THAT little black bundle of mischief which bounced into our home eight months ago is almost one year old, and it’s hard to believe quite what an impact he’s had on our lives.
I’m not sure any of the puppy books spell out quite clearly enough to first-time dog owners exactly how big the change will be on every aspect of their daily routine.
Even after a couple of years of researching and planning, there’s nothing that can fully prepare you for the bombshell that’s about to explode in your household when that new puppy arrives.
And it’s not just a brief novelty, of course. This new arrival is going to be part of the family for 10-15 years or more…which perhaps helps to explain the tragic upsurge in the number of unwanted pets needing to be rehomed since the pandemic.
For a long time work and travel commitments made it impossible for us to even consider owning a dog.
That still allowed plenty of time to pore over The Complete Dog Breed Book, weighing up the potential merits of different breeds and narrowing down a top three, any of which might be perfect match.
We looked at gun dogs and terriers, hounds and crossbreeds, weighing up their various merits in terms of factors like cost, how much grooming and exercise they need and how well they respond to training.
We learned about breeds developed for their different skills and talents, from shepherding to guarding, hunting and retrieving.
We also thought long and hard about our own limitations: what size of pet could we cope with and afford, what habits would drive us mad? How much slobbering, yapping or moulting could we handle?
With hindsight, none of that early research was wasted, and it seems incredible that people will make such a momentous decision on a whim, sometimes with tragic consequences for both dog and human.
We’ve spoken to otherwise sane people who have driven to another part of the country in response to an online advertisement, family in tow, and “fallen in love with” an adorable puppy on the spot, with zero preparation or planning.
But at the other extreme, we’ve heard of experienced dog owners finding it impossible to rehome a rescue dog because they own a cat or fail to meet one of the other required criteria of stringent home checks.
Talking to breeders and existing owners helps, even if the advice can be contradictory at times. Round our way, almost everyone owns a dog, it seems: and seeing them all trotting neatly to heel may make you wonder just how hard it can be…
But then we also know from Graeme Hall’s Dogs Behaving Badly series just how nightmarish it can be to live with a dog that’s out of control, or whose barking, biting, jumping or pulling is causing major problems or posing a danger to others.
One Kennel Club study revealed that 10% of puppy owners said they bought their puppy on an impulse and 40% said they bought it because of the way it looked. Only one in 10 said they had actually checked that it actually suited their lifestyle.
As the work schedule becomes more flexible, it’s time to take a trip to Discover Dogs, we decide, the Kennel Club’s get-together where it’s possible to get face to face with dozens of different dogs and their owners and find out more about the realities of owning a particular breed.
Very helpful it is too in narrowing down our favourites and eliminating the many impractical or less appealing options. We see pointers and wolfhounds, terriers and retrievers… We know we’re not looking for a lapdog and we don’t want a hulking brute that will be too challenging to train or aggressive with children.
During the days and weeks that follow the show, the final choice becomes a lot easier. Much as we love the glorious colours of the Great Swiss Mountain Dog and the elegance of flat-haired retrievers, the black lab is winning out.
It’s not surprising that labrador retrievers have consistently been one of the most popular breeds in the country for decades: affectionate and lovable, they are lively and sociable, in many ways the perfect family pet.
But they can also be greedy and boisterous, destructive if left alone and very powerful. They are strong, active dogs that need daily exercise and obedience training, and can suffer from some scary hereditary diseases.
Is it really a viable choice in a household where one partner is suffering from long Covid and struggling to cope with many daily tasks?
Fully health-tested pedigree pups are also expensive, and older part-trained dogs even more so.
A much older pet could be a calmer option, but it’s hard to be sure about health problems in advance, and insurers won’t help if there’s a pre-existing condition you discover after you’ve made the commitment.
Despite all the qualms, when Dog Day finally arrives, the choice is simple, as I explained back in December.
But while Teddy is old enough to sleep through the night, the impact on our lives is immediate. Regular short walks, in all weathers, for a start. At dawn and dusk in the depths of winter, it’s not always a delight. And the house seems to be permanently covered in mud for what seems like an eternity, as the wet weather drags on into the New Year.
We were prepared for the walks, of course. But in much the same way that new parents ask incredulously why no one warned them about the lack of sleep and constant 121 attention they were about to encounter, we’re looking at all those well behaved dogs in the park wondering how on earth everyone has managed to effortlessly train such docile obedient souls.
The “cute puppy” period seems ridiculously short. Before we know it, Teddy’s twice the size and a truculent teenager. Still bouncy, curious and often adorable, but also stubborn, strong and keen to do things his way, with the accompanying boisterous bad habits we need to train him out of.
Of course like all proud dogparents we wouldn’t have it any other way. But as this hectic ball of energy approaches his first birthday, we’re not out of the woods yet when it comes to his training.
Give it time, it’s like a lightbulb being switched on, say some lab owners encouragingly. He’ll be calmer when he’s neutered, others advise sagely.
But we’re not trying to wish those precious months away. At the other end of the life cycle my sister and brother-in-law are mourning the loss of their faithful loving spaniel Megan after almost 16 years.
And an uncle writes from Scotland recalling another lost friend: “We sometimes still think she is here, stepping over her non-existent water bowl in the dark corner of the kitchen or imagining a dark shadow is her lying in your path. They have a hold on you long after they are gone.”
Well, whatever the future holds, Teddy’s here to stay. We have a long way to go and we’re learning all the time, but he’s part of the family now and we just hope he understands how firmly he’s managed to worm his way into our hearts.
