Monday 4 February 2013

We were not expecting another visit from Betty until 15 February.  However, she has joined us for a few nights' stay, arriving late yesterday evening.  I will admit that I was a little apprehensive, given the cheeky hi-jinks of our mischievous little imps the last time they were together, but no-less pleased to greet our large and grey, tousle-furred friend, all the same.

Now, what is pertinent here to explain is that Betty is some years older than little Gisèle.  Hitherto this has merely manifested itself in Betty becoming tired after a couple of hours' active play with Gisèle.  It quickly became apparent after Betty was dropped-off last night, however, that she could not recall who the little Parson Jack Russell leaping up and down, dancing about and greeting her could possibly be.  The unfortunate consequence of this was that Betty made a sudden and vicious lunge at Giz as she stood on her tip-claws to give Betty a kiss of welcome.  Oh dear.

Gisèle screamed in shock and pain as Betty's large teeth sunk into her left eyebrow.
"Tear it off... tear it off..." grunted Betty as she nipped and bit, whilst my partner tried to pull her away from Gisèle and I roared at the large dog.  She didn't hear me, and paid no attention to my partner's efforts.  "Tear off her pretty face... tear it off..." she continued to snarl and mutter.  Gis, her quick mind acting logically, twisted around, her brow still trapped between Betty's jaws, and clamped her tiny, sharp, needle-like teeth over one of Betty's teats.  Betty yelled as the tiny white fury bit down into the flesh of her breast and immediately released Gisèle.  Gis also released her bite and promptly started to shout and rave at Betty.  As the shrill yapping continued, the blood from two Betty-fang-sized holes on Giz's eyebrow trickled down her snout and into her eye, where it mingled with eye-water and continued, a pale pink, down her face.  Correspondingly, a set of almost-perfectly oval tiny bruises began to turn a dark purplish-blue around one of the breasts on Elizabeth's chest.

Not for the first time was I shocked at seeing how vicious the female of the species could turn when provoked.

"What did you do THAT for?!" demanded an enraged Gisèle.
"You complete fool!" I shouted at the same time.  My partner was holding Betty away from Giz.
"Ohhhhh!"  cried Betty, suddenly realising, "GIZMO!! Oh! No!!  I'm so, SO sorry!"

"Yes! Gizmo!" yapped Gis, still furious.  "Gizmo what you has just bitten!"  (This was not the time, dear reader, to correct her speech anomaly).
"Sorry! Sorry! SORRY!" wailed the mortified Betty, as she hastened to clean up the wound she'd just inflicted upon her friend.
"Get off!  Get off!" cried Gis, slapping Betty's snout away, "You will make it worse with your lickings!  Let Mistress do it!  Stop slobbering on me!"
"I'm SO sorry..." repeated a contrite Betty.  "But," she added accusingly, "You DID bite me on my tit!  That hurts too!"
"So what?!  It is isn't bleeding like is my face!"
"It hurts where you bit it!"
"But I wouldn't never ever have bitten you on your tit if you was not biting me first!" protested Gisèle, wincing as my partner began to dab an antiseptic-soaked piece of cotton-wool gently over her twin bleeding wounds.
Betty considered this.  Unable to argue against the logic of Gisèle's last statement, she nodded and began to profusely and sincerely apologise once more.  The profound regret of the Giant Schnauzer (Riesenschnauzer) Elizabeth at her inexcusable folly could not be denied and Gisèle quickly forgave her friend.  Giz knew, though was much too polite to say, that on occasion Betty's temper moved at a faster rate than her brain - and further mitigation was allowed when it came out that Betty had had a very long walk and a more-plentiful supper than was usual, so that her thinking was a little more sluggish than usual.  After no more than an hour or so the two girls were happily smiling and gossiping together as though no altercation had taken place.  And the following morning (this morning) the pretty pair positively gloried in being back together once more.

All was well.  Until - and I sigh; is there to be no respite from the ghastly fiend?! - the malevolent hell-cat Peaches re-entered the fray...

Good evening.