The Daisy Diaries… she’s seven months old now!

Well, here’s the next instalment of the Daisy Diaries and I can’t believe Daisy is now almost seven months old! Her personality is developing daily and to say we’ve got it under control would be telling a whopper! She remains a sweet little girl but shows a very willful streak when she’s challenged. She has worked out that when she’s in trouble with Grandad (hubby), Grandma (that’s me!) is a soft place to fall! Those sad little eyes plead for a cuddle and forgiveness and a little paw bats at my leg – I’m only human and she eventually gets that forgiveness!
We’ve been through the worry of having her desexed but all went remarkably smoothly and within a couple of days Daisy was tearing around the place and as lively as ever. The hardest part of her recovery was getting the protective cone on her each morning – she led us a merry dance and really, who could blame her? Whilst I understand they’re a necessity to stop dogs from chewing at their wound, I am equally understanding of a dog’s reluctance to wear one. In the long run, we needn’t have worried as Daisy eventually took it in her stride. We were, however, rather surprised at the suggestion that whilst she was under anesthetic, the vet could remove her dew claws and her baby teeth! Apparently this is all quite standard these days but it was never mentioned when our last dog was desexed. Whilst we scoffed at the idea and said “no way”, we are now feeling a bit anxious about Daisy’s choppers. She still has a lot of baby teeth that haven’t yet fallen out and her new teeth are coming through very quickly. We may yet have to have her baby teeth removed! Our daughter is having her four wisdom teeth out in two weeks – I wonder if we could get a two-for-one deal?
Puppy classes are a distant memory and we’re now on the tail end of juvenile classes! Reports are that she’s doing well but is still not keen on night time classes and the shadows. Tonight she met up with a trainer who wouldn’t take any of that “soft stuff” and showed her who was boss. After much whimpering (by both Daisy and Kate), this instructor had Daisy right where he wanted her and she went from the juvenile delinquent to the pawfect pet! Shows you what a bit of tough love can do!
Daisy’s daytime hours at the moment are filled with hours snoozing on the back landing in the sun, digging up her favourite garden and filling up the family room with old dog bones, shrivelled passionfruit off our vine, and sticks that are bigger than her! Should we have a rainy day, that works for her too. She’s discovered that the handmade rug on our bed is soft and snuggly and the pillows quite comfortable! This spoilt little Miss has her own winter snuggly rug (made by Grandma) but somehow ours is preferred. Yes, it’s a dog’s life!
And then there are treats for when Daisy’s extra good! She’s currently enjoying chomping her way through a batch of home-made peanut butter and honey biscuits. They go down a treat but are rapidly disappearing, so it looks like I’ll be back in the kitchen some day soon. If anyone has a recipe for yummy dog biscuits, I’d love to see it!
Now I know you’ll find it hard to believe but we can high five with Daisy – really! And on the odd occasion we get a wave goodbye! Okay, I can see you all rolling your eyes! I feel like that Mum who insists her child is gifted! If I’m honest I guess I’ll have to ‘fess up and say the high fives and waves are more like Daisy putting her paws up to stop us smothering her!
And the downside to having a puppy in the house? Well, there really isn’t one. We have had a few pairs of shoes chewed, a cushion mutilated and morning tea biscuits swiped off plates but we can live with that. I just wish we could get past the stage where she still likes to leave little “parcels” in the house for us! I can’t remember how old our last dog was when this all sorted itself out but I hope it’s not too far away!
With only one more vaccination to go, our daughter is looking forward to growing her bank balance again – unless those teeth become a problem. She now has a very real understanding of how much these little critters cost. One thing I know for sure and that’s that there’s no way Kate would have it any other way. Those two just love each other to bits – it’s puppy love!
It seems like these little dogs rule the roost. Is your pup spoilt and who’s the boss in your house – husband, wife, or pooch?