Day 40

I'm making some initial enquiries into possibly doing some gundog training with little Pickle. I've got no intention of getting to a point where we go shooting (staunch vegetarian household!) but I think the discipline and variation could be very good for him.

He's already showing me just how very clever he can be and just how well he can get into mischief if left to his own devices! Retrieving is also proving to be a good game, although at the moment he's displaying his drives as rearranging everything. He'll fetch shoes from the shoebox and place them all over the house - he's not bothering to chew them, just moving them to new places...

I spoke to a lovely friend who already does gundog training with her lab and she gave me some very helpful advice and suggestions, plus I've been Googling like a mad woman this morning.

I don't think we're going to be able to start on anything properly until next Spring which is perfect timing as it means that Bran will be that much older and I can have already put a good obedience foundation in place by then.

Of course, this may all come to nothing but it's interesting to read about at the moment.

Day 39

Ooh I've been a bit slack about keeping this updated!

Ok. So what's happened since I last posted?

Last Saturday we took Bran to a car boot sale. I had 2 main concerns - that he would jump up at everybody for attention and that he would jump excitedly on every dog he met. He did me proud :o) Lots of people wanted to say hello to him but each time he stood with his 4 feet on the floor and wagged whilst he was was petted, then turned away to trot off with me. Except for one little boy. This particular little boy was utterly smitten and sat in the middle of the busiest aisle to say hello properly. Bran was thrilled and climbed on to his lap to give him great big poopie snogs! There were lots of dogs there too - all very small dogs. Again, despite my concerns, Bran was a star. He was interested in each dog but only ever went up to touch noses and wagged at them. Unfortunately, almost every dog he tried to greet growled or snapped at him :o( The only dog that I allowed him to bounce with was a poodle who bounced over to us, dragging it's owner behind, with it's tail wagging, it's eyes wide, ears up and grinning. They bounced together for just a few seconds before the poodle snapped at Bran and then pinned him! To make him feel better, I introduced him to ice-cream. I think they are going to be very good friends!

On Saturday evening we had another first, Bran stayed out of his crate while we were eating. Bless him, he just slept at the end of the sofa. When Sophie sat right next to him with her food he didn't pay attention other than to harrumph at losing a little more space! I find it hard to believe that he's a *real* lab sometimes ;o)

On Sunday, I took The Comparison Pic of Flora and Bran sharing the same bed they shared just after he arrived. Don't they look comfy now??? Hahahaha! Bran stayed for about 2 seconds - just long enough for me to take the photo - then legged it because he was too uncomfortable!

Yesterday evening, Bran went to the vets as he's been limping on his front leg for about a week. I put it down to playing too hard with Flora for a little while but a week was long enough. The vet was patronising towards me and was expecting far too much of Bran (he wanted him to walk in a neat, straight line through the waiting room which was full of people, cats and dogs!) but conceded that he did appear to be limping slightly but on the leg opposite to the one that I suspected was causing the problem. He examined the left leg first (the one that I was concerned about) and found almost immediately that Bran was sore around his elbow and that the bones were clicking when manipulated. He also checked the right leg and found no problem. He then told me that he thought Bran was small for his age!!! When I mentioned that most people thought that he was quite big he told me that he might well have a growth spurt in the next month or so! He then weighed Bran and found that he now weighs 15kgs: so he's put on 9kgs in the 5 weeks that he's been with us. Not bad for a small dog ;o) Anyway, current treatment is that Bran has a week of metacam and a week of rest. I'm not entirely sure how that's going to work, but if he's ok by the end of the week then it'll be left at that. If he's no better or worse then he'll be going in for x-rays as it may be the dreaded elbow dysplasia :o( Fingers crossed for improvement!!

I nearly forgot! On the way to the vets I had another Proud Mummy moment. We walked Bran through the park so that he could go offlead for a little while and we met a lady with a black lab and a golden retriever. The black lab bounced over to say hello and Sophie was amazed that "he even dropped his tennis ball" to greet Bran as the labs she knows treasure their tennis balls too much to drop them at some strange dog's feet ;o) Bran then raced back with the lab to greet his mum and doggy friend, whilst Sophie and I walked on slowly. Eventually, I stopped and called him and the little angel left the 2 bouncy dogs and lady-who-had-treats without a second's hesitation. The lady was amazed and asked who old he was. She was astounded that he had such strong recall at just 19 weeks. I was very proud. Especially when her 2 dogs took off to the other side of the park and totally ignored her attempts to get them back!!

I feel blessed every day to have Bran in our lives, but I feel extra proud of him when other people comment on his fantastic behaviour. He's such a good boy xx

Day 35 - A Sad Day

Today we heard the tragic news that Bran's surrogate chocolate mum, Dolly Doodle, had passed away :o(

Dolly had had a huge mass in her chest and went in for an operation to have it removed on Tuesday. The mass was removed and Dolly appeared to make an amazing recovery. She went home to her family - Wendy, Wiggle and Sir H - yesterday lunchtime and seemed to be quiet but ok. She passed away at 6.30 this morning.

Wendy and the boys came to spend some time with us today and it was just so very strange and sad to not have the chocolate princess trotting around behind her beloved mum :o(

Run free at the Bridge, Dolly Doodle. We will miss you always :o(

Day 31

And still he grows.................

This morning has mostly been spent digging up the gravel pit, destroying the lawn, delivering clods of earth to the hall floor and wrestling very loudly!

Thankfully, he is now having a rest and snoring!!

Day 26

After saying that I'd update Bran's measurements once a week, I've not done it since. Doh!


So here are his measurements after a 2 week break and on the day he turns 18 weeks:


Neck: 13 1/2"

Back: 21"

Shoulder: 14"

Weight: 13kgs


Bran's very mean Auntie Wendy has given him the new nickname of Biffer!


He has no puppy fur left anywhere now - even the last little bit on his ears has morphed into grown up dog fur :o( The time has gone so quickly...

Day 24

Bran's been enjoying going out for his daily walks and it is certainly tiring him out! He's done brilliantly at meeting lots of new dogs and people and is still totally unfazed by it all.

I've recently adjusted his food levels and he's started growing quickly again. Just to illustrate, I took this photo this morning..........

He's not much smaller than Flora any more!!

Day 21

Today was a very, very special day for Bran.

Firstly, his very special Auntie Loobie (who brought him to us nearly 3 weeks ago) came to spend the day with him again for the first time since bringing him over, together with her son Liam.

Secondly, he got to go out on his first ever real and proper walk. He took it all completely in his stride (excuse the pun!) and wasn't phased by the people or dogs he met. He strutted around the park as if it was nothing special at all.

Ok. So it was a walk in the park. So I'll leave you with lots of photos instead of babbling on....