Laurie Foxwater - the divine Laurie

Laurie Foxwater, May 2010

Yes.  I admit it.  I am a cheat.

Laurie Foxwater is not a ‘Celebrity Dog Lover’.  However, she is a celebrity and everybody loves ‘er!

She is entitled to appear under the category ‘Famous Dogs’ but there is a reason why she has not been placed there.  Someone is already filling her role.

Having baffled you completely, I will explain. 

Laurie Foxwater is 21 years old and she is a Parson Jack Russell Terrier. 

 “Oh yes!  Another contender for oldest dog!”  I hear you say, while hovering your curser over the exit tab. 

WAIT!

It might well be that Laurie is the oldest living dog but unfortunately her current owners have no official birth documents.  But they do know for a fact that she was born in 1989 and had two litters, the last being in 1994.

Laurie’s real claim to fame is that she was the dog pictured as ‘Nipper’ in the HMV adverts!  I should really say, ‘a dog’ as there have been many, but this dog was also ‘on the buses’, not appearing with
Reg Varney but literally on the buses.  She was the dog on the last Route Master bus and is on the advert for the transport museum too.  The original photo for HMV depicting Laurie is now in the Doll Museum In Musselburgh.

Laurie was bred by John Valentine who lived in Duddingston Village, Edinburgh.  There is not much John Valentine does not know about Parson Jack Russell terriers, he is a breeder, an international championship judge and is an author of informative books on this breed.

He showed Laurie all over the UK and in 1995 she joined her elder brother Bertie who was owned by Dr Clouter, a well-known GP in Portobello, Edinburgh.  Living with her too was a flatcoat retriever and 4 cats, one of which was to become her best friend!

Sadly Dr Clouter died in 2005 and Laurie was offered a home in London with John and Hazel Norbury, which is how I came to meet this adorable little dog. 

Laurie took to living in London like a duck to water and immediately fitted in with The Laird (a black lab) and two Persian exotics Saph and Brompton. 

Laurie is adored by all family but none more so than son, James who would take her to his flat in W1 where she would feast on the finest. 

No one could imagine Laurie outliving her younger companion, but the Laird, who was no spring chicken himself, was finally laid to rest last year. 

Laurie still enjoys her walks in the park but then new Labrador puppy, Bella came on the scene.  It was too much for the venerable old lady who in her time would have given the boisterous young pup a run for her money.  It was decided it would be better for Laurie to go and live with James full time.  Somehow, I don’t think she really minds this arrangement!

It is hardly surprising that Laurie is a little frail these days. Who wouldn’t be at 147 human years?  But Laurie has never been to a vet for an illness in her life.  This says an awful lot for her breeder, John Valentine.

She is truly a remarkable little animal and justly deserves the title given to her by friends - “the divine Laurie”