Unofficial Christ's Hospital Forum

How about some memories of CH dogs?

I propose to start with Chlorine, who must be the only dog to get a public obit at school assembly. CMESeaman regretted "the passing of that best of all worst dogs" (see below).

Chlorine was one of a litter whose other members were named Bromine, Iodine and Fluorine. She "belonged" to CFKirby, and spent most of the time asleep and snoring in a corner of his den (officially his classroom, or lab, but you could have fooled me). She impinged on the school consciousness mostly during the run-up to dinner parade, when Kirby would cycle home to his place in King Edwards Road. Chlorine was not an athletic dog, and lagged many yards behind, occasionally doing her business on the headmaster's front lawn. This journey would be accompanied by shouts from Kirby "Come on, Chlorine, worst dog in Sussex!" (see above)

My favourite Chlorine memory is of the time when she brought in a rabbit she had caught in the middle of a biology lesson. Whatever the subject of the lesson was, it was dropped without further ado, and the rabbit was dissected. A very interesting biology lesson -- I hope Chlorine got to eat the rabbit in the end.

It sounds as though the dogs at Horsham had as much personality as the staff.

Various dogs are mentioned elsewhere but this is the first thread dedicated to them and the first time I have heard of Chlorine.

I remember Chlorine and CFK on his bike well !

I was always under the impression that all of Kirby's dogs were called "Boodle".
Pop Massen had a large black Labrador that wandered around aimlessly and I seem to remember another dog down the Middleton end of the Avenue.

My recollection is that Kirby had two dogs. One was definitely called Chlorine, but I thought that the other was called Hebburn, or a very similar sounding name. He used to cycle with one on his shoulders.

jhopgood wrote:I was always under the impression that all of Kirby's dogs were called "Boodle".
Pop Massen had a large black Labrador that wandered around aimlessly and I seem to remember another dog down the Middleton end of the Avenue.

Boodle was Chlorine's successor. He (I think Boodle was a he) was announced as such by Seaman at the same assembly he announced Chlorine's death, a small white Scotty-looking animal.

The only dog of Pop Massen's I remember was a rather bad-tempered boxer called Nimbus. He was a reason I didn't like going to Massen's house, but as one of his Grecians, I couldn't always avoid it.

Foureyes wrote:My recollection is that Kirby had two dogs. One was definitely called Chlorine, but I thought that the other was called Hebburn, or a very similar sounding name. He used to cycle with one on his shoulders.
:shock:

This must have been before my time. I only remember Chlorine, and then Boodle.

I remember when Kirby was an elderly chap, living in the bungalow on the 2 mile Ash road, he had a vicious little dog who used to walk with him...

Does anyone remember Hennessy, the terror of the Thornton B dayroom? Not because he was vicious, but because he slobbered so much that everything got drowned in saliva. H. was a bulldog owned by WPC Davies, aka Beaky (because of his nose).

(WPCD played rugby for the British Lions. Incidentally the only master I ever saw naked. All quite proper. Housemasters could (if they could be bothered) open the swimming pool for the house to have an extra "house bath". When WPCD did this, he used to join in the swimming, and of course the cubicles were not conducive to privacy. But I suppose as an active rugby player he was used to non-privacy.)

For the sake of cross-referencing, there are some interesting doggy entries (re: Cuckoo and Rambo) on the "Mr Grimshaw" thread (way after my time).

I remember Boodle and 'Bill' Kirby [it was 'Bill' wasn't it?]. I was told Boodle's predecessors were called Chlorine, Florine and Urine but the last name is presumably apocryphal.

You see, Chlorine was already a legend. I think "Urine" is apochryphal. I believe the litter were named after the halogens.

Strangely, I never heard Kirby referred to as "Bill" while I was there, but often since. His name in fact was Cecil, and he liked being called "Uncle" (by the boys). He deserves a thread to himself.

the marshall has two lovely dogs-the MOST obedient ones you would ever see.

I think Plum seniors two dogs need a mention-you always see them around campus loving the attention

michael scuffil wrote:You see, Chlorine was already a legend. I think "Urine" is apochryphal. I believe the litter were named after the halogens.

Strangely, I never heard Kirby referred to as "Bill" while I was there, but often since. His name in fact was Cecil, and he liked being called "Uncle" (by the boys). He deserves a thread to himself.

viewtopic.php?f=23&t=310

Ah...

Thanks for that hint. I have added a post there.