Philobiblon

Apologies for my absence all day, but I’ve been to Battersea Dogs’ Home (twice! – long story) and the Philobiblon household has now grown by one. I promise not to turn this into a dog blog, but thought you’d like to meet Prince:

He’s really more handsome than this photo indicates, but hasn’t really got used to the camera, yet. Prince’s an ex-racing greyhound, aged about five, who has spent the last two years already in a house (so he is housetrained – handily!)

He’s a bit bigger than I would have ideally liked – he’s having to wind himself around the house – but he came with rave recommendations from Battersea’s greyhound specialist, and he does curl up into a rather neat ball – as he’s just done, which suggests he’s already feeling at home.

I’m not entirely sure about the name Prince; alternative nominations are welcome – a blog first – “Name the dog competition?” A guy on the train to Victoria said he was the colour of champagne, but maybe that’s a bit too posh a name for an honest working dog. Then again, he does come from a long line of aristocrats – think of all those early modern and 18th and 19th century oils in which greyhounds feature.