Rocky the Otterhound: Sleep, Comfort and Friends

There appears to be nothing as tiring as growing, and this activity seems to result in world class sleeping!



Rocky has engaged in this particular passtime to great excess this week; but he appears to be set on having the most comfort possible while doing so.

If alone (such as night time or when we are away from the house) he will sleep in his bed with aplomb; if however we are home, he will compromise and grudgingly (?!!) use our furniture. Bless!!

Next to sleep - comfort is now a high priority.




Rocky can and will amuse himself with his toys and will often indulge in the "mad fit" around the room, all by himself.


If however, he chooses to indulge in a quiet game, such as chewing a favourite article until it submits and either goes soggy or falls into pieces, he seems to want as much comfort as possible while doing this.

Rocky does seem intent on becoming a couch potatoe, and no amount of discussion will persuade him otherwise.

We have had a few wet days recently and I have been amazed how reticent he has been about going out for a walk! I have never known a dog not get excited about going out for a walk ...................... until now!!! But we all know that walkies is good for us (and our dogs) so walkies we must go. He'll thank me one day ............... maybe?!



The ongoing saga of Rocky and the cat seems to have reached a conclusion of sorts. The cat lives upstairs and Rocky downstairs. The cat may walk through Rocky's rooms but this is not recipricol. Rocky has settled to this, but does still tend to get a little confused when the cat saunters past him and walks up the stairs - leaving him to ponder what on earth is going on .......


When Rocky does manage to get close to her he gives her a jolly good wash, or invites her to play with a resounding bark .................. both of which get rewarded with a phenominal amount of hissing.

Snooty cats don't know what they are missing out on though as apart from the fun of playing with Rocky, it is also he that gets the company -because he is downstairs where we are! I am interested to see how long she is going to keep this up for?

But our lad does have other friends, one of which came over to play with him during the week.




Molly is a very sweet and pretty Spaniel who is 7 months old.



The two got on like a house on fire and played .................. and played ..................... and played. They then went for a walk together and as soon as they got home .................. they played.



It was left to the grown ups to decide when to call a halt to the proceedings, otherwise I think they would still be playing.......... Rocky did seem to be running out of steam, but I think Molly would have kept going till Christmas.




All in all Rocky has had a good week, he has had lots of sleeping (growing) time, he is now almost 16Kg. He has had a good deal of comfort, his ration of walks and a bundle of playtime; what more could a growing Otterhound want? Oh yes. food ................... he has had his ration of that as well!

On top of that, he has had loads of love and affection, all the cuddles he wants and even watched a few good telly programmes. Yes, Rocky does watch telly - but has not yet managed to pay attention enough to see a programme from start to finish.

So I must say that at this moment in time raising an Otterhound in your home is no different from raising any other dog. He has a sweet and gentle personality and like all dogs seems to adore his owners. He is already a joy to take for walks; the halti has made a tremendous difference and seems to have relieved Rocky from the hard choice of whether to eat or not eat whatever he comes across. This has led to a relaxed dog, and owner, when walking - which has improved all of our experiences of going for a walk. He has greeted, dogs with the same gentle "happy to see you" response as he has people (and children) whether in a crowd or all alone. He's a lovely chap!

So at this point in time I would heartily reccomend an Otterhound as a pet.

Rocky the Otterhound: Curiosity, Posing and Fun!!!

Rocky is being photgraphed quite frequently so that there is pictorial evidence of his life with us. This has led to him becoming very curious about the camera.................

This photo was taken first thing in the morning when I was trying to creep up on him................ I was hoping to get a sweet sleepy picture.................. failed again!!!! Note the lack of Bloodhound eyes (he'a had a good nights sleep! This is his "What you doing, what's that, can I eat it, will it play with me?" face.

He has come to recognise the sound of the camera focusing, so getting photos is becoming tricky.

He can be fooled though! I tried walking up to him with my hands in the position they are when I have a camera in them; yep he was just as curious.

Curiosity has now turned into posing though; a good excuse for a game ! Don't get me wrong, he is still be curious about all sorts of things, but as far as photographs go..... he poses with one eye on the (real or pretend camera), like a pro! The rules of this game are to see how many posings you can get him to do before he realises there is no camera. So far it's 15-0 to me!!!!!

This photo was taken after he had his halti (still working by the way) put on, and before his lead was attached............he was sat up looking wise and noble when I went to fetch the camera (honest!)................. as soon as he saw it though, he lay down and did the "see how long she makes me wait" pose!

Note how the eyes are firmly fixed on the camera? As soon as the shutter sound had finished he sat bolt upright again.................Blatent posing!!!!

Rocky being an Otterhound and showing this expert manipulation, leads me to suspect that my winning streak will not continue! It won't be long (I am sure), until he decides that posing is what I want him to do and then he will ignore both the camera and the posing opportunity.

This weeks blog though, is mainly about fun! As Rocky has matured (well a sort of), he has become more fun to play with. Like all dogs he has turned from a pup you play with into a pup that plays with you........ Great fun!

He does still entertain and play by himself. There is the good old plastic plant pot (now several sizes bigger than in previous photos)!

He has also progressed to the obligatory "Mad Fit for no apparent reason" . So far this has always happened when I haven't had the presence of mind to put the camera onto film mode.

Yeterday he picked up his plant pot and decided to race around the coffe table with it, at tremendous speed!! This game evolved into a relay race (with one participant)! Impossible? No, Rocky is great at it. He will charge round the coffee table, there will be a huge kerfuffle on the other side and he will charge back out with a completely different toy in his mouth............ all literally within seconds. This game will continue for some time with toys being swapped at great speed and an accompanying soundtarack of play growls, woofs, yips and high pitched squeeks from toys!! It is so entertaining I think it ought to be suggested for the 2012 Olympics............. We're bound not to get a medal (how unusual) but we would all at least have a jolly good belly laugh!

Then there is playing with us...................... this is where you realise you no longer need a telly?!The game starts with the "challenge a person to chase me" position................ within seconds.......... the game is on.......................


Chases round the living room............... ears flying in the wind (and the dogs), back legs trying to overtake the front ones and the biggest grin possible on your face (and the humans)...................

When you have finally exhausted your human..................You tig him...................

then you can chase him!!!

However, us bipeds tend not to have quite so much energy available to our legs (well us oldies at least)........................ so games sometimes turn to the more sedate kind.............. Such as the hand monster of sofa land..................

This game can involve as many or as few humans as you wish.

This game is more of a sport really, and a deadly one at that! The rules seem to be centred around how many and how well you can disable humans, by reducing them to giggling wrecks. Tactics used are.............. making as many strange and ridiculous noises as possible, while squirming around and making unco-ordinated paw attacks on the monster.

If humans appear to be winning, tactics change........... paws go into retirement and the puppy toothed "snap and suck" comes into play. This step up on rules involves trying to capture an opponents fingers in your mouth and seeing if you can suck them away from the rest of the hand. As origianlly suggested, .....deadly! If Rocky gets more than three fingers he stops, which I suppose means he has won? You however, are left with soggy, dripping fingers that require the urgent aid of soap and water.

Lastly, as Rocky has reached the grand old age of four months a comparison of size between 11 weeks and 4 months is offered.

I finish with a question.............. If this is just 4 months what size will he be at 18 months? Do not put answers on a postcard................. just keep logging on to see the answer!

Rocky the Otterhound: Life makes me want to sleep!

As I am writing this Rocky is fast asleep with eyes like a Bloodhound and head full of sights and sounds. He is nearly 4 months old, wieghs 13 and a bit kilogramms (sorry don't know what that is in English, apart from quite heavy!) and every day is an adventure. Todays first photograph is showing how his eyes look when he is oh so tired................. This really makes me laugh, I've had children who's eyes have shown how tired they are, but this is the first dog..... Bless!!

So what has he been up to this week?

Well there have been 3 impressive successes, two dissapointments and a truce between dog and frogs!

Let's start with the dissapointments; Biscuit the cat and Rocky have had four evenings in the same room, leading to hopes that they will sort out the pecking order and become friends. Rocky has been very good and gentle apart from one time when he rushed up shoving his nose on the seat just in front of her......... instinct took over and he was rewarded with a huge hiss and a double whack on his nose........... (no claws.......even when ruffled Biscuit doesn't do claws). This set Rocky down into a sit position with his ears down and a quiet woof. Thinking that the pecking order was now established we proceeded to congratulate Biscuit and ressuringly stroke Rocky. Well if we'd had any chickens we would obviously have counted them too early; as since then Biscuit has retired to the upper floor of the house again and we are back to square one!!!!! If anyone has an idea on how to stop a cat from sulking I would be most grateful?!

This photo is of Biscuits second favourite sulking place............ the washing basket!

Dissapointment number two is quite a biggy! On walks we happily spend ages stood around while Rocky sniffs a scent or sits down to take in the atmosphere; this can be quite a lengthy process but he seems to get such a lot out of it that we don't really mind it. What we do mind however, is when he snaffles up something revolting and proceeds to bring it up again (not always in an out of doors kind of way). It's not as if he doesn't get enough to eat!! Well, during the week he had obviously done this without us being aware (we do try and stop it happening for his sake as well as ours) and proceeded to be quite ill indeed. Unaware of what he may have got hold of a trip to the vet was initiated, and needless to say, Rocky was quickly on the road to recovery and my bank account was severely lightened! This did however lead to success number one.

No one, not even the vet, seemed able to offer any helpful advice on how to stop a pup from doing this unsavoury kind of thing. We had, however, bought a halti some time ago for use in lead training. It fits over a dogs snout and the lead clips on to the side of the head, it stops a dog from pulling in a very kind way, by resulting in the dogs head being turned to the side if it pulls; instead of the possible trauma of collars pressing on windpipes etc. Anyway, I hit upon the idea of trying it to see if it could be used to dissuade Rocky from eating things off the ground on walks. I am happy to report that it is marvelous for this and Rocky seems a lot calmer with its use. I do (and always will) let him smell his way around a walk (he is a hound dog after all) but a gentle tug on the lead at precisely the right time means his head pulls very slightly to the side, he bypasses anything remotely edible or unsavoury, and carries on quite happily. It does mean that you have to always watch for little signals that he is about to snaffle, but we were doing that anyway. Here's hoping it continues to be a success!

This is the state of Rocky after coming home from success number two...................... seems it took a lot out of him?!

This success was when Rocky became socialised with horses. On a walk in the country we came across a field with horses in, quite common in our part of the world. I saw a good opportunity to let Rocky meet some of the other animals he may well encounter throughout his life with us. We walked over to the gate and Rocky was quite curious, but when the horse came over for the handful of fresh grass I was holding, he shot behind me like the devil himself was after him! After two cuddles and being in my arms while I was stroking the horse (another feat of physical acrobatics......... my Kung Fu master would be so proud of me!) Rocky settled for sitting behind my legs while poking his head out between them. Whilst this was particularly uncomfortable, it was at least promising. Anyway, to cut a long story short, the third cuddle in my arms resulted in Rocky and the horse sniffing each other and obviously agreeing not to eat each other, as after that, he sat quite happily at the fence while the horse towered over him and indulged in some more grass.

The third and last success of the week has been Rocky's ability to show he does remember his house training lessons. I am not counting my chickens just yet (OK, if I had any I wouldn't) as I know he may make mistakes as yet, and so may we. But it does make for an easier life.

Rocky is growing well and looking so grown up and handsome some times, then he sits like a puppy and the image is shattered!! Anyway, todays exhaustion has resulted from sitting out the front of the house watching the world go by while I wash the car and my other half clears out the garage. What a lot of life he's seen, there have been cars, bikes and motorbikes going by; dogs going for walks and children coming up to say hello to him. He has been in his element; loves it! He had a soft mat to sit on, his chewey toys incase he got bored, and us around him at all times. He just sat there taking it all in and enjoying life.......but boy did it make him tired! Those eyes did thier thing and it was time to bring him in. Rocky walked briskly to his bed, fell in and after a brief peek out of one eye to check I was still around fell into a blissful sleep............... How I miss being a youngster, I used to be able to do that; oh well, such is life!!

Bet you thought I'd forgotten about the frogs? ................. Our patio appears to double up as the local meeting ground for frogs of all shapes and sizes, Rocky no longer appears surprised when on going out the back door there is a hoppy thing bouncing around. He moves towards it, has a quick sniff on his way past and just gets on with his life. I think he's done marvelously; but as I mentioned before frogs seem to be the most ungrateful of things and hop themselves almost into appaplexy after a quick sniff from our boy!!!! So, trying not to give the meeting ground a bad reputation, I still end up chaseing them, picking them up and putting them under cover somewhere. You'd think they would have passed the message on by now wouldn't you?!

Rocky the Otterhound: The Good, The Bad and the "Ohhh! is it time to go home already"

Lets start this weeks report with the good stuff, what's nice about owning an Otterhound pup?

Well, everywhere you go together people talk to you, mainly to enquire about what breed the pup is. Most want to fuss him and some want to take him home.

Rocky is generally very gentle and sedate, except when he has his mad fits of tearing around the floor and trying to look cool....but all puppies do that.

He learns some things very quickly, Rocky has taken to "sit" and "down" like a duck to water................maybe too well?!!!! After just two weeks of being walked on the lead he will sit at kerbs without being asked..............but honestly, we never asked him to sit down to eat his meals!!


He is cute, funny and very loving. You can always tell when he is tired as his eyes sag and he starts to look a little like a Bloodhound, thats when you leave him in peace which results in no puppy temper tantrums.


Rocky is also very cuddly, he loves people to bits and climbs on your lap for a cuddle whenever he can...................great at this age but it maight have to go onto the negative side when he is fully grown (?)!


He is growing into a very handsome dog...............


and he will leave you alone if you are busy; either by taking a nap or by entertaining himself with his toys, which can be a distraction as he's very funny. He will growl and talk to his toys and if he gets frustrated with a toy he can't pick up, will give it a right telling off!!

Rocky has a variety of faces which range from wise to happy, from tired to sorry and from goofy to serene. I think he has one of the most expressive faces of any dog I have owned. There is no need to try and guess how he is feeling!

So, let's see what we can inform you of as the drawbacks of owning an Otterhound pup. Well, if not watched carefully he will eat all manner of invertebrates, muck and unsavoury things....until he is sick!!!! But, Talking with other puppy owners I have found that they all do that!

He can be very stubborn at times, but then can't we all? He does not appear to have totally embraced his toilet training, but has done much better since he started going for walks. I don't think it is because he is emptying while out, more that he has more to think about now? He was quite difficult the week before he was allowed out for a walk; which may be because he is such an intelligent dog and the confines of house and garden alone were not enough to stimulate him (despite all the fun and games we generated for him).

When playing chase (a favourite with all dogs) he usually works out very quickly how to get to you in seconds rather than follow you round and round in circles. This does tend to remove the pleasure of the game for both of you and you are left trying to think of another game to play that he can't work out an easy way round. This in turn tends to challenge you rather than your puppy which may somewhat defeat the object of it all!!

Taking Rocky for walk can take a while, depending on where you go. For his weekend treat I take him out to the country where a 15 minute walk for him can take you an hour (he only physically walks for about 15 minutes or so).

He walks a little then does his hound thing.....he will sniff the air in all directions; often stop just to look around and generally take in the scents. Mostly standing still, but occasionally will want to follow a scent (that's when you have to out stubborn him). Although listed as a drawback I must mention that it isn't a drawback for me as I really enjoy our time out, but if you are someone in a hurry or have little time; then it would certainly be one.

Lastly, he still has not quite got the hang of his legs. He tends to look like a young teenage boy, with legs longer than his body. Rocky manages quite well apart from getting in and out of his bed, trying to jump or pounce on his toys and generally getting tangled up if he is concentrating on something else. This can lead to aching sides as you laugh yourself silly and is not to be reccomended. Apart from that he is great!!!

Finally, as I reported last week Rocky has taken well to the car and his own seat belt.............. so I thought you might like to see it. This photo was taken when Rocky had stubbornly sat away from the car as he didn't want to go home just yet, despite us being out for an hour!

Rocky the Otterhound: Otterhounds don't play fetch?

I was told by an Otterhound breeder that Otterhounds are not right for training classes because they are problem solvers, they do things thier own way which is generally quicker and takes less effort, but still gives the same result. It apparently doesn't take them but a few tries at something for them to work out an easier way of doing things, or if in fact it is worth doing at all! I was also told that they will certainly not play fetch as they are trackers not gundogs (made sense to me).



This week however, I have been playing with Rocky (as usual) but trying new things in order to stimulate him. He has a ball that when rolled around will despense puppy treats, this is kept strictly for when he is left alone in the house. I have slowly built the times up on this and he now goes 4 hours without a problem. However, it does take the wind out of your sails when you get the impression that your dog can't wait for you to get your coat on and go so that he can have the ball! Doesn't even want his goodbye pat and rub! Maybe it's just the mental stimulation he wants????



Anyway, back to the reason for todays title...............He has a favourite toy which he loves to carry around in his mouth, so, in play, I gently took it from him and threw it across the room, shouting "fetch". For my trouble I recieved a look of complete puzzlemenT! not to be out done, I then proceeded to crawl after the toy on my hands and knees making noises as if I was enjoying myself...........still that same look! I tried this two more times (yes, I was alone in the house with him). I was about to give up and retrieve it myself when he started (oh so slowly) towards his toy, he hovered over it for the briefest of times then pounced on it like a cat! He then ran back to me with it in his mouth, a huge grin on his chops and landed squarley in my lap?!

Fascinated I threw the toy several more times and was rewarded with the same result. He has done this now every time I throw one of his toys. I am wondering if he is just humouring me, but he does seem to enjoy it! I don't understand the stalking and pouncing bit though, unless he and Biskitt (our cat) are discussing tactics when I am asleep (very doubtful as they are still not best mates). Watching him reminds me of those nature programmes where the lioness creeps up on an impala, it does seem an unusual thing for a dog to do?!

On the back of this I thought that I may take him to puppy training classes soon (as long as he enjoys it) and do some more experimenting, he may have more surprises that will increase my knowledge of how Otterhounds behave at home?



Apart from eating and cuddles, one of Rocky's favourite things is sleeping, especially if I am doing other things that don't directly involve him. Yes, he is a couch potatoe, but when there is no one else in the room he is also a bed potatoe.................



In fact sometimes he is just a potatoe!!

He still does little squeeky puppy howls in his sleep, something I hope he doesn't losses as it amuses absolutely everyone










Rocky is growing into quite a handsome young dog and everyone we meet asks what breed he is.
He still hasn't got total control over his legs yet but remained the most gentle of play mates at his last puppy party! He came home with a certificate for passing the sessions (?!) and a new toy........he was happy.

He has had his first week of being allowed out on his lead and has behaved very well, he especially likes being driven up onto the plain and being taken for an explore of the area. We are out of the car for only 20-30 minutes, a lot of which is spent with him sat down and contemplating his new surroundings (Rocky appears big on sitting back and contemplating) but he seems to love it. A bonus from this has been that he will now happily tolerate 10-15 minutes of car journey (to and from a walk) and loves his own personal doggy seat belt, it allows him to sit close enough to the open window to get that special windswept look, without allowing his head to hang out of the car.

A spin off from this appears to be an increase in his curiosity, even the camera is worth an inspection. He has no trace of timidity and, as long as one of us are with him, will happily sniff, watch or taste almost anything in order to understand his new world.

However, today I took him to meet the first thing I have been unable to encourage and excite him about. Driving home we passed a field of cows and I thought AHA! A FIELD OF COWS (nothing gets past me)! An ideal opportunity for socialisation.

We were lucky enought to encounter one of the more curious of cows in the field, but I think Rocky was a little overawed by its size (I don't think it was the smell, although that was a bit ripe!). He usually quite happily climbs onto my lap but this brought on a full frontal hug with head over the shoulder looking the other way, etc. It is early days yet and he is still a little one, so I guess we will go back again another day and have another go with lots more enthusiasm and comfort.

Rocky the Otterhound: The Couch Potatoe Goes To Town

Rocky has now reached the grand old age of 3 months and his relationship with Biskitt has not progressed very much ........ Still confusing, still won't play and still glares daggers at him!

Rocky is only allowed into the living room when one of us is at home, then he is allowed on the sofas providing we are there with him. We lift him on and off and ensure he doesn't re-arrange the furniture with his teeth. This has led to him and Biskitt being in fairly close proximity at times.

This resulted in one evening when they NEARLY progressed with peace talks ...........

I was home, alone with the animals, and like a victorian love story things began to happen. Rocky was quiet and calm and Biskitt seemed to notice him for the first time. He crept quietly closer and she looked at him with curiosity, rather than her usual glare. Closer and closer they got until Biskitt reached out towards him ..... I held my breath and ............... my husband came home from the pub leading to an instant change in the atmosphere .......... and the blossoming romance ended abruptly leading to a renewal of the previous rules of the game!!! Oh well!

Having mentioned the fact of our pup getting onto the sofas, I should let you know about the dangers of such things. Namely the fact that he has eagerly become a couch potatoe in the evenings! I know that pups sleep a lot; but when I want to play, he wants to sleep ......... shouldn't it be the other way round?

Anyway, it has been an eventful week for Rocky. He attended his penultimate puppy party and was blown away to find 8 other puppies there! Being his usual thoughtful self he sat back until the various cliques had evolved and then chose to play with a little Staffy pup. His playmate was very cute but made me laugh so much ........................ if you have ever seen the film "Snatch" you'll know about the Staffy that squeeked every time it barked because it had swallowed a sqeeky toy, well this little fellow did exactly the same (without the benefit of swallowing anything)! He valiantly kept trying very hard to get close to Rocky in order to give him some puppy play bites, but Rocky (like his name sake) kept on whapping him (gently) with his paws (he had the longest reach of all the pups at the party due to his long legs, which he still hasn't quite learned how to handle!) The Staffy eventually gave up and the two of them went hopping and skipping along side by side for a little gamble about. I was very proud of Rocky as the other little cliques often deteriorated into open little brawls, with owners frantically picking up thier pups and telling them to behave ............... Rocky didn't need any of that, he was the most laid back and playful of them all and had picked his playmate well!

Rocky also had his first real trip into the big wide world this week, today in fact. Lead practice at home hadn't been going too well ...................... We were a little concerned that we wouldn't even reach the end of the drive!

So we hatched a cunning plan ....................... we have been building up the short trips in the car, which has been going well; so we drove 9 miles to our nearest Waitrose store, parked up and walked him across the car park to spend a while outside!

Brilliant plan, if I say so myself, he was so curious about everything and I don't think he even realised he was on a lead. He was marvelous with all the cars, pushbikes, children and crowds and had a lot of fussing by a lot of people. The only thing that seemed to upset him were the shopping trolleys (we all know how that feels). Anyway, some reassurance and an introduction to an empty pet trolley got over that one and by the end of it he wasn't even noticing them. He did a little walking, a lot of sniffing and got up close and personal with his favourite things .......... people. The bonus points were that he was so tired after all that new stimulation he fell asleep the moment he got back in the car and didn't even know he had been driven home.

As Rocky grows I hope to write my blog more often as he will need a little less stimulation and will be into more things. But that's it for this week.

Rocy the Otterhound: 16th Sep 2007

Rocky remains confused over the cat, Biskitt. She was brought up with a dog and they got on famously, however we have been without a dog for a few years so she worked hard and successfully at becoming queen of all she surveyed.


Then one day in walked this messy creature with no manners who although friendly enough, seemed to be staying instead of visiting.


Rocky has his own very comfy bed....but made the mistake, on his first night, of prefering something a little cosier..................the cat's bed!

Well anyone who knows cats knows how they can sulk! Biskitt has spent Rocky's first 2 weeks with us turning her nose up and glaring at him with an entirely put on supercillious air.

Rocky has remained confused and can't understand why whenever he goes up to her she glares daggers at him. Twice Rocky has been very brave and almost got his nose up to her, with a waggy tail and gentle (for Rocky......Biskitt didn't quite agree) paws, out to make friends. Biskitt rewarded this brave and selfless act with a huge hissing fit..........this in turn sent rocky shooting across the room and trying frantically to crawl onto my lap!!! Once on my lap he proceeded to hide his head under my arm in the firm belief that this most unfriendly of pack mates couldn't see him.

2 weeks after his arrival with us Rocky had his face (and of course his ears) in his bowl of water having a merry old drink, Biskitt, of a mind to make peace with this messy creature, crept up behind him to have a little sniff and make up. Rocky suddenly had the feeling he was being tailed and turned his head at great speed........the resulting shower of water from his ears covered most of the kitchen and ended up getting the cat full in the face!!!!! Needless to say Biskitt shot out of the room at supersonic speed (she doesn't do water) and has resumed her glaring sulk!!

A sort of peace has insued wher Rocky has agreed not to follow her and she has agreed to remain aloof. However progress has been made insofar as Biskitt will stay in the same room, as long as certain manners are adhered to........such as no eye contact with the queen and no creeping up from behind for a sniff and make up. This seems to be going well and I have hopes that an eventual peace treaty will be signed and Rocky can stop charging under my arms or legs when he catches Biskitt's eye by mistake............very difficult when you are trying to make dinner!

Rocky has attended his second puppy party, he decided to wear his smart new collar this time, just to impress you understand. He was pleased to meet 2 small black labradors and relented from his previosly superior attitude enough to have a bit of a game; mainly with the water bowl. The game seemed to centre on who could get most water on themselves, thier play mates and the floor, Rocky I think came in third! Realising that he wasn't as good at the game as the other 2 he reverted to sitting on the sidelines looking wisely superior.

This week Rocky has also been for his second visit to the vet and had his second injection. In honour of this we have been doing a little lead training at home, ready for the big day. If things continue as well as they have so far we should reach the bottom of our (very short) drive before he sits down and refuses to go further! Still, early days and all that!