Every Dog has its Dame

If it weren’t for the strange looks I’d get from my neighbours, the odd tractor driver, gobsmacked deer and the fear of frightening cattle I’d have dusted off my vintage Schiaparelli, pin curled my bob and walked a recent ‘guest’ as if I was posing for Cecil Beaton for a Vogue cover circa 1930 entitled “Every Dog has its Dame”.

The reason being the ‘guest’ was a particularly aloof and handsome Scottish Deerhound called Jay Jay.

Being a self-confessed Art Deco freak, having such an elegant, dignified personification of the era right here in my home was sublime.  Jay Jay is typical of his esteemed breed: well-mannered, polite, affectionate, gentle, playful and a joy to walk as I was able to rest my elbow on his broad, distinguished, wise head.

Jay Jay clearly is aware of his noble ancestry and although he adored racing around the garden with my three girls (until he realised he couldn’t take the corners as fast as they could so would stand and wait for them to appear from behind my bamboo and flatten them, effortlessly, to the ground with one elegantly poised Nureyev-like outstretched limb) he sported a distinguished, standoffishness which only added to his statuesque grandeur.  It is as if he is more than aware that his ancestors graced the great halls of Queen Victoria and Sir Walter Scott.

Previously known as the Scotch Greyhound, they became a distinct sighthound breed in the 16th century when their longer, rougher coat was bred in to adapt to the Scottish climate and they were given the name Scottish Deerhound.

They soon became known as the royal dog of Scotland because of their aristocratic stature and no one lesser than an earl could own one.  This stringent rule of ownership coupled with the invention of the gun brought the breed almost to extinction, however, Archibald and Duncan McNeill, two brothers devoted to retaining the breed, began a program in the 1800’s to continue the line and the Deerhound was saved.

Jay Jay’s regal ancestry pales into insignificance, however, when compared with his theatrical lineage.  His aunt, a particularly striking example of the breed named Lace, appeared in the Harry Potter movies as Sirius Black’s canine alter-ego, Padfoot.

This would explain why, when I donned my fringed flapper frock, elbow-length gloves and fox fur in my sitting room, which looks like a set from The Great Gatsby, Jay Jay ambled gracefully in and posed right on cue.

His eyes said it all, “I’m ready for my close-up Mr. de Mille.”  Gloria Swanson eat your heart out.