And The Odd Relative

Breeze is starting to make lots of friends, so it's time to meet a relative or two. We head South to my parents for a couple of days so that they can meet her, as well as my Sister Alison and her Husband Chris and of course her Cousin - Gwen. Meeting people is no problem - if you are outside or on hard floors (excitement does get the better of her bladder!), but meeting dogs is still a bit frightening it seems



OK, sniffing noses over it's time to play

" Come on Gwen "



"Is this what I'm supposed to do?"

Just one more sign of encouragement and Gwen started to play. Too quick for the camera, her idea of play is charging a full speed, whilst growling pretty loud. Apparently it's a Welsh Terrier trait.

Breeze thinks it bloody scary!

More Friends to Visit

We have been invited for supper to friends in Loweswater - an invitation that arrived before Breeze, and then it seemed like a good idea to take her along too. Now that the day has arrived, we are wondering what she will make of Harry and Bethan, Roger and Ann's two Golden Retrievers. They are lovely friendly dogs, but not quite so gentle as Oscar - and a lot younger too.
Luckily it was a lovely evening so we could have drinks in the garden while the meeting took place. Breeze was a bit scared at first - but it was OK, cause Daddy was there to hide behind

And Harry was willing to share his toys with his new friend


"If I look this way, maybe they won't see me"

Bethan is more interested in what I have in my pocket and Harry sits quietly while Breeze gradually gets a bit more confident.

I have a feeling the next time they meet they will wish she was still this small and nervous!
Thanks to Ann for a lovely supper and supplying the photos as well!

Breeze's School Master

Breeze needs to meet a few more dogs, she's a little nervous of anyone boisterous, so what she needs is a nice gentle school master. Vicki has just the chap; Oscar. An elderly lab who is as kind as you could wish. It seems whenever we pop over with Breeze, Vicki's sister Tracey turns up too. I think she must have puppy radar on her truck!
Exploring Vicki's garden is always the first priority

But then the coffee appeared. Aunty Tracey thinks Breeze would like to taste her coffee

Breeze thinks she would like to drink it all (spot the tongue!)


Then it's time to creep up on Oscar - perhaps he won't notice


Hello Oscar, remember me?
I'm feeling a bit braver now, fancy a game?
Oscar heads to Jeff for a bit of fuss while Vicki and her Mum watch on
Breeze is determined to have a game
And Oscar is determined to have a bit more fuss

Breeze at 12 weeks

What a little superstar. Breeze has been clean at night all this week. I'm sure we will have a relapse, but a whole week from 11 weeks of age seems like pretty good progress to us. She's very good during the day with house training too. Odd accidents are normally a result of us having our attention on other things and missing the signs.
We have now started lead training.......
She keeps finding new interests in the garden. Bouncing onto shrubs to try and catch bumble bees is the latest trick.
Sometimes she is angelic


She is fascinated by the telly. Watching Wallander, she was a bit scared by some ferocious barking, but it was OK, I was lying on the floor, so she sat on my shoulder and watched from a safe distance instead of her normal position just in front of the screen.

New Experiences

Yesterday Breeze had a trip into keswick (in a shopping bag as her legs are a bit short for shopping just yet). This morning her New Experience of The Day was an introduction to the River Petteril in the next village. Not her first paddle - that was in the garden pond, but her first moving water paddle.

As if that wasn't enough, Marmite called in to play this afternoon

They have briefly met before, but that was 3 weeks ago and Breeze can't quite remember. Marmite is very enthusiastic and after a bit of coaxing, Breeze finally plucked up courage to let her get close. Maybe next time she'll feel brave enough to play back

Cute and Cuddly

I know we are biased but there is no denying it, Breeze really is cute

She's cuddly too

but the price you have to pay for trying to train your dog not to jump on the furniture, is to stop using it yourself too - if you want to take advantage of the cuddles (spot the Emma eye following the camera)

Signs of Summer

June was the wettest here for as long as locals can remember, with over 200 mm of rain falling - much of it in the last week or so. But never the less, summer is officially here. We finished clipping sheep today, so it must be.

Show season has started too. Skelton show is due this Saturday. The biggest village show in the UK, and our local. Sadly there will be no Skelton show this year, rain has stopped play. The final decision was taken last night to cancel. A very sad decision for all concerned as an awful lot of work has gone into the preparations.

Simon and Sally are heading up this way - Sal was going to Steward with me while the Boys had a reminisce about the tractors they used to use in their practical farming days in the vintage mahinery section! Never mind. I'm sure we'll find something to entertain us all.

Breeze at 11 Weeks

As her confidence grows, so does the chaos she causes. This week has been a learning curve for our young lady. Time to learn who is in charge around here! With a little intensive training, she has gone from a biting maniac, getting over excited at every opportunity, into a little darling. I am sure we have not seen the end of Little Miss Hyper Puppy, or felt the last of those teeth - especially as teething hasn't even started yet - but we have seen a transformation over the last couple of days. Her box is still proving invaluable, and if you want her to settle down, all you have to do is put the wheat bag in the microwave, and she's in the box quicker than you can say ping. That look in her eyes is her 'Emma Look', a sideways glance just like my God-daughter Emma.
Instead of chewing us, she spends lots of time chewing her pigs ears

Taking photos gets harder and harder. Everytime she hears the camera switch on, she runs towards it
Little poser!