W/C 9th November 2020

 Monday 9th November

I came downstairs this morning to find Dembe fast asleep, stretched out on the large sofa without a care in the world. He didn’t wake up until I gave him a kiss and a cuddle bless him. Jay was on an early shift and he really isn’t an early morning dog. He stayed downstairs when Jay left and made himself comfortable.

We had a very slow start to the day, which was punctuated with lots of cuddles.

I did a little bit at the embroidery machine today, whilst I was there Dembe decided to go out into the garden and sit in the rain.

He was also the crochet inspector today for me

Tuesday 10th November

As is usual Jay was day off today so Dembe spent the majority of the day draped over his dad, having cuddles. He always makes such a fuss of his dad if he is home, it is like he makes up for all the other days he is working by getting as much attention as possible on Sundays and Tuesdays.

He loves playing with his duck, which my friend Carolyn bought him.

He had a nice long walk on the common in the afternoon . He just needed his legs washed off as with the wet weather he had got a bit muddy.

He is still eating really well since we have decided to be led by him as to when he wants to eat rather than sticking to set times. Some days he doesn’t want his breakfast until 10.30-11am, other days he wants it the minute you come downstairs. He has two ways of letting you know he is hungry, if you are in the kitchen he will sit in front of the fridge and not move or if you aren’t anywhere near the kitchen he will cry and let you know. Meal times are much less stressful now we are led by him.

Wednesday 11th November

Jay is on a late shift today so Dembe has had two walks this morning before Jay goes in.

Dembe is being a very cuddly boy at the moment. He was picked up by the dog walker ( Martin ) this afternoon and had a lovely long walk on the common. Martin was teaching Dembe to play hide and seek. If You have Facebook you can see a video here https://www.facebook.com/happydogs.uk/videos/728180907789278/

and the rest of his walk https://www.facebook.com/happydogs.uk/videos/2474388179537054/

Dembe was covered in mud when he got back, I joked with Martin that I had given him a yellow Lab and he had brought back a chocolate one! Dembe had a quick wash off with the hose and then I got him into his drying coat. He is so very good and doesn’t need to be held whilst he is washed off he will stand perfectly still for me. He is very intuitive and does all he can to make life easier for me.

Dembe was shattered after his walk with Martin. You can always tell when he has been learning something new as he is drained physically and mentally. He was shattered and spent most of the evening fast asleep. In fact he was so tired he didn’t even hear his dad come home, which is unheard of.

Thursday 12th November

Dembe did not want to get up this morning, he didn’t wake up until 6am which is unheard of especially when Jay was on a late night the day before. After his walk on the common with jay he came straight back up to bed with me. He was desperate to get as close to me as he could and was lying with his face resting on mine which is what he used to do when he was a tiny puppy.

He was very hungry this morning which threw me as usually when he has eaten a lot the day before he isn’t really interested in food until the evening. He polished off a huge breakfast this morning.

He was an incredibly cuddly boy again today. He is such a soppy dog anyway but I couldn’t move today without being smothered in kisses.

Hi new Christmas sign arrived today

It is official Jay and I have lost the plot LOL.

Friday 13th November

I have got all sentimental as Facebook keep showing me images from this time last year and as it is his birthday next Monday it is all photos of him when he was tiny. I can’t believe he will be two on Monday! How has that happened?

Same toy just two years apart. He still has his baby blanket which he came home with back in 2019! I can’t believe how tiny he is in the first photo, that his baby blanket is almost the same length as him.

Today I have bought all Dembe’s birthday presents, he has got a new lead, a new glow in the dark collar, two new toys for taking out on his walks. Not that he is at all spoilt!

He came into the shower with me this morning

He is following me wherever I go today!

Saturday 14th November

Dembe woke his dad up at around 5am for his walk and then came straight back to bed not waking us up until 9am which was crazy! He wanted his breakfast, if he hadn’t have been hungry I think we would have slept for a lot longer.

Jay stripped my bed today and whilst I was downstairs on my sewing machine Dembe decided to make himself comfortable!

As Jay is on a late night we have our friend Max walking him for us. The weather is diabolical, windy and torrential rain so I feel very guilty that she is having to go out in it with Dembe.

Dembe was soaked through when he got home. I didn’t send him out in a coat as the temperature is so mild. I didn’t need to wash him off so gave him a quick towel off and then straight into his drying coat which makes things much easier.

Some of Dembe’s presents arrived today, I have hidden the toys but I have let him have the glow in the dark collar as it is something that is needed now.

At least now when Jay is out walking him in the dark he will be able to see where he is.

Dembe has wanted to have lots of cuddles since he has come back from his walk, so I have been letting him lie on my lap

He is nice and settled after his long walk with Maxine so I am looking forward to a quiet evening with him.

Tomorrow Jay and I have to go for our flu jabs at the drive through clinic and I have some sewing that needs done so I wont have time to write up a Sunday post.

See you all next week.

W/C 2nd November 2020

 Monday 2nd November

It is Dembe’s dad’s birthday today. For part of Jays birthday I got him this personalised print

If you can’t read the writing underneath it says wet kisser, body wagger, toy bringer. Jay was thrilled with it. For those of you in the UK it was purchased from Not on the high street and the frame came from Amazon.

We had a visit from Leanne, Liam and Imogen today. Liam was full of beans and Dembe and him played together for several hours. It is brilliant how well Liam and Dembe get on.

By the evening Dembe was shattered as we both were.

We had some fireworks go off this evening but Dembe wasn’t bothered by them at all.

Tuesday 3rd November

We were supposed to be starting obedience training again this evening but alas due to Covid the course has been postponed whilst lock down is on.

Dembe got a bit muddy on his afternoon walk so he had a wash off outside and was put in his drying coat for a bit. He really likes his drying coat and it is so much easier to deal with than trying to dry a wet dog who thinks this is a crazy game!

This evening ( as there is most evenings) there was some crazy daddy and Dembe play time! They had lots of fun on the floor being silly.

Dembe again was really good with the fireworks going off and was very happy to have an early night with me.

Wednesday 4th November

Dembe’s dad went down to Plymouth this morning to see his family before the lock down resumes on Thursday. Dembe was not a happy bunny that his dad had left in his civvies without him. He sulked all morning. He kept going half way up the stairs and sitting looking through the banisters.

He was very happy when his dad got home!

Thursday 5th November

Back to lock down yet again. Apparently it is 4 weeks only. It means getting parked up on Woodbury common is going to be a bloody nightmare again as people that never go there at any other time decide to go for a walk. I am hoping it rains a lot as they don’t seem to want to walk then.

Friday 6th November

We have had a really lazy week and with Jay being on holiday I have been really slack at doing Dembe’s diary this week.

I have been really impressed with how well Dembe has coped with all the fireworks that have been going off as soon as it gets dark each night. He has a few barks at them, as soon as we make a fuss with him and play a few games he just then ignores them. There is no fear which is fantastic after living for 15 years with dogs that were terrified of fireworks through no fault of their own. It makes the dark evenings so less stressful. Poor Frankie would start getting stressed as soon as the dark evenings started even if there were no fireworks. Mollie would hide in the bathrooms shower cubicle and stay there all night. Willow’s teeth would chatter. They wouldn’t eat or drink. Weirdly if they were outside the house on a walk the noise wouldn’t bother them but if they were at home they were terrified. I always worried that one of them would have a heart attack through the fear. I loathe fireworks due to this. People that have never experienced a stressed animal due to fireworks are dreadfully unsympathetic.

Saturday 7th November

Jay has been surprised all week by how much Dembe has been glued to my side every morning until I am up and dressed. We have our own little routine and he will stay with me until it is time to go downstairs. Plus I haven’t been that well all week with crippling headaches coming from my neck due to the muscles being in spasm.

He wasn’t very happy when I photographed my crochet today. Normally he will dive on top of it.

We were laughing our heads off seeing Dembe like this today. We thought he maybe stuck as he was making no effort to move. We picked his green ball up ( his favourite toy) and he moved straight away. He will contort himself into the weirdest postions.

Sunday 8th November

The last day of Jays holiday and my dad’s 70th birthday. Due to lock down we can’t see my dad which is a shame but we have spoken to him today.

We are all having a lazy day catching up on a few jobs. Dembe is enjoying lots of cuddles.

W/C 26th October 2020

 I am completing the blog post early this week as it is my birthday on Sunday!

Monday 26th October

It is Monday so Jays shift must be an early one because that is the LAW! I got up just after 7am and Dembe was fast asleep on the small sofa with his head facing the front door as if waiting for his dad to get home.

Dembe spent much of the morning sleeping whilst I did some embroidery in the kitchen.

He was very excited when his dad came home at lunch time. He has been bringing his dad his carrot over the last few days when he gets home. Dembe loves his walk around the block at lunch time as he gets to meet some of his doggy friends and adoring humans.

If I thought Dembe was excited at lunch time he was mental at 4pm when Jay got home. Jumping from sofa to sofa and doing spins in mid air.

After his walk he was much more sedate. playing with his Ducky.

Tuesday 27th October

Jay is day off today all day rather than just half a day like he was last week. We don’t have Obedience training this evening which is weird. We are back on 3rd November.

I had a doctors appointment this morning, so we took Dembe down the town with us so that he could have some environmentalisation training, with loud noises, more people etc. He coped really well. He got lots of attention as he always does, a few pats and cuddles from people and lots of lovely compliments on how well behaved he was etc.

When I got out of the doctors you would have thought I had been gone for years as he was so pleased to see me.

In the evening Dembe and Jay had a massive play time. Dembe loves it when Jay lies on the floor, he is very gentle and never stomps all over him. He will groom Jay and nibble his ears and nose. They play tug with whichever toy that Dembe wants to play with. This evening it was the grey dinosaur.

Wednesday 28th October

Jay was on the late shift today at work so Dembe was very happy to have us both home for the morning. I wasn’t very well first thing so I ended up going back to bed. Dembe came back up to bed with me and lay his head on my chest to comfort me. He is so very gentle. We stayed like that for about an hour whilst I dozed.

When I was downstairs Dembe was very keen to keep an eye on me. He does like to sleep either next to me on the sofa or on the opposite sofa in a position where he can see if I move or on the floor by my feet.

Dembe was picked up by Martin for his walk up on the common. Today he had the company of a little dog called Leo. They know each other from Obedience training so it was nice for Dembe. They managed to avoid the rain but he got very muddy so he needed a wash off. I am so pleased we got him the Ruff and Tumble drying coat as it makes drying him so much easier. He is such a good boy for me and makes it easy for me to get the coat on him.

Dembe had me in stitches this evening as he was so desperate to sleep near my feet he ended up sleeping with his head on the coffee table shelf. That was a first.

Thankfully Dembe did a poo on his walk so Jay didn’t have to come home to take him around the block. Dembe was starving when he got home from his walk. To lessen the risk of bloat I left his dinner for around 90 minutes before feeding him. He polished it all off.

We then had our usual PDP as Jay and I call it, his post dinner play! He was going mental chucking his toys around. We have this every evening for around an hour and then Dembe settles down for the night.

Thursday 29th October

Dembe woke up at around 5.30am. Jay took him out for a walk at around 5.45 and as soon as they came back Dembe ran straight upstairs to check on me. He settled straight back down and went to sleep. He is so good in that respect he knows that is the routine.

Dembe is being a right barky bob this week as across the road there are builders working. They are in and out of the house opposite and walking up and down the drive. So obviously Dembe has to bark at them to let them know that he lives here and it is his street. I don’t know if because I haven’t been having a great week health wise that it has made him hyper vigilant but I am getting a bit cross with the constant barking. Why do I have to own the noisiest Labrador?

He isn’t very happy with me this morning as I have run out of his favourite Denta stix. Now I know these are utter sticks of crap but he has had them since he was a puppy and he loves them. The rest of the time his diet is top notch, so I am cutting myself some slack. Anyway I have a very put out pup, who keeps sitting in front of the Denta stix cupboard casually dropping the hint that yet again I am a shit parent. Cheers for that Dems.

Dembe has been watching me like a hawk all week as I haven’t been feeling all that well. I have worked out it is one of my medications, the dosage is too high for me and is leaving me feeling drunk and disorientated. Poor Dembe has been working overtime watching out for me and keeping me safe.

Just a silly boomerang video of Dembe from Thursday evening

Friday 30th October

Jay was on a late shift again this week so Dembe thoroughly enjoyed having his pack all with him again.

Martin picked him up and took him out for another walk on the common with his mate Leo. If you are on Facebook you can find the videos here https://www.facebook.com/pg/happydogs.uk/videos/?ref=page_internal They are fantastic video’s and you can see that Dembe is having a wonderful time on his walks. We have been brave and said that Dembe can be off the lead, so he spends a lot of the walk off the lead now. He has had quite a bit of training on the walks as he has had to walk past Cows, Ponies, other dogs and groups of Royal Marines doing training up there. He has handled it all brilliantly.

He got home absolutely pickled in mud, so he had to have a quick clean off outside and then into his drying coat. Martin had given him a quick hose off before popping him in the van but Dems always manages to produce more mud from god knows where. He was a very good boy for me again helping me getting his drying coat on him.

We had a relaxing evening after a bit of a stressful afternoon.

We had an earlyish night and Dembe settled down really well for me.

Saturday 31st October

Today Dembe and I have been getting little jobs done around the house ready for the start of the birthdays, first mine and then Jays. Dembe is very excited as he knows that there will be naughty treats to be had.

As soon as his dad left for work this morning, despite the fact I was up, Dembe went back up to bed ….his dad’s bed

I only say him when he came downstairs demanding his frozen kong. He didn’t want his breakfast until gone 10.30am today. He is a fickle little sod sometimes.

I was taking a photo of hims when my friend Leanne pulled up outside

Leanne delivered our present of a Chocolate buttons Cheesecake! It is huge. Dembe thought the concept of a cake made of cheese was an excellent idea but he wasn’t very happy when he realised due to the chocolate he couldn’t have it.

His dad came home for lunch and whilst he was here some birthday cards were posted through the door. I opened the door to say thank you and it was my friend Gill with her black Labrador Dexter. So we let the boys greet each other, Dexter wandered straight into the house and promptly helped himself to one of Dembe’s ( many) cow’s ears! It was hilarious. Dembe and Dexter are both so good that there is no need to panic. Dembe was far to busy getting fuss from Gill to care about the fact one of his cows ears had been stolen. So that was really nice as I hadn’t seen Gill for a little while due to the Covid situation.

This afternoon we have been chilling out.