Thursday 2nd December - Cupboard Love

 Hello again and welcome back to Dogvent, brought to you from isolation with only my other plague-ridden family and dog for company...

Blossom!

Anyway, the title of today's picture reminds me of something my Nan used to say to her dogs.  I had no idea what 'cupboard love' meant for years because she tended to say it outside of the kitchen, often while eating biscuits, but this image makes it very literal...

Cupboard Love (1881) Briton Riviere

Basically, it just means that the dog loves you because you feed them, but I suspect I might have a few people in my life who fall into this category too.  That little pug is rather splendid - look at his little paws! - and he looks in fine shape so I'm guessing his mistress does not overfeed him.  Maybe that's why he's so obsessed with the cupboard? Mind you, I have a few questions about the other dog...

The eyes....

I didn't notice that there was a second dog, but that shadowy shape has little eyes! It probably wasn't quite as sinister when it was painted, possibly there was more detail visible.  Now all that remains is a black hole with little button eyes who wants to get in the cupboard.  We are assuming this is a food cupboard - maybe it's the drinks cupboard?  Do people still have drinks' cabinets?  My parents had a cupboard at the end of the sideboard in the 1970s, although admittedly all it contained was Sanatogen tonic wine and Copper Beech sherry, but still it is a lovely sideboard.  Our bottles of booze (mostly for cooking or bottles of home-made sloe gin) are kept on the top of our kitchen cupboards because we are less classy and don't have room for a sideboard.  Do people still have sideboards? So many cupboard-related questions...

Mind you, if it is the drinks' cupboard, maybe the dogs are actually trying to say 'Beryl! It's only 11am, lay off the sherry!' For all her dissolute ways, Beryl has a smashing dress but I suspect that the pinned up part of her skirt contains countless miniatures of scotch.  Oh Beryl...

Anyway, I'm off to take more paracetamol and possibly some sloe gin and I'll catch you tomorrow...