The Machine and Whippets

This is Benson my hound. The dog lovers amongst you will be able to deduce that he’s a Whippet from his photograph. You can recognise his breed by his bony shape, long legs, pointy head and beautiful curves over his back and under his flattened but enlarged chest. He's quite a goer. But what you can’t do is hear the whining he makes when he’s desperate for a walk or his "happy growl", which sometimes scares people, but in reality means he’s full of joy and really pleased with you. You cannot feel how soft his ears are, like rose petals, and perfect to stroke during stressful times. You cannot feel the change in direction of the fur under his neck, where it meets the side of his head and peaks in a small wave crest, or the coldness of his nose when he pokes it at you to sniff and check that all is OK with his human. This digital image will not enable you to appreciate his smell on a good day - that warm dog smell (and when he was tiny, nothing beat the smell of his puppyness) but also…