Self-appointed guardian
of the Scarrow household

Garden guru Eion Scarrow and loyal companion Solly. Solly considered it was his duty to look after the family and even tidy up anything they forgot to bring in at night.

Solly was the guardian of Willow Glen Gardens, our home and garden in Gordonton near Hamilton, NZ. He was a great favourite with the many thousands of visitors over the years and at night he reigned supreme. He always slept outside our back door and if ever I was away he looked after Ann.

One night Ann was a bit restless and she heard pitter patter as Solly trotted around the concrete path and pushed his nose hard against the glass sliding door.

Ann sat up and said "Its OK Solly". That satisfied him and back to bed he would go. This would happen on average about three times each night.

Solly kept tabs on me too. After finishing any job in the garden Solly would go sniffing around and pick up any tools that I had left behind.

My secateurs had teeth marks all over them, as did my spade. Solly always left them at the back door as if to say "You left this down in the garden but not to worry, I found it for you".

We miss you Solly. - Eion Scarrow

Home-made treats for fussy appetites

Wholesome dog biscuits

1lb flour
6oz oatmeal
2oz wheatgerm
1/2 mug melted animal fat
1 full mug of finely chopped meat (liver, heart, bacon, cheese etc)
1 mug of cooked vegetables
1/2 pint of meat or vegetable stock

Method:
Process meat, vegetables and oatmeal together. Mix all ingredients together well. Sprinkle wheatgerm on surface of table and roll out mixture into swiss roll-size sections. Then cut through into half-inch sized biscuits. Place on to greased and floured baking trays. Makes about two and a half trays. Cook slowly until hard, about four hours. Gas 2, 300F or 150C.

Liver cake

(Good as training or showing treats)
1lb liver par-cooked and processed
1lb self-raising white flour (wholemeal too crumbly)
Whole bulb of garlic (prepared and crushed)
2 eggs, whisked

Method:
Mix together and turn on to greased and floured swiss roll tin. Knead it flat into tin. Cook 150C, 300F or gas 2. Cook 40 mins. Cut into flapjack-size pieces while still warm. When cold, freeze. When needed, warm it slightly in microwave and cut it up into tiny squares. Each flapjack piece will make about 70-80 treats.