Weds 2nd May: A dog is not a ‘thing’

Following up on Sunday’s puppy adoption afternoon, I was happy to hear from the potential adopters of puppy Harriet asking for more information about size, and a photo.  I’d taken one at Whiskers’n'Paws but it wasn’t  great  (there were no photography volunteers that day), so I had to try and get one that would really show how sweet and pretty she is.  Taking a photo of any dog at my house is hard, as every time I point my phone in the direction of a particular subject there is a crowd of other faces, tails and bums in every shot.  So it was poor fluke that Harriet, always happy to be the centre of attention, used Murphy as a footstool and posed perfectly just as I pressed the button.

Apart from her appealing looks, I have to say that Harriet and her sister, Heidi, are two of the easiest puppies I can remember looking after.  They are so quiet and well-behaved (including toilet trained), that even youngster Cumin can beat them up.  I’m guessing they’ll look like our Tai Po girl Crimson when they grow up (they have the same coat and colouring) and she is also a very sweet-natured dog.  Of course I’m hoping that Harriet will be adopted by the family who have already met her, but I can highly recommend either sister to any family looking for a puppy.

I’ve talked many times about the huge variation in character and behaviour in dogs, and it’s fascinating for me to see how puppies develop in their own individual ways.  Of course I wish I never had to witness it as ideally every puppy would be adopted as a baby, but that’s never going to happen.  Many regulars at Sunday’s puppy afternoons will also have seen the same faces week after week, and seen how they’ve changed.  Diamond is one of them, and she has gone from a ball of thick fluff into a fluff-less six-month old, already desexed and with all her documents ready to go.  Despite what appears to be dominant and even thuggish behaviour on Sundays, she’s actually a very sweet and easy puppy at home.

It’s unfortunate that the puppies are judged purely on what they show during those three hours, while I can see that it’s only excitement and stress that makes them act out of character.  Some that are outgoing and happy at home become shy and immobile, like Clover, a perfect example.  Every Sunday she just lies down and doesn’t move, but on Lamma she’s the leader of her gang and extremely playful.

It’s the same with funny-faced Terence who acts quite pathetically when he’s supposed to be selling himself, but he’s really quite confident when he’s not being scrutinised.

Some puppies really show themselves so badly in a strange environment that it’s a waste of time even taking them.  Dobby is one of them, and it’s such a shame.  He’s a fantastic doglet, so affectionate and full of fun, but whenever I took him to the Sunday gatherings he would start bullying others.  It was out of character and not at all how he is, but just how he responded to being in a strange place with lots of other dogs.

Safari was another one who was banned (by me) from joining on Sundays.  Actually he’s a lovely dog, and in a one-dog home you couldn’t find a more placid and easy companion, and the fact that he snores like a  train and grunts like a pig just makes him more endearing as far as I’m concerned (the photo shows him as a young puppy).  He is incredibly patient and would be perfect with young children and their rough play.

The fact that my current favourite, Griffin, hasn’t really had any interest at all when he is the loveliest, sweetest, smartest boy (and from the same family as Dobby but without any faults) just amazes (and saddens) me .  Obviously others can’t see what I know about him, but that’s just the way it goes.  Luck, chance, fate, destiny, whatever you want to call it, plays a huge part in a dog’s life.

I was happy to hear from Iris that new boy Connor has already started to relax, a big change from his scared start.   He was so confused he really didn’t know what to do with himself, but now he has a big smile on his face and it’s only taken a couple of days.

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