Buddy & Bell- Here is little three month year old Buddy the Beagle learning how to walk off of the lead. He was really good until he got wiff of the sheep! It is something that is innate for him to chase after sheep. He probably could have been trained to help the farmer. But, instead we worked on his recall which is pretty good I think for a Beagle. If you give him his freedom he will always come back. He is just like man. I have learned a lot about my husband since having Buddy. After all, he’s the only little boy I have ever lived with and people are always referring to men as ‘dogs.’
Here is Sophs walking Buddy on the lead. He was three months here as well. It was nice for the kids to walk Buddy. After all, we got Buddy on Soph’s Birthday so it’s technically her dog. When he got a bit bigger he would only nip at her heels and no one else. She would scream, “Stop it, Buddy.” She would never put him in his place. But, she has learned to do that now which is great for her. And, he always sneaks up in the middle of the night and jumps on her bed to sleep. It is so important to have my children grow up with a pet. And, Buddy now 1 year and 3 months is getting better at learning. He is pulling less on his lead, listening better and of course pressing the boundaries even more. But, that’s life. And, it’s a good life. Life should be about Buddy chewing Soph’s Barbie doll and Buddy chasing the girls in a circle to get them to play with him.
I remember my first dog, Gretchen. She was a Doberman. The most gentle, gorgeous looking dog. I have pictures of me sitting on top of her like a horse. She was our guard dog.
I remember one day my cousin Angelique (who is British) hit me when we were playing. She was like 8 years old so that’s what kids do. Gretchen turned around and bit her on her shoulder. I could remember to this day round teeth marks on her arm and me thinking ‘Damn, right! Biache. Don’t mess with me!’ Although I was like four so probably didn’t use those exact words. But you get the gist. Buddy would never do anything like that as he is no gaurd dog; however, he does bark when he hears noises which makes us all feel safe.