After a Sunday lunch of lamb, carrots and gravy, just coffee for me, we drive to the health club.
Buddy jumps down from his cage in the back of the car to pad around Knightswood.
When Glasgow was christened ‘dear green place’ its author must surely have been living in this part of town. It even has its own 9-hole golf course.
This afternoon’s two mile work-out skirts the Glasgow boundary at Westerton and Netherton before heading in the direction of Great Western road taking in pleasant open stretches with quaint names like Temple Bowls and Temple Green.
After his exercise, Buddy enjoys a nap in the car while I take a bracing plunge into the outdoor pool, the early autumn air ensuring it’s almost empty.
Meanwhile back in Kelvindale at 5.30am and cracking on with the day job, we’re regularly joined by a family of foxes and their silent curiosity, approaching close enough to enrage Buddy but far enough away to preserve their wellbeing.
They dart in and out and criss-cross gardens with ease, their shadowy frames skipping over walls and through hedges while the barking alarm tethered to my wrist probably brings little comfort to those checking they still have a few hours’ sleep.
With the excitement over peace is only restored when he is poised over his bowl, waiting for breakfast, sometimes its toast.
Buddy’s an enthusiastic companion and his daily run keeps him at a good level of fitness.
He’s set up for the day and wouldn’t be without it.
Some task
Thankfully his heart murmur remains in a stable condition.
There are human benefits as well. I’ve dropped a suit size this year.
A reminder about his annual jags has arrived from the vet, and that impending brief visit will be some task.
He retreats to his bed and sulks when ‘bad’ things happen to him but the muzzle is ready. I haven’t told him yet though.
* Follow Ronnie McGowan and his four-legged companion Buddy as they clock up the miles around the West End