The Downs

Continuing with investigating new places to walk Teasel on the lead I walked over to The Downs with her.

We walked on Durdham Down by the Water Tower and the bits of The Downs adjacent to Westbury Road.

Earlier in the day, while I had been emptying the compost bin at the bottom of the garden I noticed a furry face next to me watching intently. Teasel had jumped the fence that is meant to be keeping her on the upper patio until we reduce the options for escaping from the rest of the garden.

Walking on the Lead

Being on heat means I can explore some of the places that I haven't taken Teasel because of the proximity of roads. Today I took Teasel out for a long walk on the lead to Horfield Common. We managed to string together a route that let Teasel be "loose" on the retractable lead for a considerable amount of the time. It was a bit squidgy in places, and I think Teasel missed the ability to run free, but it gave her some good exercise.

The Heat Is On

Yesterday there was a dog showing an unusual amount of interest in Teasel's rear end. Today there are unmistakable signs that she is on heat for the first time. It's just over a week until her 6 month birthday, so it's a little sooner than we were expecting. We will be avoiding the local park for the next couple of weeks and looking for less popular walks.

Fortunately, on Monday, I walked over to the Pets at Home store in Eastville with Teasel and we bought a 5m retractable lead, so she will be able to have a limited amount of freedom whilst still being on the lead.

Dismembered Monkey

Teasel has managed to pull the arm off her favourite toy - the monkey she got on her first visit to the vet.

Caroline had previously patched it up to stop the stuffing coming out (photo), but it looks like it's going to need some more surgery.

Weight: 5.2 kg.

Camera Shopping

We took Teasel one stop on the train from Redland to Clifton Down. Now she is a seasoned rail traveller she even managed to jump down off the train when we arrived at Clifton Down.

We looked in the camera shops on Whiteladies Road for a camera that Caroline is interested in (Panasonic Lumix DMC-G1), and the nice people at Jessops let us bring Teasel in while Caroline looked at the camera. Fortunately Teasel was quite well behaved in the shop - I walked her around it so that she was happy to wait quietly because it had been explored.

Outside the shop we met a Border Terrier and a Wire Haired Fox Terrier that Teasel was keen to say hello to. We also had someone come up to us to meet Teasel - they have a Miniature Schnauzer of their own called Tess, but they didn't have her with them. Teasel is obviously becoming something of a celebrity - being recognised in the street.

We caught the train back - again Teasel jumped onto the train at Clifton Down - and went two stops to Montpelier, where the gap between the train and the platform was a bit daunting so I lifted Teasel down and took her to the park for a run around.

Bitten In The Park

When we got to the park today Teasel ran off to play with some bigger dogs while I was looking at the remains of the big cedar tree that has recently been cut down. I heard Teasel give a squeal and I called her back to me. Later we noticed there was a drop of blood on her muzzle.

When I got back home I washed Teasel's muzzle with a damp cloth dipped in warm water (which she licked). There was more blood that I expected, but it was a bit hard to see what damage there was.

The Howling (Part II)

Since we found that Teasel will howl if you hit the right note we have the occasional howl together. Caroline took this video of Teasel howling today.

Ashton Court in the Frost

I took Teasel to Ashton Court again - this time it was -3°C when we arrived, but it was nice and sunny and everything was covered in a wonderful frost. Teasel enjoyed running around in the frosted grass and investigating the frozen puddles.

In A Flap

We bought a cat flap - "For Large Cats & Small Dogs" - (or a Katzenklappe if you're German) from the pet shop yesterday, and while Caroline was out at the park with Teasel this morning I fitted it to the back door.

We managed to persuade Teasel in and out of it a few times if we held it open and used treats, but I'm not sure she has really got the hang of it yet.

New Year at Ashton Court

I took Teasel for another walk in Ashton Court. It was icy again and Teasel wore her coat. She investigated the ice on the frozen dew pond (see photo - I couldn't persuade her to bring the golf ball back).

Later on in the walk she ran through a hollow log and emerged from the other end looking pleased with herself.