Lucky Dip

I’m stumped with the puppy-picking palaver. Sorry guys, I think when you get down here I will just put the little beggars in a sack, randomly pull them out one at a time, and that’s what you’ll be stuck with.

I’m playing around with all sorts of “tests”, and the little sods do something different every time.

Eg yesterday- the morning roll-call resulted in CM + LM being the first to arrive + the most spunky.

Finding the way out of the pen (through a small gap in the opposite direction)- line honours won by IG and BB, with Midget on their heels (CM was too busy trying to bash SS in one corner, LM was away with the fairies in the IKEA tunnel). SS boy got merit points later for persistence, when he nearly chewed through the weld mesh before figuring it out.

Going for a walk up the hill with the big dogs- SS boy all the way! Most of them were happy to gallivant through the bush, but CM and LM didn’t want to leave the yard. Tired?

Later in the day- the noise-sensitivity tests. I dropped a wooden plank on the baby dogwalk, and a metal bowl on the concrete, at random intervals during their afternoon play sessions. The winners: CM, SS and Midget, none of whom were much bothered. All of them startled, stopped to look at the source of the noise, and then either jumped on it or continued with whatever they were trashing/harassing- even when they were right next to the noise. IG didn’t much like it, and after startling, went off to play somewhere else. LM was the most spooked by each noise. Can’t remember what BB did, so it can’t have been very dramatic either way. To be honest, I’m not sure that I’m not just testing the tiredness of each pup- because they do seem to alternate between winning/losing on tests depending on how tired they are. It will be hard to get any real idea based on one set of tests…

One other thing I will say- these pups can yell.

Photos will be uploaded later, when I have recharged the camera so I can offload pics.

Update: just repeated the tin bowl on concrete, and again, CM + SS boy were happy to investigate, but IG wasn’t so keen. She really moves so nicely, though, and she is pretty…

And they’ve all been having bones on the lawn, alongside Muddy and Bill. My “wish-I-had-a-camera” moment of today- IG harassing Bill, FINALLY got snotted (in a mild Uncle-Bilby way), and started that indignant puppy squealing that brought everyone rushing out to check she hadn’t been mortally wounded- and there she was, bouncing along behind Bill, tail waving gaily, still squealing like a stuck pig. Sigh…