Pet’s corner: Teaching your dog ‘leave’

Pet’s corner: Teaching your dog ‘leave’

The leave command, also known as ‘dog zen’, is possibly the most important command of all. ‘Leave’, as distinct from ‘drop’, tells the dog to disengage from an object, another animal or a human, on cue. The importance of ‘leave’ is that it teaches the dog to control...
The Last Word – Jack Thompson

The Last Word – Jack Thompson

Jack Thompson was born a long time ago in the north of England. He worked as a teacher, a pianist in clubs and pubs, and a bus conductor. He was a BBC correspondent in the 1980s and 90s doing spells in Asia, the Middle East, the Soviet Union and eastern and central...
Garden Talk: Heavenly hydrangea

Garden Talk: Heavenly hydrangea

Hydrangeas are gorgeous shrubs – their great mounds of delicate yet showy flowers often take on pinky hues into autumn and can be dried for winter use too. There are masses of varieties, colours and sizes to choose from. Here’s my pick: Hydrangea Macrophylla...