Most Munro baggers crack open the champagne or enjoy a wee dram when they reach the summit.
But Kerry Blue terrier Betty – one of the fastest dogs to conquer all 282 Scottish mountains over 3000ft – prefers a hard boiled egg. For owner and hiking companion Shona Marshall, 58, that has meant providing a constant supply of healthy treats for her pet.
The pair climbed 546 Scottish peaks in less than two years – an average of 24 a month – as well as every mountain over 3000ft in England and Wales. Shona said it was “humbling” to witness the trust Betty put in her as they scrambled up the rocky slopes.
A former show dog, Betty, seven, became only the 15th pooch to be entered into the Munro Society’s Canine Completers register, having scaled every one in just 12 months and two days. Along with her owner, she completed her final Munro ascent on Skye last year and raised thousands of pounds for the Kerry Blue Terrier Rescue charity in the process.
Now the mountaineering duo are well on their way to conquering all 226 Munro tops – peaks over 3000ft that are classed as a subsidiary of a nearby Munro – by April. They have climbed 180 of them, plus 30 Corbetts – mountains over 2500ft – and 30 Grahams and 24 Donalds, Scottish peaks over 2000ft.
Shona, a retired clay pigeon shooter and Commonwealth Games silver medalist, who got Betty to keep her active, said: “She’s just the right size and provides me with great company on the hill. Bla Bheinn was the first scrambley hill we climbed and it was humbling to witness the trust she put in me as I encouraged her up and down.”
When she first got Betty at 15 months, the pup was reluctant to even step in a puddle. But now the terrier is no stranger to scaling multiple peaks in a day, enjoying a well-earned treat at the top.
Shona said: “She always gets two hard-boiled eggs on the summit and every walking day she gets sardines on top of her normal meal for the extra calories. We’ve got our own chickens so there’s always plenty of eggs.”
But she recalled: “We had a bit of a disaster on top of Sgurr Alasdair. I got her two eggs and she nosed one of them and it set off down the hill, rolling. Luckily she didn’t try to chase after it.
“But now I always make sure I put them down where they won’t roll away from her.”
Shona added: “We’ve still got four Munro tops left to do on Skye and they are the tricky ones. But Betty is very good at finding the path.
“I can’t say I’d be keen to do so many hills if it wasn’t for her.”
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