W/C 29th April 2019

 

Monday 29th April

As Jay was on an early we got up just after 4am and took Dembe out . It was raining and when Jay went to get Dembe out of the car he refused to move, he lay down as flat as he could to make it as difficult as possible for Jay to get him. Jay managed to get him out of the car in the end but Dembe made it very clear he wasn’t impressed by walking extremely slowly and only speeding up when he realised he was on the way back to the car. This is the first time he has ever kicked off about not wanting to go out. To be honest I can’t blame him.

I managed to find another of Dembe’s baby teeth this morning.

He was chewing his antler chew whilst sitting on my lap, as he was chewing I spied a tooth sat between his gum and his cheek. So I quickly fished it out. He wasn’t very happy as he is quite possessive over his teeth.

He has spent most of today outside in the garden destroying the few plants I have in containers. I am sure he thinks his name is “Dembe No!” He also attempted to dig a hole in the gravel by lifting up the heavy duty membrane underneath. Basically he has been a bit of a sod all day. I am beginning to wonder if maybe we have hit the teenage years already! As Dembe No used to work immediately, now he carries on whilst he thinks about it.

At 2pm he collapsed after being on the go constantly and went to sleep for two hours solid! Which meant I got to watch the latest episode of GOT without any interruptions.

Looking like butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth!

Tuesday 30th April

Well a miracle happened today after being let out at 4am for the toilet Dembe slept until 7.11am. That is the latest he has ever slept as normally he is fussing from 5am for his breakfast. He has done that ever since he came home with us since January 11th. Jay and I are in shock we feel really behind all morning as after 7am is really late for us to get up currently.

Dembe got taken to Woodbury Castle for a walk and had a lovely play with a Golden Retriever. He had a really good run around and as soon as he got home he fell asleep on the sofa.

This afternoon Dembe had a play with the hosepipe, he got soaked but he does love it.

Nothing keeps him out of the water

Removing his cage has certainly reduced the humping we were having to endure. We left what we had nicknamed his sex bed in the lounge in case he “needed” it but he has only mounted it on a handful of occasions.

He has been a very good boy as he was left in the house whilst we were in the garden tidying up. As he always does he just puts himself to sleep on the sofa, we have left him for up to an hour before and never come back in to any destruction. I have probably jinxed that now.

As he attacked all my plants yesterday they have now been covered with chicken wire! He isn’t very happy about that.

Wednesday 1st May

As Jay was starting at 9am this morning we were up the common by 7am so that Dembe could have a really good run around off the lead and let off some steam as Jay won’t be back home until after 6pm. He really enjoyed his walk and he made friends with some other dogs and had a nice play. It is so nice ( but equally weird) to have a dog that gets on with other dogs. Our life before with the Weimaraners was spent trying to avoid other dogs as Frankie was nervous aggressive. Now we can go where we like at whatever time we wish because it doesn’t matter if other people are walking by with their dogs nothing bad will happen. It is hard to let go of the nerves that used to accompany dog walks though. Quite often I find myself looking around waiting to see if a dog walker is going to go on the same path as Jay. I have a few times got my phone out to ring him only then remembering he is with Dembe and he doesn’t need an advanced warning that a dog / horse / walkers are approaching.

It was really funny this morning as Jay gave me a kiss goodbye as he was leaving the house. He then said to Dembe “kiss”, well Dembe normally gives Jay a good lick when he says kiss. Today he decided to give Jay’s nose a little nibble instead, which made both of us laugh as this is what Mollie ( our Weimaraner) used to do. Mollie rarely kissed me but she always kissed Jay. She absolutely adored him and would sulk upstairs in his bedroom all day when he was at work. All our boy dogs have always been very affectionate and Dembe is no different. Willow wasn’t really a licker either but she loved both of us equally and would just spend all day going between us both for lots of cuddles.

Morning snooze

Ellie came over today she hasn’t seen Dembe for at least 6 weeks so couldn’t believe how much bigger he was. Dembe was really good and wanted to spend as much time with Ellie as he could. Her husband Paul also popped in and Dembe was determined to cover him in kisses too.

In the evening a couple swung by to pick up the land drainage pipe that I had sold to them. They brought their 7 month old Golden Retriever that was about 4 times the size of Dembe. Missy and Dembe hit it off immediately and there was lots of play bows and sniffing of bottoms. We kept hold of Missy whilst her parents loaded up their car. When they had gone Dembe sat by the front door and kept crying, he did this for ages. He wanted his new girlfriend back! In the end I had to distract him with a marrow bone.

Thursday 2nd May

Jay was late night today so he took Dembe up to the Warren and gave him a bigger and different walk than he normally would. Dembe had been like a coiled spring from waking and really needed to burn off some energy or it would have made it really difficult for me to manage him alone all day. After his walk he was pretty shattered and slept the rest of the morning.

I did a side by side comparison of Dembe at aged 8 weeks, 3 days and then 24 weeks, 6 days. It is quite shocking and it is so hard to remember him so tiny.

He is still really funny when he eats, I have never known a dog wag his tail as much as he does. Mollie would always wag her tail when drinking which always made us chuckle. Frankie would wag his tail really quickly but would barely move it and Willow would use her tail as a signally system so much more than the other two did. When you talk to Dembe as he is eating he wags his tail even faster.

Today Dembe really surprised me, I knew he had been up to something as it was so quiet. I came into the lounge and the sofa throw had been really scrunched up. As I sorted it out two pebbles from the back garden fell out. He had brought in two pebbles from the back garden and buried them in the throw. Silly hound. He has always buried stuff but it has mainly been toys hidden in his bed. This is the first time he has brought something from outside to hide in the house.

Friday 3rd May

Dembe is 25 weeks old today. I can’t believe that we have only had him since the 11th January as he is so much part of the family. He is such a happy go lucky dog. At 25 weeks he still loves to come in the shower with me although now he is much more tolerant of being dried off and no longer attacks the towel as you dry him. He loves chewing his antler chews and his raw beef marrow bones. One of his favourite toys is the small toy Sam gave him when they first met. We call it Sam’s baby, he loves the blue plastic spikey shell it came with. I think because it is a different texture in his mouth. He can now get me different toys that I ask for. He knows piggy wiggy, chewie, crocodile and toto ( the dog from my Dorothy costume).

This week we have been keeping him entertained by getting him to find a toy when we have hidden it. He loves searching through the sofa cushions and in all the nooks and crannies.

This morning on waking Dembe was manic. Once he is up he likes all of us to be up, he loves the whole pack being together. If I am the only one up he will repeatedly go upstairs and go into Jays room, licking his hands and eye lids. Today which was a first he jumped onto Jays chest, dropped his antler chew on his face and then started licking his eyelids. Normally Dembe stays on the floor, today he just leapt up on the bed. So Jay really didn’t have much choice in the matter he was getting up. As he was such a live wire we took him straight up the common for a walk.

He had a lovely play with a Labrador cross called Winston. They ran each other ragged.

He must have been having a growing day today as he was asleep for a lot of it.

All he wanted to do was curl up next to me.

He was really cuddly all day and just wanted to be wherever I was. He missed his dad today and went crazy when Jay came home at 7.20pm

Saturday 4th May

As Jay was on another early this morning we took Dembe up the common just after 4am. After today I don’t think we will bother doing early morning walks as they are obviously not his thing at all. He refused to get out of the car again, lying as flat as possible to make it hard for Jay to get him. What we will do in future on Jays early shifts is he will have a lead walk around the block on Jays lunch break. I just hope that he isn’t too manic whilst he waits for his first walk. Unless it is for his breakfast Dembe really doesn’t do early mornings.

I’ve no idea what is up with him today but he has been really whingey. As long as he is doing something he wants to do he is fine but the minute he is told no he is moaning. He got his arse in his hand with me this morning at 7am as he got told off for barking at the pigeon on my neighbours roof at 7am.

he really wasn’t impressed

And then he sits really nicely for you ans looks at you with those big brown eyes and you can’t stay cross for long. Even if he has been giving you lots of attitude since waking.

A sad day today for me and Jay as we learned that one of our first litter of puppies Isa passed away yesterday. She was Frankie and Willow’s sister and was born in 2006, our very first litter. I can’t lie I sobbed my bloody heart out. I know she was the centre of Jodie’s life and I hate the fact that she will be hurting now like we have been. I only kept in touch with a few of the people who had puppies from us. I did try to keep a relationship going with the new owners but many of them didn’t reciprocate. Jodie was among the few that always stayed in touch and I loved seeing the photographs of Isa ( called Isa as that is what the money should have been going in to) as she looked like a combination of all my Weimaraners. A sad day indeed.

Sunday 5th May

Today I woke up really poorly, my dear boy Dembe stayed by my side to ensure I was ok. Jay took him out for a walk to Woodbury Castle where he met the two lady Bulldogs and he had a play with them. Its been a few weeks since he has seen them and their owners couldn’t get over how much he had grown.

We went to a picnic / birthday party this afternoon which was a new experience for Dembe. Lots of children and footballs both of which are his most favourite things ever. Thankfully after 10 minutes of being there he calmed down considerably and behaved like an angel for the rest of the two hours we were there. He even had some off lead time chasing a ball.

As we were going back to the car we bumped into a lady with a Weimaraner called Sasha. We have met her up on the common before when we had the three Weimaraners. Dembe got a little over friendly and Sasha gave him a warning nip. No blood shed, no growling but she made it clear she wasn’t enjoying him being in her face.

After we went to the party we went up to my parents caravan – Dembe was shattered he slept all the way in the car and he really wasn’t happy when Jay woke him up to get him out. He did have a lovely time though playing with my parents Jack Russell Maggie and then meeting Wayne and Hilary who have been wanting to meet him for ages. Thankfully Dembe was on his best behaviour and did us proud.

He ( like me ) has been exhausted for the rest of the day and we are just about to toddle up the stairs for an early night. He has been snoring so loudly lying here on the sofa beside me!

W/C 22nd April 2019 Finder of lost teeth

 Monday 22nd April

After the hot weather of the last two days it is much cooler today and Dembe’s activity levels have really increased. During the warmer than normal days he has been very sleepy and quite content to move as little as possible. Today he has been manic and it has made a change that Jay has got to see him like this and not just hear from me that he is bloody mental.

We were up the common by 7.30am and Dembe met up with lots of different dogs. He managed to seek out some more Labradors ( he finds dogs like him fascinating ) one of whom stole his ball and had to be bribed by Jay to get it back. He really enjoys playing with other dogs and it is really good socialisation for him. It is so strange having a dog that doesn’t see other dogs as a threat like Frankie and Willow ( our Weimaraners ) did. Mollie was always really good with other dogs. She also loved Labradors even though she was a Weimaraner and it is because of her we chose a Labrador puppy after she passed away. She had always had an affinity for them and we took it as a sign that she was giving us her blessing for when that awful day came.

Dembe has wanted lots of interaction today, he wants us both to join in playing with his toys and rolling the ball along the lounge floor.

At 5pm Sarah, Gemma and Sam came over for a catch up Sam has been at college since he last saw Dembe and obviously Dembe has grown loads since then. I am always amazed at how gentle Dembe is with Sam. Sarah (Sam and Gemma’s mum) took some lovely photo’s.

Dembe and Sam

Dembe and Sam

Gemma and Dembe

Tuesday 23rd April

Dembe is having a very Monday like Tuesday. Jay is in work when he is usually day off on a Tuesday, he is also doing his Monday hours as well so it’s not just Dembe who is confused!

Dembe has been very cuddly and sleepy today, probably because he was so manic yesterday. A lot of the time he just wants to sit on my lap and be cuddled. It’s just as well that I have no plans for today and I am quite happy to indulge him.

Snuggled up on the sofa with me.

He has managed to have a poo right outside the back door, then stand on it and bring into the kitchen with him. It is the first time he has done this and he is not impressed when I attempt to clean his paws. This has just added to the washing mountain considerably. He had a reasonably sized area to go to the toilet in so why right in front of the patio doors seemed like such a good idea I have no clue.

I’ve had the patio doors / back door open all day so that Dembe has been able to take himself out to the toilet whenever he wants to. He is getting really desperate to get beyond the patio and out into the bigger garden but with the revamp still going on it isn’t safe and he would be covered in mud within minutes.

Mark our friend popped over in the afternoon as the wheelbarrow I ordered to help shift the 3 tonnes of gravel through our house , won’t go through the patio doors despite the seller stating its dimensions it is 9cm too wide. Thankfully Mark is a blacksmith so take the wheelbarrow away for some minor cosmetic surgery. Dembe has a thing for Mark so spends the whole time trying to get his attention and rolling on his back for belly rubs.

Wednesday 24th April

Just to throw Dembe and I out a little more this week Jay is day off today. Bank holidays although nice have a lot to answer for as it will be days before I actually know what day of the week it is.

The little ball of fluff has been like the energiser bunny since waking up, so we got him out for a walk nice and early. The weather was horrendous and the boys returned to the car looking like drowned rats. The walk seems to calm Dembe down well for a little while anyway.

Dembe has been watching me like a hawk all day as I have had a really bad headache for the last two days and it shows no sign of shifting.

In the afternoon I had to admit defeat and go to bed to lie down for a bit. To my surprise Dembe came with me. Normally if I go to bed when Jay is home Dembe will stay downstairs with him. He settled down immediately and then placed his head over my left ankle just as Frankie used to do, which made me a bit emotional.

After an hour or so with heat and massage my headache was a little better and it was just as well as we needed to go to the builders merchants to pick up a a plank of wood to be used as a ramp for the wheelbarrow tomorrow. We took Dembe with us and he was such a good boy. He did get a little whingey waiting in the car and if I had a lead on me I would have let him have a wander but unfortunately Jay had taken it with him. After we collected the wood we took him out for a stroll on the common. The rain had cleared and now the sun was making an appearance.

Thursday 25th April

The garden before the revamp

We started the garden revamp back on 17th March, it was being done so that Dembe had a safe area to play as the decking we have had down for the last 15 years has rotten through and he keeps digging holes in it. We have run out of plant pots to put over the holes he has made. Once the decking and the joists were done which was done over 2 Sundays we were left with what we affectionately called the mud bath and Dembe for his own safety was banned from this area.

Dembe was confined to a small patio area until the garden was completed

Before Dembe can get back into the garden 3 tonnes (or near enough) of gravel have to be moved from our front garden, through the house and into the back garden. The joys of a mid-terrace house with no rear access. Mark ( a bloody hero ) is doing this for us as Jay has torn a muscle in his back from removing the decking and joists and then transporting that to the tip. He has estimated it will take him 45 minutes a bag, I think he is crazy!

I have to say considering Dembe has no floor space to move around on as all the lounge furniture and all the kitchen furniture has been move to the right-hand-side so that Mark has a clear run with the wheelbarrow. I keep Dembe busy for the first 90 minutes with a raw frozen beef marrow bone. It was just the last 45 minutes ( the last bag ) that he got a bit whingey and wanted to see what Mark was doing all the time. He didn’t want to be confined to the sofas whilst there was a person walking past him all the time. He is a crazy Labrador pup after all and he can’t stay still when he is awake.

When all the gravel was down I let Dembe have a run around on it,

He still needed to be careful as there was no fence at the back of the garden still as we were waiting for the fence post shoes to be delivered – which they were mid-morning. Dembe was going absolutely crazy, he was running in and out of the house and then the full length of the garden. At one point I closed the patio door to stop him as I was worried he was going to hurt himself and the chump ran straight into the closed door. He was out of it for a few seconds not knocked out but very dazed. I checked him over because I was in a complete panic and thinking what an idiot I had been for shutting the door when he was in such a frenzied state of excitement. Within a few minutes he was moving around normally but he was a little subdued, probably because he had a bit of a headache. I don’t think I have ever felt so helpless or frightened.

Dembe was allowed to wander in and out of the garden all afternoon whilst Mark worked to get the fence up and install the new gate. We had painted these last weekend.

There is still lots to do but it is now safe for Dembe to play in.

Dembe was loving the freedom of having all this space to run around in.

Dembe beside himself with excitement playing with his Kong Crocodile on the gravel

This was the boy Thursday evening after several hours of fun in the garden

Friday 26th April

As Jay was on an early shift we took Dembe up the common at 4.45am as now he is that much older he really does need two walks a day. He could have had a lead walk but our street lights don’t come on until after 5am, it’s much more fun on the common by torchlight.

Despite having that walk he was still full of beans today. All he wanted to do was go out and play in the garden. He is back to shoving his head into all the plant pots and getting compost all over his face. Pulling apart the plants and eating old bits of feather board fencing if we can’t get to him quickly enough. In other words he is being a bit of a sod. As soon as I make him come back in he decides he wants out in the back garden, even when it is chucking it down.

Yesterday when we were moving the furniture Jay and I decided to get rid of Dembe’s crate. It is currently used once a day for him to go in when the cleaning is being done. He is never shut in it and it is an eyesore when you live in a tiny house. It just dominates the whole lounge. I thought I could put up with it for the first 18 months of Dembe’s life but I really can’t, it is ugly. So we have taken an enormous risk and brought down the Weimaraners old wicker basket bed. The minute he attempts to chew it the crate will be back. I’m not hopeful as this morning I caught him licking the F&M Hamper that is in my bedroom out of his way! That has been liberally sprayed with bitter apple spray and I have also coated the wooden bedroom furniture in it to deter the little bugger.

He is 100% ok from his run in with the patio door yesterday thank goodness.

As I was getting into bed this evening I found a tooth beside the bed. We have managed to find 4 of his baby teeth now, he has lost many more than that . Yesterday we found one under the sofa as it was moved for Mark. It looked like a popcorn kernel as did the one I found on the floor of my bedroom this morning!

He is 24 weeks old today!

Saturday 27th April

Jay is late night tonight so Dembe has had a nice walk on the common this morning, unusually despite there being lots of cars in the car park he didn’t bump in to anyone at all.

Back of the car on his way home from the walk

He was a little bugger during the night as he woke me up at 3am trying it on for his breakfast. He was most disgusted when he was turned out into the garden and he only got a small treat for having a huge wee. He sat waiting for his food but I went back to bed. He very slowly ascended the stairs shooting me dirty looks all the way. He needn’t have worried as Jay ….the weakest link woke up at 4am and gave Dembe his breakfast. I have had to have a word with Jay and lay down the law that the boy doesn’t get fed before 5am on any day of the week. I am not having another night of being woken at 3am because Dembe decides he would like his breakfast. Message is received, lets just see if he manages to do as I have asked. He will in the long run as a sleep deprived wife isn’t fun for him.

Back of the car on way back from his walk

Early this afternoon the stepping stones we have ordered for the garden arrived. We wanted the gravel broken up a little by having some nice stepping stones that will add another layer of interest. Dembe was delighted that there was something else to have a sniff of!

He has been a very tired boy since his dad has gone to work. I hope it stays that way as I am shattered after Thursday. I know I didn’t do anything physically for the garden but the added stimulation has exhausted me. For those of you just joining the blog now I have a blog all about me and my chronic health conditions at http://www.themyastheniakid,com.

Something that is quite strange since the crate has been removed Dembe has stopped humping all the time. In his crate he used to gather up his bed to his nether regions and hump until it was all hanging out…quite literally a lot, lot more than a lipstick. The bed that was inside his crate is still in the lounge but doesn’t seem to hold the same attraction for him. He also hasn’t tried humping anything else either which I thought he may do once his usual method had been removed. Lets hope it continues as it was quite frankly a bit gross and on more than one occasion I have been worried that it wouldn’t go back in!

Another thing we have noticed since we removed the crate is that he is playing a lot more. The toys that used to be taken into the sex den are now being played with all over the house and garden. Just have to scrub the no humping thing as he has just tried to do his bed that was in the crate but as it is moving around he didn’t get the result he sought.

Sunday 28th April

I woke up at 3am to find the little rascal wide awake and doing his noisy yawns to make me stir so I got Jay to take him downstairs for a wee and a poo. I told Jay that there was to be no breakfast. Dembe wasn’t impressed and was slow to come back up to bed. Despite my back killing me I stayed in bed until 5am and then got his lordship his breakfast. He had another trip outside for the toilet and then raced back upstairs to bed. The little dumpling let me sleep until 7am!! Unheard of lately and mummy doesn’t feel so very wrecked this morning.

The lie on though seems to have supercharged him and he was throwing his antler chew around and generally being the energiser bunny so at 7.30am we both got dressed and took him up the common. Jay said he played with every dog he came across so should be exhausted. The little bugger hasn’t slept more than 10 minutes all morning!

We have had two lots of visitors and that hasn’t put a dent in his energy levels. Whilst my parents were here he managed to knock a pint glass of water twice by throwing his kong crocodile softy in the air. Finally at 12.30pm he closed his eyes and went to sleep. I got this photo of our little rascal just before he dropped off.

He was much more subdued for the rest of the day, thank goodness.

W/C 15th April

 Monday 15th April

Another cuddly Monday morning with Dembe. Training wise this week the plans are to focus on getting him to got to his crate when “in your crate” is used and onto his bed when the phrase “bed” is used. It is slow going as he gets confused between the commands but it is great brain training for him. I am adding in some stuff that is mentally stimulating for him as this will keep him from getting bored and then possibly destructive.

We have a raft of visitors popping in today Julie, who saw him a few weeks ago is coming by to have a look at him and then Leanne and her son Liam are coming along also.

Dembe is very good at waiting when the front door is open and not trying to bolt out the front door. Something that the Weimaraners were terrible at and we would have to pop them in the kitchen when we answered the front door.

Julie couldn’t get over how much he had grown. On the whole Dembe is very well behaved but he has started putting his front paws on your shoulders ( from behind when you are sat down) when he has a toy in his mouth and wants you to play. It is over bearing and not very polite. Julie is ok with it apparently her late Izzie used to do it. Inside I am dying of embarrassment.

When Liam and Leanne arrive Dembe get’s over excited so I have to put him on a time out in the kitchen . When he has sat down and is calmer I allow him back into the room. He is much naughtier with Leanne and Liam here and he climbs all over Leanne. I am mortified and now stopping that behaviour is top of this weeks training list. To be honest I am also very fed up with being used as a climbing frame.

 He looks so angelic when he is asleep!

Tuesday 16th April

As Jay is day off today we take Dembe up to the common quite early for a nice walk. The weather is hideous so both my boys come back to the car looking like drowned rats.

Late morning we go and visit Sandra who has broken her leg in two places just yesterday. I am terrified the whole time that Dembe will clumsily bash into her temporary plaster cast but he gives it a sniff and is then very careful around her leg. The last time we were at Sandra’s house he was just 15 weeks old. He does behave mostly however he nips Sandra twice. Again I am mortified as he hasn’t nipped anyone for weeks. It is a little bite and doesn’t draw blood and was done whilst playing but I am still gutted that he has done this. I think he went to mouth her hand but she pulled away – which I have done myself and that does hurt.

It’s not all bad news though as Dembe has had his first experience of an open fire at Sandra’s and was sensible enough to keep well clear! He was very intrigued by Sandra’s husband and was watching him intently as he sorted out the fire.

Dembe slept most of the afternoon as he didn’t have a morning nap with us going To Sandra’s.  At 3pm we take him for another walk, thankfully the weather has improved. There are lots of puddles but he is still at an age where he is avoiding puddles. He reminds us of Princess Willow one of our Weimaraners who steadfastly refused to get her feet wet until she was around a year old. She expected to be picked up and carried over puddles if she couldn’t walk around them.

He is very into Jay today which is lovely to see.

 

Wednesday 17th April

As it quite usual for a Wednesday Jay is late night so Dembe ha had a nice walk on the common this morning at Woodbury Castle. Today he met a huge Yellow Labrador that he was desperate to play with. This Labrador we think was from show lines as it was slightly larger than our biggest Weimaraner Frankie ( who was large for a Weim) . He was very muscular this Labrador and a huge head. He made Dembe look very sweet and dainty. Working lines are bred to be smaller and more compact.

Dembe’s frozen bones have arrived today , the delivery driver was looking for a dog when I opened the front door. He stuck his head in to see Dembe just lying on the sofa waiting patiently as I had asked him to do. The guy said how lovely he was and very cute. Dembe had kittens when he saw me load all the bones into the freezer. I let him have one for 30 minutes as I knew he had another back tooth loose and that it was bothering him. He loved it and was very annoyed when I put it back in the fridge.

His morning nap.

Thursday 18th April

As Jay was working a 12 hour shift today we got up very early so that Dembe could have a walk before Jay went to work. For Dembe it was his first walk in the dark on Woodbury common. He was freaked out a bit by his shadow initially but was soon pottering around like it was a normal day time walk.

He was pretty shattered in the morning due to the incredibly early start I managed to capture this series of photos as he dropped off to sleep.

He was out for the count.

My friend Heather popped over today, who we haven’t seen in a while due to the usual things work, family etc. I think the last time she had seen Dembe was when he was 9 weeks old and he is now 22 weeks old. 23 weeks old tomorrow. He spent the whole of Heather’s visit sat on her lap, getting her to hold his bone so that he could chomp on it. He has never sat like that on anyone other than me and Jay.So it was really nice to see.

Dembe is doing much better with the not jumping on people and wanting them to play. He has been told no and then placed on the floor. We have only had to do it twice and the jumping stopped. Hopefully that is the end of it… for now.

The poor baby still has a very wobbly back tooth and when he has been chewing his toys he has been bleeding onto them. He is ok in himself but you can tell the tooth is bothering him as he keeps flicking it with his tongue to try and dislodge it.

Good Friday – 19th April

Today Dembe is 23 weeks old how the time has flown by. He is still our little baby, when you see him next to a full grown Labrador he is still tiny. He is quite tall and when he jumps up, which isn’t very often his paws are at my waist height and I am 5ft 8in tall. He is very long as well now.

His food portions are remaining the same this week as we wean him off his lunchtime meal and down to just two meals a day. Breakfast and Dinner are 120g of food whilst lunch has been reduced to 55g, plus he has 10g of food in his frozen kong every day.

He still comes into the shower everyday and loves nothing better than playing with the hosepipe outside. He still sits on my lap every morning and chews the ties of my snuggle top as he did when he was just 8 weeks old. Although now he takes up the whole of my lap.

He has such a sunny disposition he is always happy, his tail wags constantly which always make Jay and I laugh as we aren’t used to dogs with a full size tail. He is very loving towards Jay and I but when he is out on his walk he is growing in confidence and will walk further away from Jay than he did when he was first out walking.

Today I managed to find Dembe’s wobbly tooth. He was sat beside me on the sofa and was desperately trying to dig something out from behind the sofa cushion. I put my hand in the gap and felt something which I thought was a biscuit crumb. It wasn’t until I looked at it that I realised that it was his wobbly back tooth! I am so pleased as we hadn’t been able to get any of his other teeth as they have either been swallowed or hoovered up.

Dembe had two nice walks today and Jay managed to get some lovely photos of him.

Saturday 20th April

The weather has got very hot and poor Dembe with his double layered coat is not enjoying it. Once the garden has been revamped we will be getting him a paddling pool.

The little bugger woke me up at 5.30am this morning by throwing his head across my neck. However at 6.30am as he was fast asleep on the sofa and I was struggling to stay awake so I went back up to bed taking him with me. He played for around 10 minutes and then went straight to sleep. This is the first time we have done this so it was nice to know he would settle back down again. We both got another hour of sleep.

Mark came over to work on the garden digging trenches for the french drains. Dembe loves Mark and goes all silly whenever he is here. I had to spend a lot of the time getting Dembe to leave him alone so that he can crack on with the task in hand.

Thank goodness for the marrow bones as that is enough to distract him from his bromance!

Sunday 21st April  Easter Sunday

As the last few days have been so warm Dembe was up the common this morning nice an early whilst it was still cool. I heard the Cuckoo, which I haven’t heard in years due to the Weims being walked so early in the morning. I always manage to hear the Cuckoo between the 19th and 21st April. He was calling away.

Dembe has pretty much slept ever since his walk this morning.

The rest of the day was spent pretty quietly as Dembe wore himself out yesterday flirting with Mark all afternoon!