Where on earth is the time going? I can’t believe it’s over a month since my last entry and that we are nearly into April. The year is flying by. Holly’s and my training for our sponsored walk for Animals Asia is coming along nicely. Her Ladyship is putting me to shame with her diet success as mine finds its way up a variety of spouts on a regular basis. However, hopefully that is offset by my progress at the gym. Tarzan pushed me so hard on my last visit to the gym that I was alarmingly close to throwing a major tantrum and was most certainly on the precipice of some serious mood swings but I know he has my best interests at heart (I think!). However, as I am now leg pressing 140kg aka 22 stone, I think I’m making progress. I am determined to lift the heaviest weight of 200 kg which is around 31 stone even if it kills me, which it probably will!

As Holly manages longer walks and we go further afield, it’s amazing the number of people I meet and strike up a conversation with. I’ve met more new people in the last few months walking Holly than I have living here for the last 12 years. I’m still hoping George Clooney might be out strolling one day, but I guess the fields of Tranent are a far cry from the streets of Hollywood but a girl can dream.

I’d like to say that most of Holly’s encounters with her new neighbourhood ‘chums’ have been friendly ones, but to be honest, a lot of the time, I’ve felt really sorry for her. More often than not, as Holly enthusiastically approaches anyone that pays her any attention, with a frantically wagging tail and big doggy grin, looking for some extra pats and cuddles, more often than not, she’s greeted with a ‘She’s far too fat’ or ‘that’s a massive dog, she needs to go on a diet’ followed by looks of disgust that are just as often aimed at me as they are her. I’m afraid that the stubborn, bolchy side of me then kicks in as I feel incredibly protective over Holly. I make sure that if anyone has time to insult my dog, they have time to listen to her plight. To be fair, most people feel pretty sorry for Hols once they’ve listened to her story, but it just goes to show how much people judge by appearances and that that even extends to the canine community.

I’ll never forget the time shortly after Holly came to live with me when she was at her biggest, and I was taking my friend to the Supermarket. Holly and I decided to wait for her at the entrance of the store and Holly plonked herself down at my feet shifting her portly frame to find the most comfortable position, folds and layers of body fat settling into position, with a tired and exhausted expression on her face. Alongside her sat the most perfectly groomed and manicured cocker spaniel, striking poses as if auditioning for Crufts while waiting for her owner. As Holly and I, both ladies of the larger variety waited for our friend, customers came and went. Without fail, every single one of them gravitated towards the perfectly presented cocker, who was flaunting her good looks and trim figure, while Holly sat patiently in line for some of the attention that was being dished out. Unfortunately, once people tore themselves away from the splendid spaniel, they turned to Holly with a look of disgust. Poor Holly couldn’t understand why everyone walked past her. Having been on the receiving end of that kind of critical judgement by appearance myself more often than I care to remember, I think that was the first time Holly and I really bonded as my heart broke for her.

How many times have we all been quick to judge by appearance without knowing the whole story? I know I have and Holly coming into my life has made me very aware of that.

I know I’m humanising her and she will be totally oblivious to the critical nature of the human being, but mad as it sounds, I can relate to her on so many levels and I feel incredibly protective of her. In the short time she has been with me, she has taught me so much. She has made me a better person. She has helped me start to transform myself while transforming her. If she can’t have that extra bonio, you can be darn sure, she won’t let me have that packet of crisps. If she’s going to be pushed that extra mile, I’ll be doing it too. I have had some very special people and animals grace my life and Holly is already most definitely, one of them and our journey together has only just begun. She has reinforced my knowledge of the fact that animals are at our mercy and we have a duty to care for them. Holly has never been a typical greedy lab – she has never scrounged for treats or wolfed down her food, in fact quite the opposite – she eats in a very dainty manner, savouring every mouthful and her current condition is solely down to human neglect. She has enhanced my life so much, in such a short period of time the very least I can do for her, is help to make her better and go some way to undo the harm inflicted on her so far by humans. Both Holly and I are now on life changing journeys and we will take each step, together, side by side, a day at a time.