My little girl is a whole year old! Somehow, when I wasn't looking, she turned from this little bundle of snuggliness: ....into this elegant young dog: She is my very first lab, and my first dog for quite some time. It took me a long time to decide that we could at last fit another dog into our lives and, more to the point, I'd be able to cope with doing everything for her (which is, inevitably, what has happened : ) So, was the first year anything like I expected? In fact, why a lab in the first place? Well basically it was where my husband's and my dog-tastes converged. Longer term followers of my posts may recall some of the stories relating to his late Irish Setter (!). He tends to favour big, affectionate, impressive dogs (I'm currently fighting off requests for a Newfoundland after we saw some doing a water rescue demo at a show on Monday!). I'm more of a small, brainy dog person - I adore terriers after having a particularly excellent Jack Russell as a teenager, and having done obedience stuff in the past always hankered after a Border Collie, or maybe a Tervuren or a Sheltie. But I kind of fancied doing gundog stuff and admired the shiny sleek black labs. So after much discussion, Lab was where we ended up! We looked at breeders, and decided to try to find a working strain lab if possible, so I could start dog-training again. We finally found Merla after losing out on a number of litters we'd put our names down for. Her breeders were a long way away from us, but the health scores were good, parents and breeder seemed to check out, all looked good, and we completely fell in love with her. So exciting collecting her, but tinged with sadness and anxiety as my mother-in-law had passed away shortly before the collection date, we'd taken on her two elderly cats and there just seemed to be a lot of things to sort out. But throughout all that, Merla was our happy thought. Her overwhelming joy of life, her happiness each time she looked at us, her calmness as she slept, all made things easier to cope with. What I've learnt: [li]Soft travelling crates won't keep a determined pup contained[/li] [li]Time spent on early bonding reaps massive rewards[/li] [li]It would have been better to teach her to pee on the gravel in the first place[/li] [li]The way to a Lab's heart is through its stomach[/li] [li]Using food for training is not a cop-out[/li] [li]When you're fed up of your dog being less well-behaved than any other dog you ever meet- hang on in there. Keep doing the right thing. Slowly but surely it gets easier[/li] [li]Clicker training is fun![/li] [li]There's nothing quite like the feeling when a dog retrieves an object successfully to hand[/li] [li]Dog people are great[/li] [li]This forum is my best training resource[/li] I don't think I was expecting Merla to turn out how she did- my labrador thoughts pre-dog largely featured sleeping and maybe collecting slippers! They didn't encompass a tiny, energetic fireball. But these days the fireball does sleep a lot more, she's normally calm in the house and only really turns on the energy when she's out for a walk. I need to learn a lot, lot more about gundog training, as she loves it and it gives her a sense of purpose and keeps her mind busy (very important). I can't believe I actually don't mind getting up at 6am on a work day to do an early walk. Who could fail to love all that wagging greeting you each day? It's our time - each day, each walk is a new experience. So maybe I didn't get the dog I was expecting, but I think I got the dog I really wanted and needed. Merla, love you so much. Here's hoping for many more happy times
Re: Happy Birthday- One Year Old! Happy birthday Merla; lovely photos you've come a long way in a year. Alice
Re: Happy Birthday- One Year Old! What a really really lovely post, Kath [size=24pt]HaPpY BiRtHdAy MERLA!![/size]
Re: Happy Birthday- One Year Old! What a lovely read,she's a beautiful,clever,very well loved dog,Happy Birthday Merla x
Re: Happy Birthday- One Year Old! Happy birthday Merla from Holly and me. I think your words resonate with many Lab owners. They are just wonderful dogs!
Re: Happy Birthday- One Year Old! Happy days, and hopefully a whole lot more to come! Happy birthday!
Re: Happy Birthday- One Year Old! What a beautiful girl happy birthday Merla, I loved reading about how you decided on a lab and what it's meant to you....had a tear in my eye x
Re: Happy Birthday- One Year Old! Congratulations on your baby's first birthday! Did she have cake? She is beautiful and I loved your story, it made me cry!
Re: Happy Birthday- One Year Old! Very happy birthday Merla , what a lovely post and beautiful photos too
Re: Happy Birthday- One Year Old! Ah, such a lovely post! She's beautiful, and reading it choked me up a little!! Hoping my Ruby (12 weeks) turns into such a lovely young dog too ;D Happy Birthday Merla!
Re: Happy Birthday- One Year Old! What a lovely story. Thanks for sharing it with us. Happy Birthday Merla!
Re: Happy Birthday- One Year Old! Ah that was lovely to read. Happy birthday Merla. Oops sorry, just realised it was yesterday, just seen this post, so hope you had a very special day Merla. You're a beautiful girl.
