Ruby’s story……………

So the day had come when I was finally introduced to the big wide world. They’d been out and bought me and brand new little collar and lead, well, it did look lovely in red, but to be honest, I’d never had one on before so didn’t really know how it worked.

I was happy running around in the garden and exploring everything that was in there, there was lots to be chewed, flowers to be pulled up, and holes to be dug…. I just loved being outside.

But when it was time to go for a walk, well they just didn’t get it…… it was my first time out and I should choose where we went too, it was only right.

So out we went, and we hadn’t gone too far, when I decided that I didn’t want to got this way anymore, so I sat down and didn’t budge, they tried everything to get me to move, they talked to me in silly voices, pretended that they were going to start running away, everything…… in fact it took all my will power not to give in when the treats came out….. but no, they had to learn, they had to know that it was my decision where we went, so I sat and I sat and I sat a little bit longer, how long is it going to take to sink in with these two.

I must be doing something right, because we saw lots of people that day. Big ones like my mummy and daddy and little one’s being dragged along like me, but all of them stopped, and all of them gave me a fuss, oh this was lovely, so lovely in fact that every time someone stopped to fuss me, I literally just fell over and waited for my tummy to be rubbed. Everyone loved it, everyone love me, everyone laughed, everyone rubbed my tummy more and more, this was clearly what happened on a walk…… I’d got this.

As I said they’d bought me a new collar and lead and mummy had bought herself some new walking gear too, except mummy’s mustn’t have been that good because she doesn’t wear it anymore and now when she takes me out she looks a lot better than she did…….. these two are proving really easy to train.

During those first few weeks when I first came to live here and I was in the house, well I didn’t realise what I was missing, being outside was so much fun, there were so many new friends to make so many adventures to be had and lots of new things to eat.

One particular day we were out on a walk and they stopped outside someone’s house to talk to them, and all of sudden I was given a little bit more freedom than I usually had, they took the lead off and I was allowed to explore on my own. They were so busy talking I thought I’d go for a little wander and ducked under the gate into the neighbour’s garden, and that’s when I saw it, a huge pool of water, oh my days, this was what I’d been waiting for. So I ran, I ran as fast as my little legs could carry me, the water was like a magnet pulling me towards it, I couldn’t stop, so I didn’t stop and went splashing straight in, this was bliss………. but hold on what’s that… who are they swimming round in here….. they smell interesting, in fact they smell rather tasty, free food, this just get’s better and better…… um, think I might try one of these…… but before I could grab one, into the water he came, my daddy, splashing about scattering all the free food and I was hoisted out of the water and back on dry land before you could say fish supper…..

I never did get to try some of the free food in the pond, although, I have tried one of their relatives at the seaside (but that’s a whole different story), and I’m not sure whether the people mummy and daddy were talking to still live around here because mummy and daddy haven’t been back to see them since. Funny that.

Mummy story………….

So the day had finally come when we could introduce Ruby to the outside world, the last few weeks of keeping her inside had been hard, she was getting bigger she was getting more confident and she was getting inquisitive, so nothing was safe.

We introduced her to the garden first and as with the house, pretty much everything got moved to be above puppy height. The lovely spring bulbs didn’t last long, they were dug up within the the first day, the shrubs lost all their leaves and holes were dug everywhere. The garden very soon went the same way as the house…. how can something so small and sweet be so destructive.

We couldn’t wait to take her out for her first walk, we bought her a new little matching collar and lead, red and spotty, she looked so cute. As she looked so lovely, I also kitted myself out in some new dog walking gear, after all I’m going to need it. So I went out and bought myself a lovely spotty Cath Kitson raincoat (to match the collar) and the obligatory Hunter wellie boots, I looked every inch the stylish doggy mummy about town. That didn’t last long, I now go out looking like Worzel Gummage and make Lisa Dingle from Emmerdale look stylish (google her, you’ll see what I mean !!).

Well the first walk was a disaster, we’d only got a little way down the lane when she decided to stop, she sat down and just would not budge, we tried everything……. what on earth did we look like, two grown adults trying to coax a tiny little puppy to walk. During those first few weeks we provided so much entertainment to the residents of our villager, and to be honest still do with some of our dog owning antics !! Everyday was the same, us setting off out, and then she’d sit down and would not budge, we were a laughing stock, everyone who passed us used to stop and have a laugh, and they’d laugh even more when Ruby decided to throw herself on the floor with her legs in the air waiting for her tummy to be tickled…… a trait that she’s never grown out of and still does to this day.

We can’t really complain though, because this episode did introduce us to lots of new people, who are now very good friends, who we’d never have met without Ruby.

One particular day we’d managed to get a little further than usual and stopped to speak to some neighbours who we knew. No cars came down the lane this far, so she was safe to be let off her lead and have a little wander while we talked. I kept my eye on her and she was happily pottering about exploring, but I took my eye off her for one second and in that split second she was off, under the gate into the neighbours garden and heading straight for their fish pond, “quick” I said to the other half “get her before she goes in the pond”, but it was too late she was in and splashing about. The colour drained from my neighbours face…… “oh I’m so sorry about the goldfish” I gabbled…… “goldfish” my neighbour said “they aren’t goldfish, they’re koi carp!!”

She was happily swimming round in the pond eyeing up the fish when the other half grabbed her and hoisted her out, she was dripping wet and covered in pond weed……. my neighbour at this point was being comforted by his wife and looked like he was about to blow a fuse…….. we quickly offered our apologies and promised that we’d never bring her back and to this day we haven’t. I’m not sure what happened to the koi carp, I don’t know whether the shock of having a chocolate labrador splashing around with them did them any good, I know it certainly didn’t do our relationship with out neighbours much good. But this was only the start of the mishaps and mayhem we were going to reap around the village…….. for a very small, sweet looking puppy, she certainly has a mind of her own and an iron will to do whatever it is that she wants to do……… I’m quickly getting the feeling of who’s in charge here………..