Pupdate 23rd June 2017 – Archie’s first trip to a Beach
Archie has now been with us for 3 weeks and even though he doesn’t really like water, living in Devon with beaches all around us we thought it was about time we took him to the beach. As he has only had his 1st set of vaccinations we had to be very careful where we took him so had to pick somewhere quiet, and chose to go to Mount Batten in Plymouth, where it is more of a little foreshore than an actual beach We didn’t go until 4.30 p.m but it was almost deserted which was ideal. Archie wasn’t phased at all and surprisingly was not bothered by the waves which was most surprising and it wasn’t long before a wave lapped over his feet and even more surprising that he didn’t rush off and lick his paws dry. He also quite liked the smell of the seaweed and then had a great time digging in the small shingle. We stayed for quite a while and Archie also went rock climbing and certainly seemed to enjoy his first taste of sea air, which was definitely a result.
However I do not think that Archie will be quite the sea dog that this dog was. A man arrived on the beach with a small inflatable canoe and his dog. He let the dog go into the water a few times then put a life jacket on him, the man got in to the canoe and then his dog promptly jumped on in the front and they paddled out to sea – amazing!!!
After the beach Archie had his first visit to the pub that was just down the road. It had lots of outside seating so Steve and I enjoyed a cool drink in the early evening sunshine whilst Archie was very well behaved (a miracle).
It was then back to the car and the journey home, and the sea air must have tired him out as we didn’t hear a peep out of him until we got home. He also slept well, so this was one of many trips to the seaside.
Pupdate 26th June 2017
Archie is 12 weeks old today and to celebrate he had to go to the vet for his final vaccinations – hurray. As all dog owners will know it is very hard to socialise a puppy in these first few weeks when you are limited being able to take them anywhere until they are fully vaccinated. Carrying them around is okay if they are small, but if they are quite large, and wriggly (like Archie) it is a bit difficult. He has visited quite a few different people’s houses, and played with a couple of other friend’s and neighbour’s dog in our back garden, a lovely moorland walk at Burrator Reservoir and of course a beach and a pub but there is so much for him to explore.
We even had to go to B & Q yesterday and I walked him around the large car park and held him whilst we watched the traffic go by on the busy road outside, so he did hear buses, motorbikes, lots of cars and pedal cycles and he didn’t take much notice of any, which was good. However even after the final set of vaccinations today, we still have to wait another 7 days before he can go and see the wide World properly.
Pupdate 28th June 2017
It’s official, Archie does not like the rain. It was heavy drizzle today and trying to get Archie out of the back door to go to the toilet has been almost impossible. I am out in the garden in an anorak getting soaked, trying to coax him out, whilst he just stands in “his room” which is now almost complete, looking at me thinking “silly woman why is she out in the wet!”. He would not budge so I had to go and pick up and carry him out into the garden, but he would not “go” on the wet grass so just squatted down and did a wee on the path, and then ran straight back indoors. This continued throughout the day and I even resorted to taking an umbrella out to hold over him to see if that would help!! I know this sounds crazy, but he has to go out, as I do not want little puddles over the floors!! What on earth am I going to do with him, apart from moving to a warm dry Country!!
Yes, Archie’s room and our boot room is now almost complete apart from a few finishing touches and he seems to like it. Please note however, this is a general room and not where Archie stays all of the time. He has the run of the house, but he does eat out there, and maybe when he is older will sleep out there. The main reason for the room is to store all our wellies and walking boots, cupboards to keep all Archie’s “doggy stuff” and a space to clean him and us off when we come back from muddy and wet walks so all the mess can be isolated to one room so as to keep the rest of the house clean – well that is the plan!!
Pupdate 29th June 2017
Another wet morning and the same thing again today – Archie does not like getting his feet wet. We actually got him into the garden to play with his toys, but as soon as he fetched one he ran back inside with it and this happened until all his outside toys had been brought back in the dry, one by one whilst we stood out in the rain!!!
Crate Pupdate 1st July 2017
Archie’s crate is left in the kitchen during the day so if he wants to go in it he can, but was being taken up at night and slowly moved out of our bedroom to hopefully in the not too distant future to downstairs in the kitchen. However over a week ago when Archie was let out to do his “business” before bedtime, he walked into his crate which was still in the kitchen, we closed the door, went upstairs and there he stayed without a murmur. He obviously thought he was now a “big boy” and didn’t need to come upstairs to bed anymore, and he has been sleeping quite happily during the night ever since.
Talking of “big boys” his crate is now too small and he is now sleeping in a bigger one. The small 24″ one lasted 3 weeks and he has now outgrown it. I have read that a crate used for sleeping should be just big enough for a pup to stand up in and be able to turn around and that is all, as if it is too large a puppy will use the surplus area for using as a toilet. It certainly worked as we had no pees or poohs in the crate overnight. However I could be keeping the crate suppliers in business, as I will probably need a bigger one again in a few weeks time!!!
We are however still having some issues of him being left on his own during the day, which is quite mind boggling as he stays on his own all night without worrying, so perhaps he isn’t quite as big and brave as he would like to think he is just yet!!!
You can read all Archies adventures here Clumberdoodle Puppy Archie
Why are you letting that big man make Archie dig holes in the beach? I liked the photo of the big man with his posterior towards the sea…how I wished for a big wave…..
Thank you for your comments Mike, Archie really does like the beach and he also has a large posterior.
Regards
Karen