PUPPY LOVE

What is it about puppies I wonder that turns people to mush? Little did I realise, when my husband announced that he was going to get a dog of his own, that I was about to find out. ............................................ We've had lots of dogs over the years, from Welsh Collie's to Jack Russell's: Our current dog, Fred, is a slightly ageing and very precious Jack Russell (well he's supposed to be a Jack Russell but he was a rescue dog so we do have our doubts) Our daughter's four terriers also live on site as do our son's two, a Ridgeback and a terrier cross, so any new arrival had to be able to fit in. .......................................... We wanted to try and get another rescue dog; it's just so rewarding to feel as if you've given a needy creature a chance in life and dogs in particular are so accepting; they just take what life throws at them and love unquestioningly. All the ones we could find however turned out to be unsuitable with children or chickens or other dogs and in our situation, with visitors, children, chickens, other dogs and horses around all the time, that's definitely a no go. You take on a dog for twelve years plus so the last thing we wanted were problems from the start. ........................................... That was when we decided to go down the puppy route and thought that a chocolate Labrador might be perfect for us; friendly, sweet natured, good with kids and easy to train, that's what we'd heard. What we hadn't realised was that they sell like hot cakes and you have to buy them almost as soon as they're born. ........................................... We duly found a litter of five week old puppies at a breeders not so far away and set off, with our very excited ten year old granddaughter, to choose one -which was a mistake we realised as she chose the tiniest girl in the litter. Three weeks later we picked up Little Lucky and enrolled on one traumatic week. .......................................... We've just built a new house and didn't really want it to smell of poop so I was determined to be rigorous. For the first few nights I got up every time she made a sound, to take her outside; by the fourth day I was shattered and she'd managed to poop everywhere anyway. Why is it that you walk around with them on the grass and then come back inside only to turn your back for one second to find that they've pooped on the carpet? And why is it I wonder that, although she is my husband's dog, it seems to be me who does all the cleaning up? When asked he said that she could be my puppy but his dog! ........................................... One week on and we've made some progress. She's sleeping all night and we seem to be doing better with the toilet training. She has lots of visitors of course; everyone who comes to the Riding centre wants to see her and we've even taken her with us to the pub. Fred, our old Jack Russell seems to think that we've bought her just for him; he's got a whole new lease of life, playing and running around like an idiot... Oh no, hang on a minute, what's that on the rug. Here we go with the disinfectant again! ........................................... So exactly what is it about puppies then I wonder, that turns everyone to mush? I think I now know the answer to that question. It's their cuteness, their neediness, their innocence and their appetite for life, like children I guess. ............................................ And that I think is exactly it. Having a puppy is like having a baby, to hold and to cuddle and to love. And believe me all the hassle is worth it for the love you get back. They need you that's the thing, and doesn't everyone need to be needed. ............................................ And it is love after all, remember, that makes the world go round.