Week 12 with Usher

Well its moving time and Usher spent a few days with a Guide Dogs Boarder.  He had a fantastic time as you can see by the photographs. I took all his bedding and his crate, plus his food and toybox. The lady boarding him, Jane, wrote down all about his normal routine, the amounts of food he had and any little quirks that she should know about. I set up Usher's crate and waved goodbye. He was not bothered at all, I felt like I had my left arm removed!

It was best for the dogs to be out of the house whilst we moved, there were so many opportunities for the dogs to either escape out of the front door or get upset with all the changes that were going on and I just wanted them to be having fun somewhere. My other dog Alfie was with a dog sitting friend of mine.

When I went to collect Usher, three days after we moved, I was a bit apprehensive, had he howled all night, had he not eaten anything, had he pulled on the lead? I need not had worried, Jane said that he had been as good as gold and that she had really enjoyed taking him out twice a day to the local shops for a walk. We sat and had a long natter about dogs in general in her wonderful kitchen (complete with Aga and hot scones yum) before I bought him home in the car. It is good for Usher to get used to being with other people. If he goes into further training then he will have to get used to forming a really strong attachment to his trainer and then with his new owner. Bittersweet for me, but I know that is what is going to happen.

When I bought Usher into the house I made sure that we went straight back into our normal routine. He was a bit bemused at first, running around and around, and sniffing everything. He is however very impressed with the much larger garden and spent a while throwing his squeaky hedgehog into the air and then running after it. Our other garden was so small he could not get much of a speed up!

He did not sleep very well on the first night home, but then neither did the rest of us, after all its wierd waking up in a new house, you wonder where you are for the first few seconds. By the second night though he was sleeping like a baby.