Introducing Usher

Well we have a new arrival! His name is Usher and he was born on the 23rd November 2009. His Golden Retriever mum is called Tess and his black Labrador dad is called Peter. Usher was meant to come to us on the 6th January, however due to the freezing cold weather and the snow, his arrival was delayed until the 13th January. He now weighs 5.54 kg at 7 weeks and 2 days old.

My Puppy Walking Supervisor brought Usher to me together with all his paperwork, there was his health card, guidance on what to do if he had an upset tummy due to travelling, his little bag of food, wormers and anti flea treatment, a blanket that smelt of his litter for comforting purposes and two letters from his Brood Bitch Holders (that is the name given to the people who help bring all these puppies into the world, they look after the special dogs that are chosen to breed new Guide Dog pups). On reading the letters, it appears that Usher has had a bit of an adventure already! When he was born, Usher was one of 11 little wriggly puppies. It was Tess's first litter, so she had an awful lot to deal with. Nearby another dog called Sassy had just one puppy, so when they were four days old it was decided to move three of Ushers litter over to Sassy to foster and bring up as her own. This helped both new mums and for Sassy's single pup, help her learn puppy rules and have other pups to play with. Its a very special dog that will take others to foster, especially at four days old, it just goes to show just how much care and time is taken by Guide Dogs right from the start.

In Ushers litter there are: (boys) Umber, Pedro, Ushka, Uri, Uska and Usher (girls) Flora, Molly, Becky, Ushie and Unis (the names that don't begin with 'U' are pups where their names have been chosen by their sponsors).

Moved over to Sassy was: Umber, Usher and Uri. Sassy's own puppy is called Vania.

Well Usher is a very smart looking puppy, his coat is deep black and incredibly shiny, with eyes that sparkle with mischief, huge paws (oh dear, he's got to grow into those!) and he is quite chunky in an Andrex puppy sort of way. His tail seems to have a mind of its own and has this habit of wiggling around as he runs. He is quite vocal, but instead of barking, he 'talks' in whines and howls and little yips.