The Dally In The Valley

Domino`s kennel name "Elaridge Just William" was given to him by his breeders, Elaridge Dalmatians. But when I knew I was finally going to get the dog of my dreams I started thinking up lots of possible names. The one name that kept sticking to my mind was "Domino". However when I found out his kennel name it did go through my mind to call him "Billy" which is often used for "William". But when I got him home I noticed a set of 6 spots on his neck, almost identical to a 6 spot Domino... so that made my mind up "Domino" was the ideal name for him after all!

When I got Domino we lived in Stevenage, Hertfordshire, in England.
Later we moved to the Neath Valley in South Wales, moving from there to the Dulais Valley.
I was out with Domino one day and heard someone say "Oh look, a dally in the valley"! I liked it so much I used it as an email address and also think it`s a great title for a tribute page for Domino!
I have another tribute page for Domino on my website. Click the photo to the right to if you wish to visit the page.

Domino was bred by one of Britain`s top Dalmatian breeders, Elaridge Dalmatians in Uxbridge, Middlesex.
His mother was Elaridge Wilhelmina and his father was Elaridge Playboy. He has a long string of show champions in his pedigree.
He joined my family in February 1999 as a beautiful bouncy playful youngster, full of mischief and curiosity, yet never doing any of the usual puppy damage in the home - which we were expecting!
Click the photo on the right if you wish to visit the breeder`s website.

Tennis Balls, (regular ones and the giant one he got for Christmas one year!)
Rubber dog toys, Squeaky dog toys, Tug Ropes, Frisbees

Domino loved to play chase with the children`s pet Hamsters & Gerbil in their exercise balls... they enjoyed it too!

Domino, like most dogs, enjoyed having a nice big knuckle bone to chew on. He liked to take them to the top of the stairs and let them drop down to the bottom, repeating this until they broke into two or more pieces! This made it easier for him to get at the marrow and obviously more convenient size for him. The first time he did it the noise shook me up, I thought one of the children had fallen down the stairs! He also liked to lay on the lawn with them, he would chew on them for ages and then bury them!

One of Domino`s favourite passtimes was watching the local children playing ball on the grass area outside our back garden, the only thing was we had a fence between the garden and the grass area. That was no problem to Domino however, he found himself a large rock and stood on it so he could just about see over the fence... he looked so cute and comical from both behind at full stretch and from outside with just his eyes and paws showing! I took a photo of him from outside and named it "Peeping Dom", it became an award winning and published photo and people loved it!

One day there was a knock on the front door. I opened the door to find a fireman on the doorstep. He told me there had been a fire in the neighbourhood the day before, and that they were doing a door to door check to see if people had working smoke alarms. I let him in and he went to inspect and test our alarms.
Domino was only about a year old and had not had any training, yet he took each one of us by the sleeve/arm and calmly took us to the front door as if to get us to safety! Although Dalmatians are not known in U.K as fire dogs as in the U.S, the fireman told me if ever we decide we no longer want Domino he can guarantee a good home for him at the fire station... I just smiled and said "nice try, but you have no chance, he`s mine ;-)!" lol. A few weeks later we took Domino to town with us. We didn`t know it but they had a fire engine on display for publicity and fund raising purposes. The same fireman saw us and asked if we would let some children have their photo done with Domino & the fire engine, Domino was "Dal-ighted" to be centre of attention, but we were there all day as he was so popular!

Domino`s photo and a lovely tribute to him is featured on the Dalmatian page of the website for Wassaic Fire Rescue Service in America.
It`s good to see his memory and beauty being kept alive by others and this is a great cause!
Click the photo above to visit the Wassaic Fire Rescue Service Dalmatian page.

Domino was fine and appeared healthy at the age of 11 years during Christmas 2009. Sadly just into the new year 2010 he started to have difficulty going to the toilet and was unwell and unhappy. I took him to the vet hoping it would be either age related or diagnosed as stones, which Dalmatians are prone to, knowing most are easily rectified. He was kept in for tests but sadly it was discovered he had cancer in the spine, prostate and uretha. We had no idea he was so ill, He had hidden it all from us until he couldn`t hide it any longer, and it was a huge shock for my teenage children and myself. Sadly I had to make the heart breaking decision to let him go home to the Rainbow Bridge on 7th January 2010. He is greatly missed by myself and my teenage children. Now Domino has his Angel Wings, R.I.P Baby Boy!

Although it was devastating to lose Domino, I am lucky because I work with spirit and know Domino is still with my family. I have a very strong connection with my spirit guide and he has been giving me updates how Domino is settling in on the other side, and showing me in visualisation. The day Domino was put to sleep the children had tidied his bed (an old duvet on the floor, he only liked these to lay on) in the hope he will be coming home with us. They left it nicely straightened out and evenly puffed up. After he had been put to sleep we came home to find it had been moved, the corner was all disturbed and there was a Domino sized & shaped well in the middle, as if he was laying there. Nobody had been in the house and the only ones home were the budgies, but they were in their cage all the time!
Also, before Domino was taken to the vet we had a little bit of snow. Afterwards I went into the garden to see if I could find any paw prints, to take photo`s as a lasting keepsake. However I had forgotten it had snowed again since, and all his paw prints had sadly been snowed over. I regularly communicate with my guide and on january 12th he told me Domino was going to leave me a sign in the snow, and that I should take photo`s of it before I lose the chance forever. It was too dark to go looking so I left it overnight. By morning we had completely been snowed in and I had forgotten what I had been told because I had other things to think about. My children and I couldn`t get out of the house for deep snow at both the back and front doors, and the steps leading out of the front gate had been totally buried, it was too dangerous to try walking down them as we couldn`t even tell exactly where they were, I had to try and dig the snow away somehow because this is our only way in and out. I put on my wellingtons and waded more than knee deep through the drift at the front door, and made my way around the back to go to the shed to find the shovel. There is a hedge to the side of the house and there wasn`t much snow there because the hedge makes a bit of shelter. There was just a fine dusting of snow by the hedge, which had frozen over. As I passed it I couldn`t contain my excitement, there in that little bit of snow was a perfect paw print. I knew it was Domino`s because it even had the tell-tale sign of a crooked claw, which Domino had following a broken claw which healed crooked! I am also a paranormal investigator so I know about making certain of the facts before noting down anything as spiritual/paranormal. I looked around and there was not one paw print like it anywhere in the snow, just that one individual print. There were my footprints, cat prints and bird prints, but none like Domino`s. Other dogs don`t and can`t get into our garden, and if they had they would not have been able to leave only one pawprint in the snow, it would be impossible! The facts are, when I looked for his paw prints a few days earlier there hadn`t been any, my guide had told me Domino was going to leave me a sign in the snow, and then the next day there was that one paw print! I took photo`s as advised, so I can keep them forever even after the snow and the paw print have gone!
Domino has often been heard in the house, either pawing at the door like he used to asking to go out or come back in ... we hear the sounds of him settling down on his duvet and leaning against the television next to it. ... we hear his claws on the kitchen floor as he walks around ... we hear him snoring or licking his paws ... we hear him singing along to the theme tunes of Coronation Street, Casualty & Emmerdale, and also to the telephone! We have even seen a glimpse of him out of the corner of our eye on occasions. We KNOW he is still with us, which is very comforting.

December 21st 2010. We have had a lot more snow this week. My daughter called me to come downstairs to look at something she had seen. For some reason she had felt the need to look out of the kitchen window. Outside in the back garden we have some steps leading into the garden. There were a few bits on disturbed snow on the steps and it looks like Domino`s face, complete with spot over the left eye, patchy ear and "moustache" under the nose! Domino loved the snow and after my guide first told me Domino will leave us a message in the snow, it looks like he is going to make it a regular thing! No one had been in the garden, this photo was taken through the kitchen window and it has not been alterred in any way!

All sales from Domino items in my CafePress shop generate donations of 100% shop keeper commission per item to Swansea PDSA Animal Hospital, Thank you.

Click the sample image/s below to visit the relevant item/s in my shop.
NOTE: Each image is only one item in the collection of that particular design, once you have opened the item page you will be able to see other items in that design from there! Items available include Cards, Calendars, Postcards, Bags, Prints, Magnets, Aprons, Tee Shirts and other gifts & apparel.

I have many greeting cards featuring Domino at my GCU store. Sales of any cards featuring Domino generate a donation to the Swansea PDSA Animal Hospital, who did all they could to help Domino when he was so ill.
Please click on the sample card on the right if you wish to visit my card store, then use the "Search My Store" area and type in "domino". Please don`t search from the GCU homepage as you won`t get just my cards!