Socialising Puppies

I was driving home last night and got a call from a local number I didn't recognise. When I rang back I was met with this conversation.

"Hi, I'm a friend of your neighbour's. I'm just checking in to see whether or not you've got your puppies back yet."

Me: "Huh?"

"You have two wolfhound dogs right?"

Me: "Yeees... but I wasn't aware they were missing!"

"Oh. Whoops!"

Me: "I better ring and check with my husband to see what's going on."


A quick call to the hubby, and I find out that the two mischief makers went wandering while he was busy chainsawing. He had left them off lead, trusting them to stay close to him while he worked.

*shakes head*

"I didn't think they'd wander off like that!"

*sigh*

Luckily about twenty minutes later I got a call asking if I was the owner of two dogs called Fred and Elsie.

So off I went to collect my two wayward puppies and meet another set of neighbours.


When I went to pick up the truants, the minute I saw them and said hello they shot over to me. Elsie practically lay sideways across my feet while Fred sat near me while I petted him and thanked their rescuers for finding them.


It turns out that the puppies had wandered onto the main road and were luckily picked up by this particular set of neighbours. She'd been driving home and spotted them. She'd noticed both dogs looked a bit lost and that they were following her, even when she slowed down. Worried that they'd both be run over she stopped and let them into the car.

I feel very grateful that she did this, because it's lambing season and a farmer could very well unknowingly shoot them before checking to see whether or not they were domestic or wild doggies.

The puppies are now safe and sound in their pen and hubby knows better than to let them off lead when he's out and about. And he wonders why I make a point of walking them on lead around the property or constantly calling them when I lose sight of them. *shakes head*

I'm lucky that these two puppies have such lovely temperments and that their rescuer owned dogs before. Not everyone will let an unknown dog get into their car. I was speaking to a work colleague and she pointed out her blue heeler cross isn't friendly with strangers and wondered if he'd wandered off, whether he'd growl at someone offering to pick them up rather than meekly hopping into the back seat.

My two puppies being the friendly boofers that they are ended up spending the evening helping my neighbours feed their horses and do general farmwork. Apparently Elsie even licked my neighbour's face =/ Least someone was having a good time while hubby fretted at home. *shakes head*

On the plus side, at this rate I'm going to be known as the wolfhound lady, and meet all my neighbours through these two mischief makers. Perhaps that's their real reason for wandering off all along.

"Mum, you need to socialise more and meet your neighbours. Here... let me help you. We'll just go and find some people we don't recognise and get you to meet them."

So really, they're just doing it for me.