Topic: Meet Billy

[SMP1704]

After nearly 2 years of hints and discussion, OH finally agreed that boys need a dog and Billy joined our family.  He has been with us for 3 weeks now and is almost 13 weeks.  Toilet training is going well, just paper down at night but still the occasional accident on the coir mat at the front door.  I am the only one in the family with previous dog owning experience, so I am having to train them as well (proving much more challenging!)  Everyone is madly in love with him and son Peter is his devoted slave/protector/friend

Can anyone recommend a good training book as I am feeling a bit rusty and in the past I never managed to get the dogs to walk to heel :-[

Had a scare today.  OH phoned me at work to say he had lost Billy - he had been distracted by the car alarm, left the front door and gate open and took 15 mins once inside to realise that Billy wasn't about.  Did all the usual reporting and street walking looking for him to no avail.  Left the front door open, went into the kitchen and when he returned found Billy sitting on the rug :D :D

I had forgotten about boy Lab's tendancy to go walkabout.  My last dog, Oscar, did that to me a few times and I would spend hours looking for him, returning home with an empty lead and in floods of tears to find him sitting in his basket looking at me as if to say "What took you so long"

Second jabs on Friday, so he can go for little walks.

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[betula]

So cute.

The Dog Listener by Jan Fennell.

[Gardengirl]

Billy looks adorable.  So cute and cuddley at that age. We had a similar hairy moment with one of our dogs a few years back now.  She went walkabout when we were over our local fields. We spent hours looking for her only to return home and when we looked out of our back door there she was sitting in our garden waiting to be let in.  She must have vaulted over all the garden fences from the field to get back into our garden ;D
Are you going to take Billy to puppy socialisation classes?

[debster]

oh he is so cute  ;D

[kenkew]

A boy's best pal. Bet they both have some great fun together. Had dogs all my life, had a scare with my 10 year old B.Collie last week. Back leg, joint prob. Vet visit has helped but we have to careful.
 Wish you all many years of good times together.

[grawrc]

I used to have a book that went by the imaginative title of "training your perfect puppy" ... or something like that. Lent it to someone and never got it back. I liked it because it started "A dog is greed with a nose". So true!!!

I would take him to obedience classes - you both learn together. Maybe your little boy Peter could learn to be a dog handler at the classes if he's interested enough? Helps with the bonding thing too.

[asbean]

I love the inside-out ear - ah, bless  :) :) :) :) :)

[katynewbie]

 ;D

What a great lookin pup. My vote goes for taking him to puppy school, teaches the basics, but most importantly teaches socialisation. Gets him used to other dogs and people so that when you take him out, he is not phased.