ARCHIE
Christie Boath
Woodstock Fire Station
102 x 80 cm
Archie lives his life in full knowledge of his own importance. He’s very striking, rarely going anywhere without being told how handsome he is, and he will stand daintily but insistently on the feet of his worshippers to ensure they stroke him for as long as possible. His sense of personal space is very much inspired by leeches, Velcro and uncomfortably long hugs. Any visitors who sit on his sofa must only do so because they want his bony lurcher bottom placed firmly in their lap and his pointy lurcher nose wedged uncompromisingly into their ear.
He finds so much joy in life, but true happiness radiates from toes to tail when he runs and when he works. His favourite place is the agility field; out-running and out-thinking his painfully slow owner. Whilst she shows off her two left feet and dyspraxia, he’s sprinting three obstacles ahead and improvising his own highly complex courses.
He’s been used as a stunt dog on some major motion pictures and rubbed elbows with Hollywood royalty. He’s even dabbled in herding llama in for shearing, although he found it exhausting and was discovered at the end of the day taking a nap in one of the bags of warm fleece.
His personality is completely indomitable, and he gives the whole family a zest for life, a love for the outdoors and day trips to dog-friendly beaches dedicated entirely to his enjoyment. He has taught us that even on rubbish rainy days, or days where we just want to stay in bed, it’s always better to seize the day and get moving!
Lockdown tails…
During lockdown, Archie was our hour a day exercise, a chance to wave and shout a socially distanced ‘hello’ to familiar faces who, through months of online quizzes, became good friends. He was my running buddy in my early lockdown resolution to train towards a marathon. He then became my emotional support and reason to keep moving when I found out I was pregnant in the middle of a global pandemic.
The last walk I took Arch on before my son Arthur was born, I was so swollen that my wellies were slicing into my legs. I sat down to take them off and couldn’t get them back on. Hormones, lockdown loneliness and baby fear kicked in and I sat crying in the rain, wondering how on earth I was going to get up, let alone get home. Archie pottered over and sat indelicately on top of me, licking my face until I was ready to laugh, drag myself back up and start my long, cold, barefoot, walk home.
As the world opened back up, we found ourselves looking for new connections and challenges. I had wanted to join the team at Woodstock Fire Station before COVID-19 and, after two years of being locked away, getting the ball rolling felt long overdue. The fitness tests I was required to pass seemed as impossible as the day I cried over wellies and so, with a goal in mind, I turned to Arch. We walked around Blenheim Lake until we could run around it, then when we could run around it, we dusted off the canicross harness, hit the trails and here we are today.
During one of many lockdown evenings lying on the sofa, watching Tiger King and eating banana bread, Arch was curled up with his head on my tummy and snoring away happily as I tickled his ears. Without warning, he shot bolt upright, barked and fell off the sofa. I was about four months pregnant, and Arch was the first member of the family to feel Arthur kick.
Christie Boath