Descent of the Wooden Hill

Hmmm - where did the last week go?  Well, in some ways it's been very busy, and in others a bit lazy.  The weather hasn't helped in any way.  Rain, rain, more rain and to add insult to injury, even more rain.  Yes, we do live on the west coast of Scotland, but for October this is just crazy.  And there is snow down to 1000ft on the mountains, so it is getting colder, too.

River continues to grow and her character is showing more and more.  She is very affectionate and quite gentle even in her puppy ways - at least with humans.  Playing with Talulah she is quite a ruffian, and it's good that she has the outlet for a bit of rough and tumble.  I always thought that Talulah would have been a rubbish mother as she is so dippy and as mad as a hatter, but she is proving to be a fantastic nanny. 

I'llllllll get ya!

Leapfrog

One thing I have realised, though, is that I haven't really played with River enough - for play she goes to Talulah.  She sees me as a source of affection and FOOD!  Yes, food is definitely first on her list of likes.  And interestingly, when she wants to go to sleep, she comes to me and lies close by.  Tussock has always slept under the desk whilst I work, and now River seems to be copying her.

Taking up Hovawart position

 Talulah seems a more complex dog than I ever gave her credit for - she is showing me more about her own character in her interactions with River - teaching her how to play in different ways, teaching bite inhibition - for the latter, I think I can honestly say that River hasn't yet nipped me, which for a puppy is pretty good going.    And yesterday, she was teaching River how to dig......just as long as they don't do it in this garden!!  But she is also quite jealous - if the little one goes off to speak to Sisko or plays a little with Tussock she gets quite uppity.  And it seems that to play with her myself, I must first exclude Talulah from the room.

Now, you do it like this.....

Now you try.....

That's it - you've got it!

 We had a lovely walk in the sunshine yesterday (a brief appearance!).  We went to take buckets to the ponies, and stood for ages waiting for them to come down off the hill.  In that time Sisko sunbathed, and the others played around.  River took a cue from Talulah and did a mad run round - except she hit a bump in the ground and went rolling down the hill. 

Who are you watching?

Ah, you want entertainment?!

She hides in the rushes and likes to ambush the others when she thinks they aren't watching.

Waiting for a victim

Ambush!

Another curious behaviour of Talulah's is her diving onto the ground. She learned long ago that it is easier to dive and roll when Tussock comes in for a body slam, and she is already doing that with River - rather like a playful parent "falling to the ground" after an attack from a toddler.

You bump into me........

............and I'll pretend to fall over.........

..........and roll right over...........

Ha ha ha - wasn't that fun?!

The stairs are something that have made me chuckle - I have been carrying her up and down every morning and night to protect her joints, and also just because they are quite steep and she was so small.  However, I can now give her a shove up - hand under her bum and push whilst she runs with her front legs - she looks like one of those wind up toys!  Coming down is even funnier.  The first time she stood at the top of the stairs she backed off barking at them - she was frightened of the wooden hill - and quite rightly, they are steep enough to make me hold on to the banister when I go down!  She would wait until I picked her up, but now she has discovered she can get down on her own - in a fashion.  You know those barking toy dogs that jump up and down on all four legs?  She's like one of them - she bounces her way down with a bark of defiance at each and every step.  I'll have to see if I can catch it on video to put up for you.

Anyway, it'll soon be time to climb that same wooden hill and she will go through her latest routine -take up residence on Sisko's bed, be turfed off so Sisko can go in, get back on there with him, then when the lights go out, come and settle down on the bed next to my bed.  She has elected to sleep there now, rather than on the bed - for the most part anyway.

Sisko makes a good hot water bottle

But mummy tucks me in!