Off The Lead in Ashton Court

At the puppy class last night the trainer said puppies don't tend to stray to far when let off the lead, so we took Teasel to Ashton Court and let her off the lead to see what would happen.

I was a bit worried she would head for the horizon and we would never see her again. But she was OK - providing there wasn't too much to distract her. However she was a bit too interested in a group of children, so we had to put her back on the lead until there were fewer distractions around.

The long grass was wet and Teasel, having low ground clearance, got quite wet.

We put Teasel on the lead and walked her through a field with cows in. She was a bit wary of them, but didn't seem unduly concerned.

After we left Ashton Court the sky went very dark and started raining. After we got home the rain got harder and it turned into a hail storm. There was a bit of lightning and thunder, but it didn't seem to upset Teasel. We were glad we'd got back to the car just in time.

First Day At School

This morning in the park Teasel met a year old Miniature Schnauzer called Reg. He's quite a bit bigger than Teasel.

This evening she started puppy classes in Clifton. There are a couple of Border Terriers in the class that are the same size as Teasel - she doesn't often meet dogs as small as herself.

Favourite Toy: Leaves.

Recall Training at Blaise Castle

We arranged for Teasel to meet my climbing buddy, Dave (who shares his birthday with Caroline), and his two children at Blaise Castle.

It was a little bit drizzly, but we tested Teasel's recall by calling her between us, and she was very good and didn't run off.

Then we took her for a walk to The Folly and along the top of The Gorge.

Official First Walk

For Teasel's Official First Walk we took her, in the car, to Leigh Woods. She had a great time.

We haven't let her off the lead yet, but I did run some parts of the walk and she bounded along alongside me.

Favourite Toy: Blueberries.

Walking In The Park

We took Teasel to St. Andrews Park again. This time she was more lively and bounding around - but we're not letting her off the lead yet.

She met a few other dogs, including a 16 week old Tibetan Terrier called Oscar.

She is proving to be quite popular with school children (mostly girls) who want to stop and pet her or take photos of her on their phones.

Favourite Toy: biting my trousers :-(

Visit To The Park

Teasel's first visit to our local park - St. Andrews Park.

It was a bit drizzly, and it was quite a while before we got there, so we couldn't stay long.

She was also a bit apprehensive when two bigger dogs rushed over to greet her.

The Howling

My cousin Helen - who plays the French and Baroque Horn - came to stay last night.

While she was demonstrating the baroque horn we found that Teasel would join in when she reached a certain note (B♭ above middle C).

We did another little walk with Teasel - this time we went round the block the other way, and I remembered to take some poo bags with me (which were needed).

Teasel is now allowed upstairs to join us watching TV. Although she seems to like running around the room behind the back of the sofa more.

First Walk

Teasel had her first walk out of the house today.

This morning we put her collar and lead on and walked along the street to the lamppost about four houses down and back. She is a bit apprehensive of cars going by in the street.

This afternoon I took her for a little trot around the block, and I learned the importance of having poo bags with you at all times when you have a dog. Fortunately there are lots of leaves around at this time of the year.

Weight: 1.9kg. Favourite Toy: string.

Birthday Present

It's Caroline's Birthday today, and her present is... Teasel.

I made this card of Teasel not looking too pleased with her new red harness.

We've been doing some lead walking around the house to prepare for when she is allowed outside.

Going To The Vet

We took Teasel to the vet today for the first time.

She now weighs 1.7kg. She had her second set of vaccinations (which she didn't seem to mind at all), and was implanted with bio-thermo id chip (which she did mind).

We also got her a monkey toy to play with, which she likes a lot.

Outside

We got some fencing from Canine Concepts and I constructed a ramp to make it easier for her to negotiate the steps outside the back door, so now Teasel can get out onto the patio at the back.

While I was out I got a call from Caroline, who had locked herself and Teasel out of the house in the back garden for 3 hours. So I came home and rescued them.

Teasel has now been with us a week.

Current favourite activity is chewing the cardboard tube from the inside of a toilet roll.