So Freya’s teenager years have begun. I did hope that all the effort I put in to her puppy training would mean that this would pass me by unnoticed. However, like most cockapoo owners, my puppy has a huge and highly demanding personality, so this was never going to happen. Apparently dogs begin their adolescence
Now a puppy’s season was a subject I definitely knew nothing about and so I’ve been fairly explicit in this blog for any other puppy novices out there who have no idea what to expect from their female charges. However, please don’t continue if you’re squeamish because what follows is the full, illustrated account of
I was walking with Freya in Delamere Forest recently – she was doing her usual nonsense of getting crazily over excited when she saw other dogs coming towards her – when I spotted a beautiful, calm, relaxed golden cockapoo coming towards us. “How old?” I asked. The couple walking the beautiful Freddie smiled knowingly as they
Both Hilary and Ruth stressed the importance of early and continued puppy training, especially with a cockapoo. As a complete novice, I had no idea where to begin, but they said puppy training socialisation during the first 20 weeks was crucial. I needed to expose Freya to as many experiences as possible. It’s what’s known
Feeding a fussy cockapoo – Another consideration was what do we eventually feed our cockapoo puppy as they were renowned to be fussy eaters? Not an immediate concern we thought; Freya had come with her own pack of food and the repeated message that whatever happened in her first 20 weeks it would not be
As a first-time puppy owner, I had no idea that there was a limit placed on how long the first puppy walk should be. To me it made sense that a puppy would walk until it became too tired and then you picked them up and carried them. But oh no! Freya’s first ‘big’ walk
As a first time puppy owner, I had no idea that crating a puppy was controversial. For me it made complete sense; it meant that while Freya was small and vulnerable, she was secure, safe, and snug and – crucially – I would be in full control when it came to leaving her on her
My instincts were right, we had a sick puppy on our hands. Once home Freya’s snuffles developed into a hollow cough and she was refusing food and, more worryingly, water. I contacted Alison immediately by email sending her a video of Freya so she could see exactly what the issue was. She responded within 10
The day had finally arrived to pick up our puppy – all was ready. It was a 45 minute drive to Nantwich and when we arrived we had been given a code to enter the grounds. We were greeted by a very friendly man manoeuvring a sit on lawnmower who, having established we’d not been
The day was nearly upon us and in my enthusiasm I had already spent a small fortune – not just for the actual puppy, which Mark joked was the most expensive mongrel he’d ever come across – but also on the paraphernalia I’d convinced myself she would need. We’d rounded off our holiday by staying