pets of my life

In my life, I’ve had 2 animals. Plus the odd fish or 2, which never seemed to last too long!

Millie

The first one was our dog, Millie. She was a beagle.

I remember I was 7 or 8 years old and in Year 2 at school. Mum and Dad had gone to pick her up while we were at school. I was getting picked up from school with my middle sister (who was in kindergarten). My youngest sister had not yet started school.

She was such a sweet and beautiful dog, but for some reason was scared of men she didn’t know. It may have had something to do with the fact that when she was small, she was attacked by the dog next door, and the make owner of this dog yelled at her. Millie was always OK with my male relatives, as she knew them, but strangers she did not like.

Being a beagle, she had a good nose on her. Anytime she got out, the only thing that would bring her back from up the street would be a Vegemite sandwich! Yes, she was crazy.

My greatest memory of her was when we were on holiday at my grandparents’ house in Bermagui. They backed onto a golf course. We would often take Millie for a walk after hours, as it was summer, so the sun didn’t set until about 8 pm. She was never a fan of water. We were walking out the back of the course, and there was a sewage pond, that was covered with a green moss, making it look like grass. Millie went running and jumped in the water. I will never forget the freaked-out look on her face once she realised it was water! She soon came speeding out of the water.

Nala

And then there is Nala!

She is my beautiful almost 8-year-old oriental cross domestic short hair. I have had her since she was a kitten, but she was a rescue.

I got her when I had more regular hours for work and wasn’t doing shift work anymore. I found her as a rescue and took her home when she was about 4 months old. She is frightened of people she doesn't know and will always hide from them.

But she and I are always chatting. She has a different meow for everything! I also have occasional contact with her brother's owner, and they have similar personalities. Although Nala is not quite as cuddly as Willis!

She even has her own Instagram page!

https://www.instagram.com/nalafarmer/

I cannot imagine my life without her!

There is also Tessa. She was my sister's dog, a Maltese x poodle. She was such a beautiful dog. I miss her a lot as well.