Carole Peck (Nee Disney): The Tale of the Dog

"Before the floods, when we were living in Chapman Road, the lady who lived in the bungalow behind ours had to go into a home. My Dad 'rescued' Lassie. She was the Wire Haired Fox Terrier on the right in the picture (below).
Unfortunately the lady who had her, had never let her off the lead and she was tied to a mangle on a 3 foot rope in the garden. As soon as we had her we realised that if she got out of the bungalow, she ran and ran for all she was worth. Many is the time that my Dad got her back from the police station on Long Road which was a long way from ours. She had even caught the bus on one occasion.

My Dad decided that if she had puppies, she would want to return to them. Therefore she was mated to a Champion Wire Hared Fox Terrier called 'Christopher Don't Know'.

Before long 8 puppies were born and sure enough, Lassie always came back to them after that. We kept one puppy. That was the dog on the left of the picture and we called him Chum."

Chum & Lassie

"Lassie, who had a taste of freedom, used to go up to the sea wall, over and along the breakwater at the end of Chapman Road (Which was unmade at the time), and bark and bark until someone threw a stone into the sea for her. This was what she was after, so then she would dive into the sea and swim to where the stone sank, circle round and back to the breakwater, only to start barking all over again. Anyone who walked around the point in those days would remember her. Holiday makers also were delighted to throw stones for her.

These were the dogs in the photo, that paddled along Chapman road in the floods with me to the awaiting army lorry, then caught the bus from the Haystack, and on to Barnet until we could all go back onto the Island."

"My friend and I skating along behind my dad in the mud, when we used to go out towards Chapman Lighthouse, to get cockles"

Stories by Carole Peck (Nee Disney). Thanks Carole! To visit our Flood Section click HERE