A dog's eye view of lockdown

Hello.  I'm called Blossom.  I'm not sure if you've noticed, but there's something going on around here.

For some reason, the humans are staying in the den and not going out on patrol.

My soft place in the den.  They call it my "BED"

 In normal times, they get up in the morning and we go on our first patrol then its time for breakfast.
After that they go on patrol to other places.  Daddy goes on "HOSPITAL" patrol and Mummy and the small ones go to "SCHOOL" patrol.  They call it "WORK".  I am on guard duty at the den.  Fay comes at lunchtime and takes me on fun patrol with all my dog friends.  Later everybody comes home and we have a lovely evening together with the pack, though sometimes they go out to another patrol which they call "SCOUTS". 

This is my Mummy.  I love her.

 For the last ten days though, Mummy has only left the Den twice, and not at all in the last week!  I don't know what's going on but I really love it!  Daddy is taking me on patrol in the morning, and then he's out at Hospital Patrol all day, but Mummy and the Small Ones stay in the den with me!  A couple of times the Small Ones have taken me for a quick patrol to the field but I don't understand.  I want to run and bounce with the other dogs but they keep me on the "LEAD".  At least I'm out and about a bit though so I can keep an eye on everything.

This is my "sun place".  I sit here to keep an eye out for any cats or squirrels who come near my den.  Also it's lovely in the sun.  I sometimes fall asleep a bit.

 So what has this meant for me?  A LOT of cuddles!  I get to have a cuddle with Mummy whenever I want to!  I bring her my toy or I nudge her with my nose or my paw.  This is my way of signalling to mummy that she is spending too much time on the "COMPUTER" (she thinks she is still on patrol, but hasn't worked out that she's still in the den).  After that, she invites me onto her lap and I nudge her until she's stroking or tickling just the right bit.

This is my favourite toy at the moment.  I usually destroy toys but this one is proving quite tough.

me looking thoughtful.  I'm actually distracted by a cloud.  Nobody needs to know that though.

Malvern Hills - what a view!

I cannot believe I've lived in Herefordshire for five and a half years, call myself a walker, and yet have never walked in the Malverns!  Not to worry, this oversight has now been corrected.  The plan had been to get up early and get up there to watch the sunrise from the top.  Unfortunately, we had a late night so decided to have a relaxed get up and then go.  It would have been better to go early because the car-park was packed when we eventually arrived!

 We parked opposite the Malvern Hills Hotel.  It's £4.40 for all day parking but you don't mind that when you know the money is going towards upkeep of the paths.

It's a short but steep walk from there up to Herefordshire Beacon (sometimes also called British Camp) where you can enjoy 360 degree views of Herefordshire and Worcestershire, and on a crisp morning like last Sunday it was absolutely gorgeous.

From there we walked around the west side of Hangman's Hill, through the Silurian Pass and along the east side of Swinyard Hill before the steep ascent up the south side.  Here we stopped for lunch.

 In theory we would walk down the north side of Swinyard, back to Silurian Pass, past the cave and then around the east side of Herefordshire Beacon.  However, as we descended Swinyard, Little Miss Busy realised that she had lost her camera somewhere on the route.  With much ranting (me - this is the second camera in a year), we emptied out the bags (dropping and leaving the dog lead in the process) and retraced our steps.  Eventually we made it back to the bottom of the Beacon, where I was so busy trying to drag a penitent child along, that I accidentally misplaced the dog!  More steps retraced until we found her and celebrated with joyous cuddles.

Unbelievably, as we eventually returned to the car-park, a lady approached with a broad smile and Little Miss' camera in her hand - she had recognised Blossom from the many photos on the camera.

Despite our mishaps and the general busy-ness of the Malverns, this was a genuinely fabulous walk and I can't wait to walk more of the Malverns.  This little range of hills that separate The Shire from the rest of the world are a treasure that I'm sorry to have overlooked thus far.  Only 35 minutes drive away from home, with the world laid out at your feet.

On Blossom

Today I'm going to write in praise of Blossom.

Our Tara, a somewhat grumpy Collie Cross rescue dog, was an enormous part of our family from 2008 until 2017.  She was so special that we didn't think that we could ever love another dog the way we loved Tara.  

After 6 months without a dog we were also talking about how being a dog owner can restrict you a bit on holidays.  We go away in the camper van and that meant that things like shopping trips or trips to the cinema, theme parks or museums are often out of the question because you can't leave the dog in the vehicle on a hot day.  We thought we would leave getting another dog for a while.  

Three months further on, we realised that we had a dog-shaped hole in our family, and that we needed to fill it.  We could live with the restrictions and make it work.  I started searching for the new family member.

There were a few criteria: 

1. It needed to be camper-van sized.  Tara had been quite a large dog.  When all five of us were in the camper van on our holidays it began to get a little crowded.  Once the bed was down in the van, there wasn't all that much space for her (she was too wet/muddy/sandy to be allowed on the bed).  As she got older it was increasingly noticeable that when she got out of the van in the morning she was a bit creaky and needed a good long time to stretch.  Our new dog had to be a smaller breed to fit with the camper van lifestyle.
2. It needed to be active.  We are an active, outdoorsy family.  We need a dog that can cope with a long day walking cliff-paths, roaming in the woods or climbing a mountain.  A lap dog would not be suitable.
3. We wanted to choose another rescue dog.  We knew that we had made a wonderful new life for Tara.  On searching, however, I was confronted with the fact that many rescue dogs come with the tag, "not suitable for a family with young children".  Because of their uncertain backgrounds, many dogs can have attachment issues, or are nervous or uncertain or have unknown temperaments.  Tara had been one of these but a lot of hard work and training had paid off, and while she was still grumpy with other dogs and with men with deep voices, she was fine and affectionate with everybody else.  I had a full year of pretty intensive work with her before the children came along.  I wouldn't have the luxury of all that time to work with a rescue dog this time.  We realised that we were going to need to get a puppy.  We could then be certain of its background and would be able to train it from the beginning to fit in with our family.
4. Timing - I'm a teacher so am lucky enough to get six weeks off in the Summer.  It would be ideal to get the dog towards the beginning of the holiday so that we would have several weeks to work with it before going back to school and passing pup on to a dog-walker on the days when I was at work.

I set about searching the Internet.  We researched different breeds and decided that we would like a Cocker or Springer Spaniel or similar.  I learnt what questions to ask breeders and how to check whether they seemed reputable.  At about the right time so that the puppy would be ready to collect in the holiday, I started looking.  I used www.pets4homes.co.uk.  The first breeder I contacted didn't answer any of the questions I asked in my e-mail.  The second breeder had already answered them all in their advert!  They were not "breeders" in that they didn't breed for their living.  They were a family with dogs, and they tended to allow their female dogs to have two litters before they spayed them.  This meant that while they were experienced with dealing with puppies, they weren't doing it all the time.  These puppies were gorgeous, and clearly had a lot of handling as their daughter and her friends played with them every day after school.  We went to visit and Isobel and I instantly fell in love with the female of the litter.  We said that we wanted her right away, and named her Blossom.

In the year and a half since then, Blossom has made herself very much one of the family.  She is good-natured, extremely soppy and demanding of love, very sociable and energetic.  She's also absolutely beautiful and knows it.  Everybody who meets Blossom loves her.  Her little bottom almost wags itself right off when she is pleased to see you.  On the weekend she is sent to "wake mummy up" and I hear her feet as she scampers at top speed up the stairs and launches herself on top of me and proceeds to lick me until I am well and truly awake.  She is responsive to training, patient and usually well behaved, though she does still have a tendency to steal any shoes that have been left lying around.  She is very tolerant of Isobel's demands and commands.  I'm so glad we've got Blossom.  It wouldn't be possible not to love such a loving little creature but she has wiggled her way very firmly into our hearts.

Family mini-adventure - The Gower

Today we took a family mini-adventure to Rhossili, on the South-western tip of the Gower peninsula in South Wales.  This peninsula sticks out below Swansea and Rhossili Bay faces west towards the Pembrokeshire coast.  To the South across the Bristol Channel is Ilfracombe in North Devon, though that was lost in the haze today.

We started with a sausage bap from The Causeway cafe.  The staff were great and it's dog friendly too so Blossom was well catered for. 

Once we'd filled our stomachs we headed down the path to the beach.  It's a long expanse.  I think when the tide is in it's mostly covered, but we had a good two or three hours before high-tide so we strolled along, picking up shells and playing with the dog in the fresh air.  We were curious about a timber ship skeleton not far from where we got onto the beach - I've now discovered it's the Helvetia, and was wrecked all the way back in 1887!

  

We didn't go all the way to the end of the beach, though we'd gone a good distance, and headed up and into the dunes near Hillend caravan park.  We played in the dunes, sliding and climbing (and eating chocolate) as we headed back South along the coast path.

Back at the car-park we made use of our Tiffin set and sat for a picnic of hot chilli, warm home-made chapatis and flasks of hot coffee and hot chocolate.  Mmmm.  

We're resolved to stop being so busy and to take many more mini-adventures of this sort this year.

Ten Top Tips for settling your puppy into the family

Getting a puppy can be one of the most exciting things you do as a family, especially a family with young children.

It's important to remember though that you are introducing a new member to the family, and the health, safety, behaviour and happiness of this animal will be entirely your responsibility for, in all likelihood, at least a decade.  

We introduced Blossom (a Working Cocker Spaniel) to our family at the beginning of August, when she was ten weeks old.  These tips are from our experience.

 

1. Your puppy needs a period of quiet before they will settle in.  While your family and friends will be desperate to meet your bundle of cuteness, hold off on the visitors for a while to give your puppy a chance to get to know his new family and home.
2. The first few months are bonkers.  This bundle of fur doesn't know right from wrong, doesn't have any idea of what things are okay to chew and what are not, and is desperate for your attention.  Also, until the vaccines are complete they aren't allowed out for a walk, so pup has a lot of pent up energy!  Expect racing around, picking up EVERYTHING and giving it a chew, bouncing, jumping, bundling, biting and just being mad.  It's not personal, but it is exhausting.  I felt as though I had a toddler in the house again, you just can't turn your back for a second!  Be prepared for this.
3. With all this chaos and madness it's important to introduce boundaries and stick to them.  Remember that puppy won't be a puppy for ever, and while a bouncy puppy may be entertaining, a grown dog that jumps up at everybody it meets will frighten people or knock somebody over.  Think how you would like your adult dog to behave, and begin to train your puppy with that in mind.  The best way to start is to only respond to puppy and give her fuss when all four paws are on the ground, to make a loud noise and move away if those teeth come out, to teach 'sit' early on etc. etc.  We also use a crate to keep Blossom contained when we are not able to keep an eye on her.  It's a large enough crate that she has plenty of space, and we make it comfortable and give rewards, toys and treats to her when she's in it so its only ever a positive space, but it helps with house training, gives her a safe space for calming down when she's over-excited and contains her when required.  Our pup is now 5.5 months old, and she is crated when home alone, overnight, when we are eating or when she's over-excited.  We're planning to gradually reduce the time that the crate door is shut, and then eventually lose it altogether.
4. Invest in puppy walker or doggy daycare.  If you have to be at work all day you can't expect puppy to keep her legs crossed.  Pups just don't have that sort of bladder control.  Also, as sociable animals they crave company.  As they get older, some breeds can cope with solitude better than others but many breeds would begin to develop destructive or obsessive habits out of boredom and stress.  We've been lucky to have a friend around during the day who we've paid to take Blossom for a walk and play with her at lunchtime on the days I work.  On a couple of occasions in the last week she's been left alone all day so we know she can handle it, but we also know that she'll be much happier with a walker or some company, so now that my friend has a new job, we'll be looking for other options for Blossom.
5. I've discovered that its as much about training the children as it is about training the dog.  I'm spending a lot of time explaining to Miss Busy that we have to be consistent with Blossom.  If Miss Busy allows her to bite her feet when playing, allows her to jump up "because its cute" and gets her very excited, then it undoes all the work that the rest of us are doing to stop her doing those things.  Mr Build-it needs teaching to use a firm voice and clear instructions.
6. Puppy proofing - some people go a little mad with the puppy-proofing just as they do with toddler-proofing.  I go with the middle-ground.  I figure I don't want to spend the next 12 years keeping all shoes and socks above waist height, so we've left those where they are, and are slowly teaching the dog to either leave them alone, or to bring them to us rather than take them to her bed for a chew.  On the other hand she was getting a bit tiresome with her raids on the sitting-room bin, so that's now out of her reach, and I know that I need to move a basket of wool out of the dining-room if she is ever to be allowed out of her crate unsupervised!
7. Listen to your puppy - Your puppy will soon learn to communicate with you in different ways.  It might be that they get a bit 'mouthy' when they are over-tired and need to be put in their bed and left alone.  Maybe they come and nudge your hand when they need a bit of attention.  If they normally go to bed at night no problem, but tonight they wake you with their whining, it might be worth going to check on them. (I've just had this very experience, and poor Blossom was trying to tell me she had a bit of diarrhoea and could I please put all her bedding in the wash and let her outside in case there was any more.)
8. Once your dog has got past the first week or two and knows who you all are and where her home is and has had those first vaccinations, it's time to socialise your dog and to expose them to lots of everything.  The experiences your puppy has in the first months of his life will be what they build their understanding of the world on.  So use the hoover, take the dog on car trips, to the beach, to a river, into snow, near crying babies, men in hi-vis jackets, post-men and women, bikes, push-chairs, wheelchairs, scooters, motor-bikes, ambulances with sirens blaring, people with beards, people with no-hair, people of different skin colours, loud music, shops, town centres, the vets, children being crazy and running about, farm animals, birds, cats, lots of other dogs.  Basically give your puppy as wide an experience as you possibly can.  When exposing them to something new, don't keep checking back on them to see if they are okay - that makes them think you're scared and are looking to them for guidance, and they will feel uncertain.  Instead, be calm, confident and purposeful.  Just stand normally or keep walking as if nothing out of the ordinary.  If pup is clearly scared kneel with her and put your hand on her chest, but avoid looking at her or making reassuring noises - show her that you are in charge and you aren't worried.  Whatever it is that she's nervous of, go back to it several times over the next weeks.  For example Blossom showed signs of uncertainty with bicycles, motorbikes, pushchairs etc.  Since then, whenever we've come across some, I've asked the owner if its okay for Blossom to come and have a look and a sniff.  She's checked them out, she's found that they are no threat, and now she's fine with them.
9. Get a good vet, and pet insurance.  We already had a good vet from our last dog.  We think they are fab.  A good vet will give you advice when you need it, tell you if you're doing something wrong, and be there when you need it.  They'll ensure that your puppy is well looked after with vaccinations; flea, tick and worm treatment; advice on neutering; feeding; training and much more.  Pet insurance just makes sense.  If your dog becomes unwell with something serious, or has an accident, things can get very expensive very quickly.  You don't want to be in the position where you can't meet your dog's needs because you can't afford it - better to be covered.
10. Enjoy your puppy and spend lots of time with them.  Everybody says the same thing about babies and puppies.  Enjoy them while they are young because it doesn't last long.  The reason they keep saying it is because its true.  So take those photos, enjoy those cuddles, and above all spend lots of time playing with your puppy.  The time you spend building your relationship, training and playing games with your puppy now will provide your whole family with wonderful memories (and photos) to cherish, but they will also sow the seeds of a long and happy relationship with your dog into the future.

Seasonal Beach Activities

The beach is most definitely not just for Summer

It doesn't matter whether or not you live near to a beach.  The UK is a small island, so you're never more than a few hours from your nearest bit of sea, definitely achievable for a family weekend away at any time of year.  As the seasons change, you're drawn to the beach for different reasons, and different activities really come into their own.  Here are a few suggestions of different fun family activities to enjoy on the beach at different times of year:

Winter
A day on the beach in wild weather will provide a greater appreciation of our rugged coastline, but winter days can be sunny and bright too.
For winter you need to wrap up warm, take a flask of hot chocolate, a blanket or rug and some spare warm, dry clothes.  Here are a few ideas:

• sand dune hide and seek - use those beautiful, steep-sided dunes as a place for a fast game of hide-and-seek.  Take care though, marram grass can be sharp, and too much dune erosion can be detrimental to natural coastal defences.
• Shadow Tag - late afternoon on a sunny winter day and you'll find your shadows stretching away in the distance.  Play shadow tag, where you have to jump on the other person's shadow rather than catching them!
• Sand Angels - yep, just like snow angels.  Lie down in the sand and waggle arms and legs and then get up and admire your angel.
• Take the dog - many UK beaches have restrictions on dogs during the Summer months, but these are lifted through the winter, so take your dog and let him feel the salt wind in his nostrils and the spray in his fur as he runs and tumbles like the surf.
• Wave Chicken - as the surf sucks back down the beach see how close you dare chase it... before the next wave comes racing towards you.  You might need those spare clothes!  (on some beaches advancing winter waves can have a dangerous undertow which can pull you under if the wave does catch you, so this is best left to older and stronger swimmers, and definitely not for stormy weather).

And if the weather really does come in, there's always the opportunity to visit the arcade on the pier to waste half an hour and a handful of 2p pieces, followed by hot salty chips in the beach shelter before the drive home.

Spring and Autumn (Fall)

Weather alternates between wintery storms and beautiful golden sunlight, so brave it and head to the beach.  Again, warm clothing is required, preferably with some spares.  Activities should keep you moving, to stay warm.  Here are some ideas:

• Play all those brilliant beach games that there isn't always space for when the beach is crowded in the summer - volleyball, cricket and football.
• Fly a Kite - pick a breezy day, wait until the tide is out (more beach) and fly your kite.
• Fossil hunting - Some cliffs around our coastline are particularly good for fossil hunting, as the rock they are made of was laid down at a particularly good geological fossil forming age.  Dorset and East Devon are excellent, as is the area around Whitby and Robin Hood's Bay in North Yorkshire.  Coastal erosion during the winter storms will have revealed and broken up a whole load of fresh rocks that won't have been picked over by many hunters yet.
• Surfing and Kayaking - You get nice big waves without the winter storms or cold, and without the summer bathers, so you can safely go out to play in the waves on your board or kayak.  Always make sure that you know what you are doing or get an instructor to go with you.
• Beach combing - as with fossil hunting, winter storms will have provided an array of new material for the beach comber.  Look for sea-glass, driftwood and anything else of interest.  The west coast of the UK is better for beachcombing because of the prevailing wind direction.
• Sand-writing - Get emerging writers to have fun forming letters and numbers in the sand.  Can they write your name?  Can they read the message you've written them?  Can they write you a message back?
• Bonfires - In most cases, as long as you aren't causing a nuisance to anybody, and are below the high water line (so the tide needs to be out) and you clean up afterwards, its okay to light a small fire on the beaches of the UK.  There are exceptions, I believe the National Trust has a no-fires policy on its beaches.  It is vital to follow the guidelines above though, pick a more secluded beach, and keep things sensible and take your litter home afterwards.  Sitting around a fire cooking sausages and toasting marshmallows on sticks, with the sun setting and a blanket around your back... what could be better?

Summer

The summer is a great time to be at the beach.  The onshore breeze and the sparkling sea cool you down on a roasting day.  You can laze contentedly while the children just play in the sand... bliss.  Don't forget the hats and the sun-cream.

• Build sandcastles - hold a competition.  Don't just build castles, build sand cities, sand football stadia...
• Driftwood sculptures and beach art.  While many people head straight for the pristine sand of the upper beach, this is a great reason to head for the tide-line where there's plenty of seaweed, driftwood, shells and other material to work with.  Make a frame with driftwood twigs and then use other items to make a picture within.
• Sand Sculptures - Make a car, make a boat, make animal sculptures, sand men (think snowmen).  What can you think of - can you make an image of it in sand?  Mermaids are one of my favourite, complete with scaly tail, sea shell bra, and seaweed hair.
• Dig a hole - how deep can you go?
• Down by the water dig channels in the sand, pour buckets of water along the channels and then dam them.
• Rock pooling - take a bucket and net, turn over rocks in the pools and see what you can find.  By all means examine your finds, but make sure that you put them back in the same pool that they came from.

Lets face it, any of these activities can be done at any time of year, but some seasons lend themselves more to some activities than others.  Whatever time of year it is, do get out there and enjoy the beach.

What activities do you love doing on the beach?

Happiness is...

A brief lesson from the waggy-tailed-one:

Happiness is... playing with the children

Happiness is... my ball

happiness is... lying on the sofa

happiness is... a cuddle

happiness is... running in the woods

happiness is... the beach

I would love to also have added that happiness is... swimming, but I didn't take my camera on our walk this morning when the daft mutt decided to go swimming in the new pond at the nature park.  Happiness is... also food.

Let's face it, dogs just know about the good things in life don't they!

I challenge you to write your own blog post, and link it to this one (and from this one using the comments) about what happiness is, using your pet to illustrate.

Taking care of your four legged friend - while two legged whirlwinds rule your life

With approximately 8 million pet dogs in the UK (source - Pet Food Manufacturers Association pet statistics 2011), there's a fair chance that quite a few of them belong to families with young children.  Dogs need time and attention, and so do children - how do we balance out these two needs?

We got our dog from an RSPCA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) rescue centre about a year before we had our children.  When we first went to the rescue centre we were honest about the fact that we had never owned a dog before, and that we were planning to start a family in the following couple of years.  That way they were able to match us to a dog that matched our needs.  We also told them that we wanted a dog who would like a lot of outdoor exercise.  This particular dog is definitely a good match!

I spent that first year doing a lot of training.  She's a clever dog, and I think somebody had made some attempt to train her before (she was a year and a half old, and had been in the rescue centre building up weight and regrowing her hair for six months before we took her), because she was a genuine delight to train - very responsive.  I aimed for at least three five-minute lessons with her every day, training her to come on command, sit, pay attention, lie down, wait and so on.  She got very protective of me when I was pregnant, so we then had to work on ensuring that she could ignore other dogs too.

Then the children came along - first one and then the other.  Our Waggy-tailed-one was as good as gold.  As the children have got older she has been very tolerant of their boisterousness, but for her welfare and sanity as well as theirs, there have to be a few ground rules:

1. she must go to her bed whenever instructed
2. they aren't supposed to go in her bed - it's her space where she can relax without being bothered.  Of course, they do go in her bed to give her a cuddle, but not often, and they respect that it's her place.
3. if she growls, they must stop whatever they are doing to annoy her, and she must go to her bed
4. they mustn't climb on her or pull her in any way - only gentle strokes, cuddles and patting
5. she isn't allowed to jump up on anybody
6. she isn't fed from the table and isn't allowed to come and clear up from the table until everybody has got down (this is to stop her from begging, and to stop them from feeding her tidbits at table)
7. even if there are leftovers, they go into her bowl - she isn't allowed to lick the plates (this is to stop her from raiding plates that have carelessly been left on the floor or within reach)
8. she's not to go through gates or doors or up and down stairs until she's been told "okay", so that she doesn't barge wobbly toddlers and knock them flying.

As they've got older they've started to give commands.  At this point she gets a bit confused about her position in the pack.  To stop any aggression before it starts, we make sure that they feed her, teach them commands, and let them hold the lead when its safe, so that she quickly understands that they come above her in the pack.

Walking the dog can sometimes be a challenge.  Usually Hubby will get up early in the morning and take her before work.  The children love to come for a walk with her, but rain, wind, snow or ice mean that isn't always fun!  What I tend to do is take her for a jog in the evening, but about three times a week, when either Hubby or I are out Scouting in the evening, then the dog can't have an evening walk, so we go during the afternoon.  Sometimes these walks are just that - a walk - but I try to make them a bit more fun, so C might come on his bike, or we might walk to the playpark, or go and play in the woods.  Sometimes C gets to decide where we're going, and the walk might include time to build pixie houses, climb trees or paddle in the stream - whatever it takes to ensure that walking the dog doesn't become a chore, but remains fun.

So far, so good.  Now that we've got past the busiest time with the children, we are going to get started on training again - a bit of "Back to basics" but also some dog agility or similar.  She's a Collie Cross, so needs plenty of brain stimulation as well as exercise.  We're also thinking about getting a cat!

Creation...

A sad cake story, a stained glass window, and a table runner and napkins...

A sad cake story
I was very proud of my Christmas cake.  Little C helped me make it by eating all the fruit as I stirred it in, and I only stopped him helping once I had added the 6 eggs to the mixture - I thought six raw eggs might be pushing it a bit. 

Anyway, last Friday I iced it and I think it looked beautiful.  It was only as I put on the icing that I remembered that last year, while it tasted very nice, I had thought it a little dry and planned to try a new recipe this year.  Nevermind, too late now.  Big C and I had a slice each in our comfy hour.  It was good.