I have been tagged by my friend Silken to play a new meme game.

The Rules: Each player starts with 7 random facts/habits about themselves. People who are tagged need to write their own blog post with their 7 things as well as these rules. You need to tag 7 others and list their names on your blog. Remember to leave a comment for them letting them know they have been tagged and to read your blog.

This is a good tagging game because I think all the other players so far have been humans. That means I can find seven other dogs with blogs quite easily and they haven’t been tagged before.
Here is my list:
1. I like having a bath, and I actually preen myself when I am getting bathed
2. I do not chase sticks or balls, and if they ask me to I adopt my haughty look
3. I love beaches but I don’t like swimming and I get scared if the water goes above my paws
4. I never sit on furniture and I don’t like being picked up
5. When I was in the rescue home they didn’t see my collar (with a name on it) for three days cos I am so hairy.
6. I enjoy being tucked up in bed at night
7. I don’t chase cats – and I don’t take any notice when they start arching their backs and hissing at me.

This is who I am going to tag:
Hana the Eskie, Bear Bear the Fearsome Rottie, Onion, Jazz and Sparkey, Oscar the Airedale, Loui Butch and Snickers. They all have great blogs, so make sure you pay them a visit.

Two things got us thinking today. First Mum went to an unfamiliar pet shop and the place was filled with caged birds, rabbits and cats – that is all she saw before she walked out! Most pet shops in the UK no longer sell animals directly, although most of them carry ads for puppies, kittens and more. Second we found a great Collie Rescue site with a very good explanation of why you should not buy your next pet. Careless breeding can lead to genetic diseases and weaknesses in the puppies. Also, demand for puppies leads to puppy farms being established, where the animals are kept in horrendous conditions. If you want to get a dog, check your local rescue centre first – you will find hundreds of great dogs looking for a loving home.

Mum left me at home today for just over three hours because she had to go out and it was quite a hit sunny day. It was really too hot for me to wait in the car, even if it was parked in the shade. So I stayed home and followed the trail of biscuits that Mum left for me to eat. I barked for a while, but then I curled up by the front door. When Mum cam home, all was peaceful. Mum was very pleased and I got more dog biscuits as a reward.

I do get bored when it rains and I can’t go for a nice long walk. On Saturday we had a nice sunny afternoon but most of last week was rainy – and cold. Then Sunday was wet and today it started raining at 11am. We managed to get to the park this morning for a short walk and we were wondering why it is so cold after the great weather we had in the spring. Then we remembered: the Chelsea Flower Show starts today, it is usually cold for the first two days of the show so we look forward to some sunshine on Thursday and Friday.

Here are is another image by Dog Portrait Painter Ben Wilson, who was arrested last week for painting one of his iconic images on a patch of discarded chewing gum. Ben brightens up the streets and makes art from these annoying patches. Here is a picture of a pink elephant that he painted at the request of a four year old girl who lives locally.

Here is a short video that Mum took last night. I think they are getting even more crazy than ever, they enjoy watching me snarl! It gets worse – Mum thinks it is really funny if I nip Dad’s nose. What would she do if I actually bit it off? We uploaded it to my page, Kevin the Collie at MySpace but you can watch it here.