Here I am all grown up, a proper lady now, although my mum doesnt think so cos I keep flirting with the boys down by the river. Speaking of which I am not allowed to paddle any more as every time I go in I get horrible itchy skin. Mum has to keep washing it and putting yukky cream all over it to stop the itch. Im not allowed off my lead at the moment as I am in season but that will only be for three weeks then I will be able to play with my friends again.
I have a lovely home, with Janet and Richard. I get a treat every time Richard has been to a football match, as they have an indian takeaway afterwards. I usually get one popadom but since someone called the "messiah" came, Richard has been in a much better mood after the match and I have occasionally had 2 popadoms. Haway the Lads!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A True Newfie picture
Something strange is going on. My human has been taking loads of bags out to the car including one full of my towels. She is busy putting some of my bonio’s, poo bags, a chew, ted and bowls and water in a plastic box. Then he put my sack of dog food in the car as well. The back seat of the car is full.
Now I might sound a bit concerned, but the last time this happened we had a different car and all the stuff went in the boot and I went on the back seat, but then a few days ago he came home with a different car and I am expected to go in the back door and not on the back seat. I was very unsure about this at first and cowered when he shut the door but have decided that even though I’m not as close to my humans I actually have more room. I can even stand up if I want to, and if they leave me for any length of time I can lie down and have my water dish. But get this I can even sit looking out of the back window because it’s flat instead of sloped and I often wonder what the humans in the cars behind think when they see me looking at them. Well we had a journey longer than if we’re just going to the sea.
The last time we did this we stayed away overnight and I had to either sleep in the same room as my humans or lie in the adjoining bathroom on a wooden floor. It was a bit strange not having my bed under the table, even though I have to duck my head down because I really am too big now, I still think it’s the best place to go to bed. We saw lots of different places, lots of different smells, loads of water and lots of humans in rubber suits. It was all so strange that I decided not to eat until I came home; apart from the sausages a kind man gave me after the humans had their breakfast.
I figured out we were going to the same place. My humans have been going to St Abbs for 25 years and have taken both my predecessors with them. They used to have a caravan on a farm but since the farmer retired they now do Bed & Breakfast. I like the sound of that, especially the breakfast bit.
Apparently we’re going to be here for a few days and it’s something to do with all the rubber suits but I’m not sure what yet.
So I knew where my room was and we went and spread my blankets over the floor and draped some towels over some white chairs. Room hair proofed, so off we went to the beach. There’s a private path down from the hotel and I know the way. Unfortunately they had to put my lead on as we got to the sandy stuff. It was so hot that the beach was packed with lots of humans in not many clothes and lots of dogs. My humans took me straight to the water to cool off and splash around. After one slurp I remembered that I’m not supposed to drink this water unlike the river it’s salty.
We then met some of my human’s pack who are on holiday. Robert is 11 and loves to hold my lead but his mother stays well away from me when I’m wet. All the humans had something to eat and I had to lie down on the sand. Robert went off with my travelling water bottle and bowl to fill them at the spring and thankfully didn’t spill too much on the way back.
We went a different way back to the hotel, via the spring so that I could get all the sand rinsed out of me.
I could get used to this holiday thing. Wake a human at 6, get taken to the garden for the necessary, then back to bed for an hour or so. Then it’s down to an empty beach for a run and splash around. While the humans have breakfast I lie in my car, then it’s my turn for food, back in the room. I am having no problems eating here this time because I get a couple of sausages and scrambled eggs with my usual fare, don’t think this will continue when I get home.
Once they’re ready and she’s packed her bag with my water, bowl, poo bags and towel it’s off for a walk to the harbour to see what the rest of the pack are up to.
Nearly every human I see at the harbour are wearing rubber suits and carrying loads of equipment. Some are messing around with boats on the slip. Having been here before I know this is the best place for me to get in the water and have a swim. I can see my humans have brought my new float; I lost the last one because after one short little swim they threw it too far and I decided not to fetch it.
The thing is I know I can swim and I love getting wet. I’ve swum twice, but I’m not sure that I like it. Well it was hot so I played along while they threw my float in the water and kept bringing it back. Then he threw it that bit too far and I knew I would have to swim. It didn’t matter how much they encouraged me and tried to egg me on, I just didn’t want to swim. Luckily there was a lady in a rubber suit next to a boat and she brought it back for me. Not so daft am I, if humans are going to do the work.
I know my humans were disappointed, apparently both my predecessors loved to sswim even just for the pleasure of it. They also both swam with the humans, fetching them out of the water.
Now I was nice and cool it was decided that the pack would go snorkelling. My female had to stay with me and the other one doesn’t like water !! So my pack leader, his brother and two kids put on rubber suits and off we went around the harbour walls. The idea was to climb over the wall and snorkel to the harbour entrance to take photos with an under water camera. I was a bit concerned when they all went over the wall because it was too high for me to see over so we land lubbers walked around to where they would all come out. The sight that greeted me when I got there was a bit odd. There were about 8 humans in the water with lots of equipment. Some were actually under the water, but I couldn’t see my pack. I clambered over the rocks down to the edge with my human and started investigating, whilst paddling. After a few moments I heard my pack leader shouting my name, he was in the sea, swimming towards me. I cautiously edged my way in deeper to get closer until I was up to my belly. I think he wanted me to swim out to him but; it was obvious that he didn’t need help so I just waited until he got to me.
That afternoon it was back to the beach. Both my humans put on rubber suits and waded out into the sea. They thought if they were both out there that I was bound to swim out to them. Wrong. There was no danger I was nice and cool so I just play bowed them in the water. But, hey I’m still young and I might get the idea eventually. Now when people ask her what I am she replies a Newfoundland of the Non-Swimming Variety. The cheek of it !
As you have gathered I live in the country near a river and there are loads of different walks. The trouble is I have been a bit of a scaredy pants at times since I came to live here and I prefer some walks to others.
My absolute favourite is on the Southside of the river, where there is lots of open land, several tracks, rabbit warrens, gorse bushes and of course the river. While I was small I always got taken there in the car because my humans decided it was too far to walk from the house and have a good run around and explore.Now I’m big I often walk there and back. I also like going to the nearby field to play fetch or just wander around and sniff or play with other dogs. In the beginning my humans liked to take me to lots of different places but some of them I just don’t like. Take for instance this side of the river. It’s the first place I went in the car for a proper walk and where I met the horse thing. They like to walk there and there is good easy access to the river, but I find it a bit frightening because it’s quite enclosed. There are two tracks running parallel to the river divided by lots of bushes and trees. One track has a fence running the length of it with fields on the other side. It can also be very noisy down there especially when it’s very windy with the trees, noisy wood-pidgeon’s and pheasant’s. I am always braver if both my humans are with me, but one day she insisted on taking me there on our own. I was minding my own business sniffing when two black Labradors came up behind me. So I turned tail and jumped the fence into the field. She was amazed that I could jump so high without a run. Ok so when I got a second look from the safety of the field these Labradors were quite grey around the muzzle and rather slow and probably just wanted to see whom I was. There was a drop on the other side of the fence so even if I knew what she wanted I couldn’t jump back. So she climbed over into the field and put me on the lead and we set off to find a gate. There was one pretty close that led back to the path but it was all tied and had huge stones and logs blocking off the big gap along the bottom. I know I could have squeezed through if she could only have shifted them. There was nothing else to do but to look for another gate. She was worried though because it was right up at the top of the field and there were some white baa-ing things up there. Also it was too long a walk for me at the time. We were just starting to go in that direction when a human appeared whose garden backed onto the field near the unusable gate and he had a small gate into his garden that we could go through to get out. He had to move some junk out of the way and we would have to go through his garden and garage but it would be much better for me than a huge walk. I thought he was very kind until I got into his garden and there were the two Labradors who had caused the problem in the first place. I was really brave on my lead and actually went up to them and sniffed them and they were ok.
Another time we went don the narrow bit a spotted dog and its friend were following us when for no reason the black one ran up to me barking and went for me for no reason. I’m talking teeth barred and growling here. So I took off down the path. When she eventually caught me I was trembling and my tail was so far up between my legs you would have thought I didn’t have one. The human with the nasty dog caught us up and said she had seen us ahead and let the dog off because he was better with other dogs off the lead than on. Really I would hate to meet it on the lead, and am sure it is just nasty, how many male dogs go for a lovely bitch like me.
Next time she tried to take me that way I took the lead in my mouth and planted my feet and refused to move. I am finding that this sometimes works if I don’t want to go somewhere but not always.
As I wont always be able to go where I want and am braver with both humans they decided I had to go back down the narrow way. I tried the lead in the mouth trick and planting feet trick but he was a bit more persistent so I reluctantly went past the attack place. Ok once you get past the narrow bit it’s ok down there and I got off the lead for a bit run around and sniff, but was still very wary, but I might get used to it because I can get into the big moving paddling pool very easily.
DOES MY BUM LOOK BIG IN THIS? 
I DONT CARE HOW COLD YOU ARE, I'M NOT COMING IN. 
Well I am a bit confused, sometimes my name is Arwen, other times madam and finally daddy’s princess. I like the last one. My humans have had Newfs before but both males, and apparently my human pack leader is treating me much softer than the “ boys” and I am in danger of being spoilt. The trouble is he is out most of the day, but often pops back for visits whereas she is in all the time and that is where the madam comes in. An example of that is when she let me out early one morning the humans face was rather angry because I had a nibble at the skirting boards in the kitchen through the night. Well what do they expect.
Ever since the first night I came here I have gone to bed, under my table, and never made a sound until they open the door in the morning. As long as I get my bedtime bonio which they were taught to do at bedtime by my previous humans.
But hey do they realise how many new teeth I had to get. Ok so I had a really good go at every skirting board in the kitchen over a few nights. They didn’t get too angry, I think they half understood but boy did they get their revenge, once I started on the plaster above. It tasted awful. They got a spray thing called crib stop and sprayed everywhere. I had to laugh when she made a sandwich after spraying then washed her hands and had to throw the sandwich in the bin. Serves them right now they know what it tastes like.
I’ve got a friend called Tess. She’s a rather overweight Labrador cross. My human asked her to come to our door to meet me when I first came here because I was so shy. She was the first dog I played with and made me a bit more confident. After that she tried to introduce me to some other dogs. Some I ‘m ok with but others I hide behind my humans. It’s the ones who bark at me that I hide from most. It’s a bit like running up to me shouting for know apparent reason, rather impolite and a bit scary. There are 2 whippets brother and sister, the female always runs up barking so I hightail it away. Her brother just wants to play, but there are 2 of them and only one me. The whippets humans and my humans decided we should meet under more controlled circumstances so we met on our leads and I got to sniff them properly and vice versa. Then we met with them off their leads but me on mine which felt safer, I knew my humans would look after me. We gradually got more used to each other and now when I see them I often play with them. I try my hardest but I can never catch them.
Ok I better introduce myself, my name is Arwen, I’m one of Ruby’s pups, sister to Dooley, Cassie, Jessie & Ollie. Woof I’m a Priorscove Newfoundland.
I came to live in Corbridge with my humans when I was 13 weeks old leaving behind all I’d ever known. It was a bit frightening at first, I had no one to cuddle up to at night and particularly missed Jessie and the terrible twins. So the humans gave me a big stuffed toy to cuddle up to, at least it didn’t wriggle or nip. I decided that under the kitchen table was my favourite place to sleep so they put me a blanket there, my big soft toy and “ ted” that Aunty Maddie gave me when I left home.
I thought it was pretty frightening at first especially when my humans tried to take me “ outside” So I took a little while sitting at the front door watching the world go by.
When I finally decided I was brave enough to have a wander they put this thing around my neck and told me I was a clever girl and was going for a walk. Hang on I know how to walk, I don’t need this thing around my neck so I took it in my mouth and backed back in the door. So we had a bit more of this and clever girls so I thought ok I’d keep them happy and see what they wanted.
When your only 13 weeks everything is strange and new and a bit scary but this walk thing was ok as long as they were on the other end of the lead thing in case I got frightened.
We started slowly because I wasn’t allowed to go very far at first to make sure I didn’t over exercise and spoil my fast growing bones and to get me used to all the new sights and sounds. Often going for short walks and just sitting watching and listening to the big wild world.
One thing I love is my car it takes me to places I don’t have to walk to and I get out and then do the walk thing. I get to sit on my own blanket behind the humans and they even give me drinks of water in it if I’m thirsty. We were at a new place the other day when the biggest “ dog “ I had ever seen came clomping past. Luckily they hadn’t shut my car door so I managed to jump back in before it got too close. It had a very strange long face and was enormous, I later found out it was a “ horse”. Since then I have seen quite a few of these beasts and a lot of other strange looking creatures on T V. I’ve tried looking around the back of it but can’t work out where they are coming from so I usually run up to it and bark at them. My human has now started leaving the T V on with loads of animal programmes, so it’s not quite as exciting/ frightening any more so I just lie and watch.
I also love watching football, well I have to really because it seems to be on an awful lot. There is something about green grass, a ball and humans because golf also looks good.
The world does seem full of strange and different things. I was out this morning at the field and there was a strange thing whirling in the sky then all of a sudden it dive-bombed me making huge screeching noises. Well that was it I turned tail and fled. She kept shouting at me but to be honest I was I no mood to listen I was terrified. I ran for home, luckily although I’m only 5 months old I remembered where it was, ok in my panic I forgot I had to cross the street but when she eventually caught up I was sitting on the doorstep. She couldn’t get the door open quick enough for me and I hid under the kitchen table. She wasn’t very happy with me and kept going on about cars and the road, apparently some cars aren’t as friendly as ours and might try and drive into me !!!!
The weather has been very hot since I came here and I’ve discovered that they are very nice at giving me lots of water to play with. I’ve even got a paddling pool. Ok its not very big, it’s actually a plastic dog bed so I can’t get very deep but I have tremendous fun splashing and scooping up the water with my front feet onto my belly and back legs, I’ve even tried sitting in it but am getting too big. One thing I don’t understand is, why when she gets the hose or watering can out, it isn’t always for me but for these flower things, that I like to bite the heads off, she sometimes shuts me in the house when I try to help. When I tried to help with brushing the yard by pinching the brush, I was given an old one to play with, but I much prefer pinching the other one.
Well I’ve just seen what must be the biggest paddling pool in the world, but it moves fairly fast in one direction. It’s got these flappy quacky things floating on it and sometimes there are on the path. A lot of humans feed them bread so I may like to hang around there a bit. I tried dipping my feet in the moving water and got a bit braver after a few visits and went in up to my belly, it was so cool on a hot day. The thing is when I get home after that or when it’s raining I have to sit at the front door and get my feet washed with the watering can and have my feet dried. I love the attention though.
We went in my car today to see an even bigger pool today, it moved in a different way and kept coming towards me and tasted salty. I have never seen so many dogs in one place before and was a bit overwhelmed. But the water was nice to play in and kept me cool.
Another trip out today to meet Cassie and Dooley. When I saw the size of them and the noise Dooley made I was a bit frightened and hid behind my humans. Their humans are nice and were really pleased to see me, and seem familiar somehow. I got a little bit more confident after a while and ran off into the water, to get away from Cassie and Dooley. I am a bit shy and feel outnumbered with more than one dog at a time.
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