Lots of dogs are missing from their homes. some of them have been stolen, some have had accidents, some have been shot for chasing sheep, some have wandered off and haven’t returned, maybe because someone else has taken them in or sold them on. If you find a dog then please report it as someone may be looking for it.

If you suspect that your dog has been stolen then please give a full description at your local Garda station. Records are kept of stolen dogs and this is very important in case the dog ever shows up some-

where further down the line. Micro-chipping dogs is very important as this will speed up the return of the dog... if it hasn’t fallen into the wrong hands. It is also very impor-tant to check the papers to see if you’re dog is being ad-vertised as a dog for sale.

If a dog fits the description of the one you have lost then ring up and ask about the dog to see if you can get any infor-mation that would help... or go along and see the dog your-self. You never know. Lots of dogs are stolen and then sold on to new people. If you have just bought a dog and are in any way suspicious about it

then ask your local vet to scan it to see if it has a microchip.

this will give the details of the previous owner and you can ring them. they may not be the people you just bought the dog from. there are peo-ple that try to remove micro-chips from the dogs so that they cannot be traced. these people are heartless thieves and anyone with any infor-mation should give it to the guards in confidence.

It is always wise also to watch out for vans or any ve-hicle that is acting in a suspi-cious way and have it checked out. It may be on a quiet road late at night, it may me crawl-

ing along observing houses, it may have several dogs in the back of it. It is no harm to have it checked out by the guards.

Common sense will tell you if it is just a family dog situa-tion. some people have 4 or 5 five dogs or more and may be taking them out for exercise or something but these kinds of people are usually known in an area by the locals any-way, so it won’t be hard to spot the difference in that situation and an actual dog theft situation.

Precautions should be taken by dog owners especially at this time of year. It is very

easy to steal a dog on a dark evening. Always know where your dog is and if you are going out or away from home for any length of time then please make sure that your dog is either being watched or under lock and key.

Dogs have been stolen from dog runs, they have been sto-

len while people were at mass, they have been stolen right in front of their owners in their own garden. thieves are fast and have no conscience so it’s up to the owner to make sure that their dog is safe at all times. It can be a very up-setting experience to lose a family pet.

TRAVEL

Home & Away with Robert Walshe

Home and Away Extra

No traffic jams, no queues, plentiful car parking. wonderful gifts, services, delicious food & wines all under one roof…In recent months, Longueville House in Mallow, Co Cork has been gathering designers & trin-kets that are both fashionable & affordable all conveniently made available to you, for your home or as thoughtful Christ-mas gifts. there will be stun-ning jewellery, glad rags, sassy shoes & handbags, kiddie’s toys & clothing, beauty products, fragrances & candles, interior design accessories, Irish de-signed lingerie, artisan festive food & more! Enjoy the bubbly, mulled wine, or non alcoholic punch and tasty nibbles on ar-rival. special B&B Rates from €75 per person sharing. single occupancy €100 B&B. www.longuevillehouse.ie

LivingNewcomer to the Irish pet insurance market, Blue Insurances launched announced a new low cost quality pet insurance website protecting owners against unforeseen financial circumstances relating to their pets, be it pedigree or non-pedigree dogs and cats. Providing a choice of three policies to cater for different Irish household budgets, pet owners can rest assured that their favourite pet will receive the best of medical care whenever the need occurs. Petinsur-ance.ie plans are extensive and cover dogs and cats against a wide range of circumstances including veteri-nary bills, third party liability, death benefit, kennel / cattery fees, holiday cancellation and lost and found ads. they also offer optional extras such as overseas travel which includes quarantine cover, emergency repa-triation and loss of passport on their Premier and Premier plus Cover Lev-els. www.petinsurance.ie

Weekend HotspotIn just half a century the Relais &

Chateaux brand has established it-self as the ultimate benchmark for charming hotels and international cu-linary excellence and I had the pleas-ure recently of experiencing one of their signature properties in the UK at Lucknam Park in the depths of Wiltshire near the Royal city of Bath. this 17th Century mansion set in 500 acres of listed parkland and gardens all manicured to perfection has been lovingly restored and stands majesti-cally at the end of a long avenue of lime and beech trees. During the sec-ond World War they were deployed as camouflage by a wealthy English-man called James Wallis who built the central part of the house with the fortune he made from importing tobacco from Virginia UsA to Eng-land in the late 1600s. Fresh flowers and roaring log fires in the ground-floor public rooms help ease the transition from check-in to chill-out. 41 spacious bedrooms (including 13 impressive suites) provide the per-fect ambiance in which to relax and unwind. All are individually designed with marble bathrooms and each one offers splendid views across the park or courtyard. some rooms have open fireplaces and sturdy four-poster beds. the Park Restaurant is spacious and intimate with crys-

tal chande-liers and fine views across the grounds. M i c h e l i n -starred head chef Hywel Jones is as-sisted by this year’s Roux scholar, Richi Desai. Both have won n u m e r o u s awards and they present e x c e p t i o n a l c u i s i n e . t h e restaurant oc-cupies a former ballroom within this 17th century mansion and a menu that offers ei-ther a la carte or a 7 course gourmet tasting extravaganza which I had. The flavours were well thought out, balanced, and beautifully executed on the plate .A wonderful sommelier made our evening excellent pairing wine. for the occasion. Lucknam Park also has a luxury spa with su-perb facilities in an elegant Geor-gian setting. this is the best facility of its kind in the UK & Ireland and right up there with the finest in Asia. Each room is individually designed and has a view across the park or over the courtyard. there are nine therapy rooms, including a couple’s suite, but the spa is very popular lo-cally, so it’s best to book treatments in advance You can easily spend two or three hours lounging around the pool and using the thermal cabins. the indoor-outdoor hydrotherapy pool is great fun providing jets and massage showers while the 20-me-tre indoor pool under a glass roof is double-skinned with heaters. . this means that the air temperature around the pool remains consistently warm. Along one wall of the pool, set just above the water, is a 4-metre panel of flickering gas fire. The coun-try escape package at Lucknam Park is inclusive of fruit and hand made chocolates in your room on arrival, two dining experiences, three course dinner for two in the Michelin starred restaurant the Park and an a la carte dinner for two in the contemporary and stylish Brasserie, accommoda-tion and full English breakfast each

morn-ing., standard rooms £395, deluxe £545 & suites from £725. the best thing about Lucknam is that while it oozes elegance, the staffs are hospitable and everything is run with such ease that you barely even notice that you’ve arrived. Relais & Chateaux properties in Ireland in-clude Marlfield House, Cliff House & sheen Falls Lodge. www.relaischa-teaux.com/lucknampark

Weekly Best Buy stena Line is offering Northern Ire-

land holidaymakers the chance to escape to scotland for an indulgent break that won’t break the bank. the leading ferry company is now offer-ing short breaks to a range of luxury properties including Cameron House in Loch Lomond, Hotel Missoni in Edinburgh and the Radisson Blu in Glasgow or Edinburgh from just £125 per person, per night includ-ing breakfast and return ferry travel by car. Customers can stay at the 5* Radisson Blu in Glasgow from just £125. the award winning architec-tural gem is set in the heart of the city centre, within walking distance of some of the best shopping in the UK and boasts stunning views of the

city with floor to ceiling windows in all rooms. the Radisson Blu also of-fers a 5* Edinburgh based property with rooms looking out to the Royal Mile, Arthurs seat and the Firth of Forth. Positioned half way between the scottish Parliament and Edin-burgh Castle, this is the perfect hotel from which to explore scotland’s capital city from just £130. Also lo-cated on Edinburgh’s Historic Royal Mile is the designer 5* Hotel Missoni where customers can stay from just £155. those customers who fancy a break away for the city can travel to the 5* Cameron House in Loch Lo-mond and enjoy its stunning High-land views and roaring open fires. Whether you enjoy fine dining, loch cruises, golf or spa breaks Cameron House will offer you legendary scot-tish hospitality at it’s very finest from just £165. www.stenaline.co.uk

Robert Walshe is a freelance contributor / broadcaster and is guest travel writer for River Media newspaper titles across the island of Ireland

Pet’s Corner... with Kathleen Murray: Animal Behavioural Therapist

with Kathleen Murray

Stolen or missing dogs

n The Spa at Lucknam Park, Bath

n Lucknam Park

n The Park Resteraunt Lucknam Park