I got Radley when I was 16, and now he’s turning 16 this year – time flies.
We’d gone to a kennel in Fife to pick out a Labrador, but the one we’d planned to see wasn’t there.
Instead, there was Radley. He came to my Nana first, then right to me.
When I was at college, Radley always seemed to know when I was coming home. It was like he knew when the bus came in and would sit at the window waiting for me until I got home, even if the bus was late.
He was full of mischief and fun as a puppy. When he was out with all the kids in the street playing, and the ice cream van came, he was the first up at the window.
Likewise, when he’s walking on the beach at Carnoustie, he’ll still invite himself into the cafe for a drink of water.
He’s a bit of a thief too, he likes to steal gloves or sweeties and throw them into the air so someone will chase him.
He likes to have a treat thrown and race the crows to get to it first.
Once, he even stole my grandad’s false teeth when they were wrapped in kitchen roll!
Radley has to ‘check in’ on his special folk
As he grew, so did I, and Radley has been at countless family birthdays and events. He was with me when I got married, which was special. He’s just amazing.
He used to love playing with the bairns in the street. Now they’re all grown up, 17 and 18 years old, and he misses them.
When I first got him, he went missing – the next thing I knew, a crowd of kids were at the door telling me he was on someone’s trampoline!
Nowadays, Radley’s mellowed out a bit – at 16 he’s an old man, but he’s still going strong, only recently going on medication for his legs.
He loves his daily walk to the beach, because he gets to check up on all his people.
First there’s my Aunty Sheena, who lives a few doors down. Every day, he has to stop at her gate, and he won’t move on until he’s gone in and made sure she’s OK.
Then when we get to the beach, he’ll lie down and won’t move until his friend Dorothy has come along for her morning walk and given him a treat.
And he can’t pass The Carnoustie Haven charity shop without stopping in to see Babs and get a biscuit. Sometimes he helps himself to a cuddly toy to carry home.
Radley has a wee brother, Odie, and his pup pals Coco and Fizz, with whom he went on many walks together as a young dog.
He’s not one for men, except one neighbour. When he sees him, he gets a wee pace on and runs up for a chin scratch.
He’s just a gentle giant, and everyone loves him to bits.
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