Here is Summer with a peg she has grabbed, sitting on the stairs enjoying the sunshine.
Its been half term this week so lots of help for me with Summer but the boys have also realised how restricting a puppy can be and what a commitment she is. We can't go to Alton Towers and leave her for the day. We did take her to the National Stone Centre and Tittesworth though. Our visitors thought she was lovely. We had to make sure we told them the house rules like not letting her jump up or pull on the lead. We have bought a Kong to keep her entertained at mealtimes to stop her barking and an extension for the lead so it is longer. Its very hard to find a lead longer than 1 metre. Its amazing how much you can spend on a dog - just like having a baby! She has been up to mischief as usual - one day she got up on the front garden wall to look at the view! She also got on a wall next to the horse in the field and put her front feet on Blaze's back. When I told her to get off she fell in the muddy field. Its a good job Blaze is used to dogs. She loves chewing cardboard so there is now shredded bits of it everywhere. I've been cleaning the outside of the kitchen cupboards and Summer has been licking them dry! We visited Stilesmeadow today and saw Sam. He thought she was looking well and gave us some helpful advice on feeding her.

Life is settling into a routine now. The boys are helping more and enjoy playing with Summer. She is still enjoying running off with things - half a loaf of bread and a banana have been grabbed from the kitchen worktop! We have got her some cuddly toys from the charity shop which she likes chewing. Sadly she has also chewed an electric plug off and a telephone wire. Some days she is terrible on the lead but eventually settles down and walks nicely to heel. Its better to just walk very short distances well than longer walks pulling hard even though its tempting to take her to the shop. Summer is growing fast and looking more like she is crossed with a collie. Everyone comments on her big paws still. She loves to chase a washing detergent ball round the kitchen and chew any bit of wood she can find. My rubber gloves are also popular so have to be well out of the way. The classes are going well and Elaine the trainer is brilliant at suggesting how to overcome any problems like persistent barking. She says we need to get a longer lead as we are both tall. Will be interesting to see how it goes with our visitors at half term.

Week 4 - its been a week of ups and downs. We went to the puppy class on Saturday which was excellent. Something everyone should do. There was time for Summer to socialise with the other puppies as well as teaching on specific tasks like walking on the lead, sit and stay and plenty of time to ask questions. I wish I had found out about them sooner as we missed a few sessions. So now we know to keep going when on walks and not to let her sniff everything so we remain in charge. Had an awful day on Tuesday when she seemed to spend the whole day doing the opposite of what I wanted - like running off when called, persistently jumping up at visitors or weeing on the mat etc. Its been better since though. Makes me realise I need to get out sometimes instead of concentrating solely on her as she is quite happy to be left to sleep. Summer has taken to barking at people who walk past the garden so need to stop that before it becomes a habit. Will get some advice on that. She has finally got a tag for her collar with our name and address and mobile number (better if you are out for the day or on holiday). It’s a legal requirement for her to have one - we don’t want a £2000 fine. Also read another book on puppy training which had a completely different approach. I think its good to read a lot before getting a puppy and decide what you think suits you best. Of course, puppies don’t always follow what the book says!

Week 3 - at 14 weeks old now Summer is growing fast. She weighs 11kg which is on the big side for her age! Everyone who meets her says she will be big as she has big paws. I found a website called www.labradorforums.co.uk where you can look at questions other people have asked and ask your own which might be useful. As you can see from the picture Summer thinks the horse next door is her new playmate. She wasn't so happy to meet cows though. I've been more relaxed this week and less frustrated. It takes time to get used to the new way of life. No more lie ins at the weekend or days out for a while. I now have to put the washing on a chair when pegging it out otherwise she runs off with the pegs. Also she loves to lick anything in the dishwasher which Ryan age 8 couldn't see a problem with until I pointed out she would lick the clean things too. The book we have been reading said to use a house line if she keeps running off with things so thought I would use some old washing line as suggested. Summer chewed through it in about a minute so haven't pursued that idea yet. She hates going out in the rain to do a wee and usually sits firmly on the doorstep while I am getting wet in the garden. Still, she is doing well on the housetraining and often lasts all night. I just need to take her out regularly during the day. We have finally found some puppy training classes which we can start on Saturday. The trainer came to see us yesterday so we could catch up on what we have missed. Lots of useful tips which are much better done in person than from a book. She also helped with the car phobia by using a harness so I was able to take Summer out for a short ride today.

First day
we collected Mia from Stilesmeadow this afternoon. A friend came too so Mia could sit on her lap in the car. She was very well behaved and was quite happy travelling. We have made a gate to go across part of the kitchen so this will be her safe place. Her bed is ready with its yellow blanket, the floor is covered in newspaper. We've got the food and water bowls and the food she likes.

We think we are ready after avidly reading 'The Perfect Puppy' for several months now amongst many other books. The boys come home from school and make friends with her. I must make sure to supervise them so they don't teach her any bad habits without realising. We have already discussed things like where she can go in the house and where we will take her outside for housetraining (and what word we will use for it). She demolishes her first meal in about two minutes ( so no need to take away any leftovers). We need to take her out every hour and after food, play, sleep etc - seems like we could be permanently outside! She settles down to sleep easily so that's a relief, probably because she had to get used to doing that in the kennels.

The First Week
- so much to learn. The book is well thumbed but there are lots of things it doesn't tell you. Like how puppies like to shred the newspaper she is meant to wee on and how when they drink from the bowl they dribble most of it out again across the floor so you think they have had another accident! We are keen to reward her when she wees outside but she always has a wander round then comes back in and wees. It takes several days to finally get a wee outside so we make a big fuss of her. The dried food she eats makes good treats so that's easy. Any accidents get cleaned up with hot water and biological washing liquid as that is meant to deter her from going there again - disinfectant actually encourages them to use the same place.

We need to decide on a name for her as she is becoming known as 'the dog'. We put lots of names in a hat and have a family vote. After lots of discussion we eventually choose the name Summer. She has already learnt how to sit when asked and comes back fairly reliably. 'Fetch' is a popular game. We introduce her to the chickens - she promptly eats the chicken poo! The rabbit seems to like her too. We know we need to make sure she is well socialised as time is running out for the optimum time of up to 12 weeks. She is getting used to tractors going past the gate, the postman and other delivery men have said 'hello', and the local dogs have been approached and thankfully its all gone well.

The second week
- I'm finding it hard planning my life around a puppy. You think you are prepared but it's just like having a baby again. You are constantly thinking about when she needs to go outside or when she might be tired so you can clean the house etc. It's still fun though! She knocked over Francis's beer and quickly started drinking it - he wasn't impressed. If she sees a plant label she runs off with it and chews it, and will eat anything including snails, dirt, grass and stones. I've been on the internet finding out which plants might be poisonous to dogs and found a huge list - oh help! Now we've got no labels left I hopeI can remember the names. Not that there would be much chance of stopping her eating anything at the moment - that's something we need to work on in training. She has got used to the lead with a few difficulties - she bites it and attacks it like it's a snake so you have to ignore her till she stops and you can praise her. She needs to learn not to pull while we are strong enough to stop her. Thought we would take her on a short car ride but she hated it and was sick afterwards. Summer now thinks the boot of the car is terrifying so we will have to start again very slowly. I sat in it with her for a few minutes and we try to make it longer each day and go from there. The boys only help look after her when asked - it's a good job we didn't get her as their pet. She loves to jump up at them so while that's OK now it won't be when she gets bigger so we need to stop it now. Must try to find some puppy training classes as I 've not been successful so far.

Introduction to Summer's life



Little Summer found herself in Stilesmeadow Dog Sanctuary in Bosley Cheshire at the young age of 9 weeks - it was probably the luckiest day of her life because from there she was sure to find a good home and begin a long and happy life. It was very important that a home was found for her as soon as possible as the first three months of a puppy's life are the most important in terms of socialisation and development of temperament - not that she was short of cuddles and company at Stiles, the volunteers scrambled to give her attention and affection. But still, nothing can beat a puppy growing up in a stable family environment where she can feel safe and learn to cope with all that life throws at her - protecting her family from postmen and paperboys (who keep coming back every day despite being told repeatedly to clear off and not come back), the family cat who is good fun to pounce on from behind the sofa, the beds to sleep on when mum and dad have gone out (they'll never know - the muddy paw prints could have been anyone) and a warm lap to curl up on after a hard day.

When we talk to friends of Stiles who have adopted puppies and young dogs they always tell us the same things - about the housetraining, the mischievousness, and the dreaded puppy teens! Summer was adopted in summer 2006 and her new owner has kindly volunteered to keep a puppy diary so that subsequent new puppy owners can read of her experiences, picking up tips and reassurance that they are not the only ones with those problems!