

Sadly, Pepi is no longer with us.
He waits at the Rainbow Bridge
Farewell, Pepi

As a hard-hitting investigative journalist I am driven to seek the truth no matter the cost.

Who is the legally blind 18-year-old fox terrier-cross-daschund named PepiSmartDog I ran across on twitter? To be truthful, he almost ran me down in his wheeled chariot. Undaunted, I set out to discover his story……

Pepi is a Golden Oldie. He was adopted from the Animal Welfare League at the distinguished age of 12 years. This in itself is a story worthy of a Pulitzer – a programme which matches mature animals with the type of human who has the intelligence, foresight and downright good heart to appreciate a creature of maturity and life experience.

But there is a price to pay for maturity. Don’t I know it! The accumulation of wisdom also brings aches, pains and a certain lack of the once stupendous mobility we didn’t even notice in our youth.

Pepi, poor chap, is a little unsteady on the pins. No more leaps and gambols on the grass but is he fazed? Did he roll over and show his belly? No! He laughed in the Teeth of Time and trained his new owner to take him on his daily run in the comfort of a dog-pram. Six days a week he accompanies his pal on a 7 kilometre workout up and down the hills of Australia’s Gold Coast. Attaboy Pepi!

He’s been in the newspapers already but my blog (no room for false modesty here) is international and it’s my pleasure to introduce such a snappy dresser as Pepi to the rest of the world.

You can vote for Pepi on the Australian Tweeter Wall of Fame too. I usually vote for creatures of the feline variety, we felis catus characters have to stick together, but Pepi is an exception indeed.

Notice his swisho outfit – just one of many from his extensive wardrobe of seasonal styles to suit his lifestyle. (He has kick boxing boots in yellow!) Will we see Pepi take honours in the fashion stakes at this year’s Melbourne Cup?

And just look at that face. He could almost be a cat!

Toleration is controversial in itself, it places those who happen to be different from me in the basket of aberration. Take dogs, for example.

I can’t pretend enthusiasm for these creatures but I’ve always understood that they have their place in the world. It just happens to be a different place than my own. It’s easy to be tolerant of the other when you don’t have to deal with them on a daily basis and you’re aware that you are the norm and they are the exception.

But to accept them as equals? As playing a role in society which is as valid as my own role? Now that takes a quantum leap.

I’ve written on co-existence with dogs before, most notably in Cats and Dogs in Harmony, offering sage advice to people who want to avoid bloodshed in their living room and pointing out in my typical brutal honesty that I would never recommend a doberman. Nature and selective breeding aimed for agility, speed and strength here and, in doing so, dobermans ended up most lamentably short in the intellect department.

But there is always an exception that proves the rule. In my travels through cyberspace I met Evgeni the Dutch Doberman and I have to admit that he caused me to reconsider my views. I am not afraid to admit I was wrong!

Evgeni is not only able to sustain his own online presence with a blog, he is capable of recognising the worth in other species. Yes, I have been humbled by a doberman with greater tolerance than I have, a true acceptance of others.

When Evgeni requested an interview with me my eyes were opened. But please, make up your own mind.

Evgeni’s Interview with Vladimir

P.S. This does not mean I will tolerate the constant neurotic yapping of the West Highland Terrier next door. One day I will kill him.