We've decided that we are only going to blog once a week from now on - unless something magical happens. Basically we are having too much fun to log on any more often! Either that or I'm busy tidying up after him...
Since our last update we've been making lots of progress - though at times it has seemed like one step forwards and two steps back. I am now sporting some cracking bruises on my knee and wrist thanks to Leo getting a bit spooked on the field with the long lead. We bought a long lead to try and improve his recall. We took him out one day and he was absolutely fine. The next day - mayhem! Snapping at the lead - and me - though I think I was in the way a bit :( Not fun!!
Leo literally LOVES the world. The only thing I've seen him snarl at (apart from the long lead) is an advertising hoarding at Carcraft.... no idea why but he was not keen!
In fact it's a runnig joke now that these one hour walks could actually fit into twenty minutes if we didn't have to stop to say hello and play with everyone and every thing we meet.
He can spot another dog from a mile off. Rather than walking up to it nicely he stops dead, watches, then bows just like this until they come over and say hello. THEN he pounces as if that's the signal for playtime to commence!
He has met some lovely doggies who will happily let him jump all over them bless him! In particular he has met a lovely 13 month old rough Jack Russell girl called Ruby a couple of times. It's hilarious watching them take it in turns to pin each other down! Ruby's daddy always has a pocketful of treats too which means he seems to get caught up in the mayhem a bit too :)
We were going to go to a fun dog show yesterday afternoon but Leo was like a transformed dog in the morning so I didn't want to ruin that by surrounding him by barking pups! He walked beside us, waited at the kerb nicely, crossed roads quickly, came to his name from the full stretch of the lead every time... the thought of him turning into a woofing bouncy hound for the afternoon was too much to bear for me so we gave the show a miss. Maybe next year we'll be more ready for the shows.
This dog is literally taking over our lives. In a good way. We're in the process of swapping the car for one that will more easily accomodate him - whilst he fits snugly in the Smart Car and settles down nicely, we're always a bit worried that he is sat right over the engine in it and that we can't fit much more in there when he's in too! In time for our next holiday we will have much more room to pack more treats and toys for him :) oh and maybe some luggage fo us too!
We have discovered a HUGE network of of footpaths, fields and woods that we never knew existed - right on our doorstep. Leo loves them (no surprise there!) and they're fairly easy on us oldies too. I've invested in some proper sturdy walking boots in anticipation of a soggy Autumn - sad but true I'm no longer the sort of girl that has wardrobes full of short skirts and high heels - these days it's waterproof trousers and chunky boots. Ahh still, happy days!
This morning there was a major panic - we couldn't find Leo's Kong!! I looked high and low! Everntually it turned up, under our bed! Along with a small collection of socks that Leo had obviously decided to save for later....
He does still have a bit of a foot fetish. My furry boots are the most desirable thing on the planet and Hubby's trainers are the tastiest... putting socks on in front of Leo is impossible. I wish I could read his mind and know why they are so appealing to him!
Leo simply has to carry something home after his walks. It doesn't really matter what, but preferably a bottle of some description. This week we've brought home an empty milkshake bottle, an empty water bottle, a paper cup, a coke can and an empty Dairy Milk wrapper. Oh and his long lead as you can see in a previous picture. Fortunately we live near a school so there's generally lots of litter for him to choose from thanks to all the horrid children! He doesn't seem to want to chew them or even seem that interested in their contents - he just wants to carry them! Hopefully we may be able to harness that talent in future and maybe I won't have to bother taking a handbag everywhere....
Also this week we have seen a noticeable reduction in Leo's chewiness. He did destroy a charity collection bag that someone popped through the letterbox, but other than that he's mostly been interested in his own things. We have made it a bit easier for him by moving things out of his way - mainly shoes. However, he definitely seems to be getting the hang of what's chewable and what isn't! We've put a mail box up on the fence outside so from today there will be no post for him to chomp on and stocked up on the rawhide bones he's so addicted to. As I write this he's stretched out on his duvet, blissfully licking away at a Kong stuffed with frozen peanut butter. Definitely makes life a bit less stressful knowing that you can pop out and not have to worry that he's merrily destroying things!
The odd things is he's started taking things upstairs when we're out. The two cushions that Hubby has in his armchair have found their way onto the bed three days running. So has one of my wellington boots... Leo has even managed to take one cushion out of it's loose cover - absolutely no idea how. The cushion and cover remain completely unscathed and there's not a mark on either of them. I'd love to see how he's doing it! Getting it back into the cover is a right task so I have no idea how he's managing to get it out. I may set up a webcam one of these days to see what he gets up to.
This is just one of the beautiful views that I've managed to catch thanks to Leo. Having a dog is the best way of getting to know your local area. It's ok to walk down random footpaths and feel safe and not look like a total loony when you go back the way you came after all!
I was reading the posts of a Facebook friend this week who was sadly having to say goodbye to her boy after 12 and a half years together. It made me sad for Blue and the fact that he never got to experience alot of the beauty that I get to share with Leo up here. I'm glad that we got to spend such fun times in Cornwall with him though. And the mad times we had up to our knees in mud being chased by cows in Gomersal before we moved here! And I'll always remember the look on Blue's face when we saw a zebra in the field the week the circus was in town! At first I was thinking that we never got to have much fun with Blue because of his fear aggression and age. But the more I thought about it the more I started thinking it was just a different kind of fun! Blue much preferred a 4 hour snooze on the sofa to a hike through the woods that's all.
One final thing - I managed to find a special doggy toothbrush and toothpaste for Leo. We thought we'd have a proper go at it last night. Last week I'd had a little go with a sample that the vets gave us when we took him to meet her and one of my old toothbrushes! It sort of worked but it was a bit awkward lol!
Last night we did it properly with a blob of his vanilla toothpaste and his fancy toothbrush. I think it went quite well considering! At first he was a bit wary but I swear by the end he was actually enjoying it. We'll have another go next week ;)
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